Carbon

[purpleflower]

I have always thought that carbon filter media needed to be replaced, until i read in a post that you can clean it?.
i thought carbon soaked up chemicals and once its full it will slowly release all the cemicals killing the fish.

so my question is can I reuse a carbon sponge just by rinsing it under a tap?

 

[JenCliBee]

as far as im aware no once the carbon is used throw it away usually after 24-36 hours if i remeber ritely otherwise like u say releases wot it's caught back into ur tank


jen

 

[rdd1952]

Most of us don't use carbon at all. It is mainly a chemical filter and best used to remove medications from a tank. It is usually pretty much fully saturated in a day to 2 weeks. The beneficial bacteria will colonize it but you end up throwing your bacteria away every time you change it. I would suggest getting a good ceramic type media such as Seachem Matrix and use it instead of carbon.

On a side note, I recently cleaned out the cabinet where I keep all my supplies and found 47 packs of the carbon that comes with the Whisper filter cartridges and another larger pack that came with my Fluvals.

 

[Dorkhedeos]

You can recharge it, but itll be a lot easier to just buy new one. Carbon is recharged by exposing it to high temperatures. Im not sure of the exact technique, but its more trouble than its worth.

 

[purpleflower]

oh ok, thanks! I only use it for socking up medications.