pellets ?

how do you dose vodka and what kind do you use and does it matter how much alcohol is in the vodka

 

Looks like the BRS is more $ by a few bucks, compared to WM ecoBak

 

People generally recommend going with 80 proof distilled. I started with vodka on my
Newer tank but the diatoms was simply terrible. Going the doser route is a pretty good idea, though it won't fix diatom blooms. Since the solid stuff doesn't dissolve, that is the biggest proponent for using it IMO. That and simply not needing to dose at all be it manually or mechanically. FWIW on a system around 200 g one can spend roughly $60 a year with the solid dosing and is theoretically worry free. IMO we spend plenty more money elsewhere. In many cases just running the tank for one month costsore than that in electricity!

 

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/index.php

 

thanks joel

 

I actually started dosing vodka after dealing with diatoms&hair algae for weeks.That was back in January,and tanks never looked better

 

Keep in mind, both of these methods are quite new. The pellets even newer than Vodka. What puzzles me with the pellets is how you apply the correct amounts. Supposedly damage can be done if you use too much carbon.
Bela, did you start dosing Vodka very slowly over several weeks with a proven formula or just go for it? I know many people over the years haven't had enough information (which is why I never attempted it) and have guessed. This was done a bunch with sugar and vodka with mixed results. Seeing as you start with .1ml per 25 gallons they are being VERY cautious. This is so new there is a bunch of different information out there. Some people have great luck and other have different type of biological blooms of one sort or another. The article I provided discusses this and how to deal with. Does it work, I don't know yet as I am only 1 week in. But with 500 gallons and very large carniverous fish I ahve quite a challenge going. Hopefully this will help in addition to keeping my de-nitrator clean..

 

Joel,
I used the recommended doses that were in that thread you posted. I did it for about three weeks and the diatoms just kept getting worse and worse. I stopped for about a week and yet have subsided about 90%. I won't blame the vodka necessarily, but it sure wasn't making things easier. I was up to about 1.2 ml per day on 200g water volume.

As to the pellets, I am only going with what I read but the reason it can't be overdosed is because it's not in the water column. The carbon source is only available to the bacteria that have actually colonized the pellet so the limitingfactor is the total surface area of the pellets. I suppose of you took a giant reactor and filled it with a couple liters of the pellets that would be a way to overdose.

Interestingly enough, talking to people on RC, everyone was shocked that I would rem consider doing anything for a fish only (referring to vodka here). I am almost certain that I won't be going to corals as there is the strong chance we will be moving cross country or even out of te country in two years, but I still don't want to raise a tank that can't support them. I also figured this was my chance to learn.

I'll probably try vodka (or maybe pellets) again a few weeks down the road and are I'd I get different results. All things considered te tank is still a baby (been cycled and the bacteria fed for about four months but only real livestock has been in there for about one). That could have been a large factor as well.

My apologies for typos as I'm sure there are some. Typing this out on my phone while on break /DesktopModules/ActiveForums/themes/_default//emoticons/wink.gif

 

Ahhh, that makes sense. I have not researched the pellets at all. So they work just like a nitrate reactor then. That also makes sense as to why they don't have as much effect on phosphates. Nitrogen gas can be released but phosphates have to be physically removed. From what I have read Vodka in water columnd chemically binds the phosphate and nitrate ions to "something" which are then removed by your skimmer. It doesn't sound like they actually know why, but skimmers go crazy. This is why a good skimmer is a must. So this may be a reason for actual carbon dosing over pellets???

 

Hey Marc - the pellets you're referring to are the Warner Marine EcoBak Biopellets. Just google em and they should come up

 

I hadn't read that. I guess I thought that the phosphates are consumed by the bacteria as well, only in more limited quantities than nitrates. I do know that skimmers skim thicker and darker with the pellets as well. Nit sure I have really seen a comparison to speak of. This binding process is something new to me. Any link as to where you read that? I'd love to give it a read. I'll try an search for it some time tomorrow.

 

Basicly the pellits work like this. Bacteria need three things to grow po4 no3 and carbon. In our tanks there is plenty of po4 and no3 but carbon is limmited. So my adding a carbon source you increase the available carbon and there my increse your bio mass. The extra bacterea then consume the po4 and no3. Some of the bactere will sloth off of the media and be consumed by corals or be skimmed out there by reduceing po4. Also I beleave the only threat of overdose would come from the bio mass growing to large and consumeing to much oxagen. This is my understanding of how it works.
-Bill

 

If you are using the biopellets do you still need to use gfo?

 

running GFO defeats the purpose of the pellets/vodka. The bacteria need po4 to live!

 

Many on RC are running both GFO and Carbon Dosing with good results. I would say it is too early to say you shouldn't run them together. But in theory you shouldn't need it. I am still running mine.
FD, you have been dosing Vodka for some time time now, how are the results? If I remember right your tank was doing pretty well before this. The Blasto and Lepestrea are still doing well that I got from you.

 

I started a new thread "my smirnoff adventure" I didnt want to steel this one. I stopped using GFO about a month or 2 after i started dosing. that was 8 months ago

 

Thought I would add that I was reading a bit the other day about people adding these pellets into their sandbeds and mxing them in. I am not terribly sure what prompted them to do this (maybe they didn't want to buy a rector?) Apparentl they are getting the same sorts of results as others. Not sure if I would want to add something in this manner. If, for whatever reason, it needs to be taken out, it would be a nightmare.

Just thought I'd share /DesktopModules/ActiveForums/themes/_default//emoticons/smile.gif

 

Interesting, but how would you know to add more?

 

I would like to add my 2 cents on a few things.

First, I highly doubt many reef tanks are "carbon" limited as it's secreted daily by corals, added by phytoplankton and by numerous other methods. What our tanks are limited by is water volume and biodivesity.

Adding a "carbon" source fuels bacteria growth which itself effects many things. More is not always better, corals and other marine life can die with elevated levels of TOC. Watch a Yellow Tang for example in bacterial blooms, abnormal behaivor, red lines in stomach area. Corals that are stressed will die, Vibrio, etc.

Polyp extension is not necessarily an indication of health, it's a sign of feeding. Many corals in the ocean only show polyp extension at night to feed.

It doesn't matter if it's Zeovit, Vodka, Sugar, Vinegar, VSV, Polymers, or Fauna Marin, they all use the same basic principle. Some are just more refined and have better guidlines for users. They all can lower no3, po4 levels to low levels. The reefkeeper needs to visually identify how THEIR tank is responding to WHATEVER method they use. Too much flow through a Zeo reactor can cause problems just as easily as dumping too much Vodka.

I hope those of you who are going to give "carbon" source dosing a shot share your experiences whether good or bad so others can see outcomes.

 

this thread prompted me to share my story. I know there are more out there that have tried it and I would also like to hear about your experiences. Good or bad.