Seachem Purigen

[julielynn47]

Does anyone have any opinions on Seachem Purigen?   I am wondering just how good this stuff works. If it works as good as the kudos for it state I am thinking about getting some for the canister filter on the 75 gallon I am setting up.
 
I read some reviews that stated it circumvented the nitrogen cycle.  Which is why I have not gotten it so far for my 55 gallon.  So now I am wondering is this true? Is it not? Does the stuff really work?  
 
Any and all thoughts on the product are appreciated
 
 

 

 

[Byron]

Unless you have an issue (problem), I wouldn't waste your money on chemical filtration products.  If memory serves me, you have plants.  Purigen does remove organics and nutrients, though minimally according to Seachem.

 

[AbbeysDad]

In the unplanted tank, the Purigen resin will trap organic compounds. I'm a little uncertain if it really works much better than a polyester filter floss polish. It is also unclear to what degree this actually reduces nitrogenous conversion. In any event it does aid in crystal clear water and is rechargeable many times with chlorine bleach (50/50 chlorine bleach/water).
 
However, as Byron points out, the organic compounds (micro detritus) are in fact organic fertilizer for your plants so in the planted tank, extracting them from the water column is somewhat counter productive.

 

[julielynn47]

That is what I was thinking too.  I just came across and it looks like a great thing. I probably could have used it when I had the black algae bloom. I needed all the help I could get then.  But why would anyone want to use something that could damage their biological filtration?   I guess you could use it in place of cycling your tank. But I think a cycled tank is the way to go. 

 

[AbbeysDad]

That is what I was thinking too.  I just came across and it looks like a great thing. I probably could have used it when I had the black algae bloom. I needed all the help I could get then.  But why would anyone want to use something that could damage their biological filtration?   I guess you could use it in place of cycling your tank. But I think a cycled tank is the way to go. 

The Purigen resin has absolutely no damaging impact on the function of Nitrosomonas and/or Nitrospira bacteria. I'm not sure how you got that idea. What it does is simply trap organic compounds that would otherwise further decay into nitrogenous waste that would create slightly higher nitrates. Overall, using Purigen might be like having one or two less fish in the tank!

 

[julielynn47]

I was reading about it on Amazon, and in the reviews someone posted that it took all ammonia, nitrite and nitrates completely out of the water, and so therefore their bacterial colony starved off. They said they were fully cycled and after using this product they then had ammonia readings.  That is what made me think that it must damage the colony.   It made sense to me that if it is taking the ammonia out that the colony needs to feed on, that it would indeed hurt the colony.

 

[AbbeysDad]

I was reading about it on Amazon, and in the reviews someone posted that it took all ammonia, nitrite and nitrates completely out of the water, and so therefore their bacterial colony starved off. They said they were fully cycled and after using this product they then had ammonia readings.  That is what made me think that it must damage the colony.   It made sense to me that if it is taking the ammonia out that the colony needs to feed on, that it would indeed hurt the colony.

 
WOW - It would be one heck of a stellar product if it could do all that!!!
That just goes to show you that you have to take what you read on the internet with a grain of salt. The person that posted that was/is totally wrong. The Purigen resin merely traps organic compounds, not unlike what you would see if you used polyester filter fiber. It does not remove ammonia, nitrites or nitrates. In theory, removing organic compounds from the water column prevents further decomposition into nitrogenous ammonia-->nitrites-->nitrates. HOWEVER, in my experience using Purigen, although I believe that it promoted clearer water, unlike the claims, it did little or nothing to reduce tank nitrates.
Further, I suspect that trapping organics (again as with or like the filter floss) in a filter (or the surface of a resin in a filter) does not necessarily prevent further decomposition. But again, all of this is somewhat moot in a planted tank where decomposed waste is merely welcomed organic fertilizer for the plants. (not unlike spreading manure on the corn field).

 

[julielynn47]

From the Seachem website  "Purigen® is a premium synthetic adsorbent that is unlike any other filtration product. It is not a mixture of ion exchangers or adsorbents, but a unique macro-porous synthetic polymer that removes soluble and insoluble impurities from water at a rate and capacity that exceeds all other competing products by over 500%. Purigen® controls ammonia, nitrites and nitrates by removing nitrogenous organic waste that would otherwise release these harmful compounds.
 
I understand that if you have a planted tank, as I do, you need the organic waste for your plants.  But that statement in red does seem to me to say that it controls all 3 of those, so in essence, you don't have to worry with them.   I KNOW that I may be reading it completely wrong,  but this where my thoughts on it controlling all  that and getting rid of it comes into play.  So that would mean no ammonia, nitrites or nitrates to ever worry about, but also you would never have a good bacteria colony in your filter.
 
I am sure the person is totally wrong just as I am sure I don't understand it, LOL, I know I don't.  But it still looks as if it is saying it pretty much takes care of all that.  False advertising maybe
 
Just read this from the Seachem site as well.  "  Purigen will remove organics before they can be converted by bacteria into ammonia, nitrite or nitrate, resulting in lowered nitrate concentrations over time, but it will not directly remove these chemicals from the water. If your nitrate is high, we would recommend carrying out a partial water change and utilizing Matrix or denitrate biomedia to house anaerobic denitrifying bacteria that will remove nitrate from your water."
 
