Carbon use in the Discus tank - Good or Bad

[SoCalDiscus.com]

Okay yes, before anyone says look at google, I did. Some say it's okay, some say bad. I've used it for a long time for all my marine tanks but maybe there's something to it with Discus. With that being said when I googled as usual "SimplyDiscus" was there for me and I found this link http://forum.simplydiscus.com/archive/index.php/t-84043.html where nobody really felt either way about it and the synopsis of the chatter was that water changes occur so frequently that it's pointless.

Well, I'm going to thow a wrench in here and see what you experienced Discus guys and gals think.

I wasn't planning on setting up a filter on my breeder tanks but rather in an earlier thread I talked about the use of a salt-less water softener that I was thinking could be benneficial in breeding allowing more time for the sperm to enter the eggs (something I read here on SD was a good idea) not to mention my water is too high so I'm always buffering, etc. While reading the articles about the water softener I see they push a big add-on filter (basically a house sized micron pre-filter and big tank of carbon for the entire house)! Instead of constant runs to the water source store for RODI to balance things out, I thought this would be pretty cool considering I'd have it for every water change and yes, I do two water changes a day of 50-80% each.

So the system isn't for the aquariums as it is for the "replacement water" going into the tanks to provide hopefully more clean and softer water for all my breeding tanks.

Any ideas or suggestions? For under a grand it could be done for the entire house that would provide a big savings and the trouble of running out for water all the time to soften my harder water issues at home (I think)?

Money not being a factor - Would you do it and do you think it would work well for Discus? Yes / No / Undecided ?

Thanks,
Michael D Baker

[Tommy Saville]

My house water supply runs through a carbon filter that removes chlorine and associated chemicals. My UK water company doses with chlorine far too often. So I had the filter fitted because I hate the taste of chlorine in my coffee and I also want safer water for my fishes. The carbon cartridge needs renewing every 2 years. The water then goes from the kitchen's cold tap (only) through 2 more filters (nitrate-remover and heavy metal remover) into my storage barrel for water changes.
The expense was very worthwhile, in my opinion.

[Skip]

when you google..

after you have your key words.. add SIMPLY DISCUS to it also.. narrows it down to the more discus involved fish keepers

i have no carbon in any of my tanks

[Poco]

No carbon for me either.

[pastry]

you don't need it. do i have it? sometimes. but you don't need it. i don't believe in the whole carbon explosion of letting all the bad stuff back into the tank some day but at the same time i don't keep it in my canister for more than a few months to do anything crazy. makes my water a tad bit more clear but that's all. typically only use it now for clearing out meds if i have to. bottom line: i'm an idiot so pretty much i should never have it but i still do it once in a while when i want my tank extra clear since i'm not a daily WC'er.

[zimmjeff]

I used to but now I don't. Jeff

[sandy]

Never use carbon in my tanks too

Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

[aalbina]

I use a carbon and resin block filtration system for water going into my storage barrel. Then I age, heat and aerate it and use it for water changes every two days.

Adam

[DLock3d]

I stopped using carbon on all of my tanks awhile back. I felt like it was stripping too many minerals from my water.

[SoCalDiscus.com]

To all hobbyists: Thanks for all the input but that's exactly what I was addressing and probably wasn't super clear. I fully understand a carbon filter on a discus tank when you are doing water changes daily like we all do is pointless and to that I agree. A few of you caught on to what I was saying and that was to put in my house like Tommy Saville said he did "well worth the expense" so that the water you replace into your tank at each water change has "already" gone through a full "pre-filtering process" of micron filters, DI reson and a huge tank that looks like it would hold a good 150 lbs of carbon. I spoke with the company today and they only use high grade coconut carbon which is what I prefer for fish tanks as well but again, this is for the "whole house". Thus, it would be used for my replacement water compared to raw, unfiltered municipal water going into the tank. I put Novaqua Plus in my tank at every water change of course to cut back the Chlorine and Chloramines in our water but this would help nearly eleminate the need to do that and who knows, there may be a backlash to adding a slime protective coating to your breeder tanks that could cover up the food source of slime coming from our breeder discus to the fry (just guessing)???

DLock3d: For me, I add Vitamins and Trace Elements to all my food frozen or dry and let them soak before adding them to feed my fish so I'm probably okay and better off stripping the water of unwanted metals and bi-product waste and replacing what I know is good into their diet like I've been so use to doing for years in my reef tanks which are extremely sensitive (actually deadly) when even the smallest amounts of copper are introduced to the tank and normal in common tap water.

I'm not worried about a release of bi-products from the carbon once it's all used up because it has a computer on the system that tells me exactly when to change the carbon out before it's completely used up so it's not the same as leaving a canister running on a tank.

I'm kind of siding with DLock3D here and think I'm going to blow the grand it'll cost to install. I think it'll be worth it but I'll keep constant test results and will report back here for everyone to see so we might all learn something new using it from that point of entry on our replacement water and not on the tank as a revolving filter like the normal tank. However it goes, good or bad it should be useful information.

Thanks for all the input guys (and gals).

Michael

p.s. If anyone else has any comments, please post and everyone feel free to keep voting. I'd like to see where this goes in how people feel about the idea. Thanks!!!!

[BoiseDiscusGuy]

Not necessary...If one keeps up on their wc's, there wont be enough organic matter that would facilitate the need for carbon.

[chaser2430]

I stopped using it, water quality has been just as good or better.

[Keith Perkins]

Michael - it really depends on your water source. For most people its probably not necessary, but I do use one as I was having some water issues that dechlor just wasn't taking care of. One of the truly knowledgeable discus and water chemistry people here suggested this to me. http://www.home-water-purifiers-and-filters.com/pentek-cbr2.php

[TURQ64]

My couple of cents..I use no carbon per se in any tanks. WC's make it unnecessary. That said, I start with water that has been thru five RO units, so my 'carbon footprint' is spendy!....

[jimg]

carbon is good to use in aquariums but with the amount of wc's we do it is sort of impractical. the more water that is changed in an aquarium the more carbon is needed/used, not less. I use it to treat all water that enters my house.

[SoCalDiscus.com]

That's exactly where I was going with it Jimg, I was talking about using it on a household system for water entering the home and not on the aquarium itself.