Isnt that Seachem kind of contradicting itself???

 

[Byron]

Claims about products made by many manufacturers have to be carefully read, as there may be more than one "conclusion" from whatever is said, as here it would seem.  The bottom line is that Purigen removes some organics.  As for the claim that these are then somehow miraculously suspended so that the various bacteria cannot use them, well...maybe, I've no idea how or if this is possible.  But this alone bothers me, with any product--the fact that it is messing around with natural processes and perhaps in ways that cannot be explained/understood.  This is just one more thing to cause trouble.  In the closed confines of an aquarium, where so many natural processes are occurring, I always think it wise to leave them alone as much as possible.  The less we interfere with natural biological processes or the water chemistry, the more stable should be the system.
 
Now, I have used Purigen once, and it did not solve the issue of organics.  This was in the 90g I have referenced in other threads, which for some unknown reason has very high organics.  The plants are thriving better than in any of my other 8 tanks, and with no additives (which are needed in the other tanks).  Yet the fish load is proportionally much lower (which one would conclude means less organics entering the system).  One proposed solution was to use a product such as Purigen (and I also tried another, Poly Filter), but neither handled the issue, though I believe both may have had a slight impact.  This is another of those situations where a product that is raved about doesn't do much if anything in a case where there is an underlying problem.  I suppose it may "work" for some, but chances are they don't need it anyway.
 
Byron.

 

[AbbeysDad]

It's not a contradiction if/when you understand what's going on. The claim that Purigen removes organics that contribute to ammonia-->nitrite-->nitrate does not mean it removes same already in the water. So for example, if you already have high nitrates in your tank, Purigen will do nothing to remove them.
 
However, bear with me as I tell my story and my personal experience with these products...
 
I have very high nitrates (40-80ppm) in my well water, most likely due to the 95 acre farmers field across the road. This means that I have to filter my well water for partial water changes to remove the nitrates. This is labor intensive so I looked for any and all means to keep tank nitrates low in the hope that I could reduce the volume of weekly water changes and still have pure water for my fish. Before migrating to a planted tank....
I switched from gravel to sand fearing the gravel trapped waste producing nitrates. I was not overstocked. I fed carefully and I religiously serviced the filter to remove detritus. I used two pouches of Purigen in my 60g. Hoping to culture anaerobic bacteria to convert nitrates into nitrogen gas, I added another Aquaclear 70 filter totally filled with nearly 2 liters of Seachem Matrix & DeNitrate (Matrix and DeNitrate are a pumice stone [a type of lava rock] with deep pores claimed to be able to support anaerobic bacteria. I later built another filter with nearly 4 liters of Matrix & DeNitrate and seeded repeatedly with Seachem Stability (Claimed to contain faculative, aerobic and anaerobic bacteria).
AT NO TIME was I able to reduce the tank nitrates to desired/acceptable levels....and I tried for about 2 years!  Are the claims exaggerated? Who can say for sure. It would require some very serious research lab work to make such a bold claim. I can only report my personal experience and simply say they did not work for me as advertised. Was I doing something wrong? Maybe, maybe not.
 
So 2-3 months ago I migrated to a heavily planted tank and am hoping that the plants will assist in keeping tank nitrates low and tank water [more] pure. The Matrix/Denitrate is in the garage - the filters now just use foam, bio-foam, and polyester filter floss.
 

 

[julielynn47]

Okay, I am understanding a bit more I think.   So another questions pops to mind...carbon...if you were to chose between the Purigen and Carbon, which would be the best?  I know that neither is probably needed, but it is just just a thought.  I wonder which would last longer, the Purigen or the Carbon.  At least with the Purigen you might be able to tell if it needed changed out. Kinda hard to tell that with already black carbon.
 
Any thoughts anyone?

 

[Byron]

Okay, I am understanding a bit more I think.   So another questions pops to mind...carbon...if you were to chose between the Purigen and Carbon, which would be the best?  I know that neither is probably needed, but it is just just a thought.  I wonder which would last longer, the Purigen or the Carbon.  At least with the Purigen you might be able to tell if it needed changed out. Kinda hard to tell that with already black carbon.
 
Any thoughts anyone?

 
Carbon needs replacing when it gives out.  Carbon adsorbs (adsorbs, not absorbs) substances such as dissolved organic compounds, chlorine, heavy metals, primarily the DOC (tannins, phenols, etc).  As it does this, it becomes clogged.  Carbon cannot be "cleaned" and must then be discarded.  Some suggest it can leech the adsorbed toxins back into the aquarium, but most deny this; some types of carbon will apparently leech phosphates into the water (due not to their adsorption but to their composition).  Once it is full of whatever it has been removing, it acts as basic biological media.
 
Seachem maintain that Purigen is 500% more effective than carbon.  No comment.  Purigen supposedly can be "restored," whereas carbon cannot as mentioned above.
 
I haven't used carbon since way back when, in the 1980's I think.  I do not like chemical filtration of any sort.  Mechanical (primarily) and biological is all I ever use.  Carbon is useful to remove tannins (the DOC) and some medications, but I prefer water changes.
 
Byron.

 

[AbbeysDad]

What he said.