Activated carbon as substrate?

RocketRooster

RocketRooster

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My bud @Ridwaan gave me two awesome flow pumps and a large tub of waterboy activated carbon as a starting-out prezzie (thanks again bru, you're a capital oke!).

Anyhow, when I got home with my loot, first thing I did was check out the carbon. It's the size of fw tank gravel, about 3-5mm. My two braincells started rubbing up against each other...

I like the look of black substrates. Now, even waterlogged carbon is too bouyant to use as is, but what if you laid a thin layer of black silicon and poured the carbon over and pressed it in to set. When you brush off the excess, you'd be left with a nice surface. You'd lose surface area and no digging critters though. You /might/ have leaching as well when doing tank breakdowns.

What do y'all reckon?

Thanks!
Riaan
 
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DON'T DO IT!!!!

to much carbon is bad for a tank it strips the water of lots of nutrients and then when it get's old what do you think is going to happen? it will leach the stuff back into the tank
 
Sorry, but that will NEVER work. Like @vatso said, it absorbs lots of nutrients & some essencial trace elements. & carbon needs to be replaced at least every 3-4 weeks, & if its stuck to the glass, youre going to have some problems sooner or later.
 
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Will eventually also leach PO4
 
dude, dont make this hobby complicated
 
:lol: Just read, it will fill up!
 
coal-miner.jpg


You have something to say about me and my carbon lovelies, mister? :lol:
 
You going to give your fish the Black gill disease.:biggrin:
 
@The Waterboy - Marco, how much hawaiian black would I need to cover a 100x60cm tank floor per cm of substrate depth? I see you sell this stuff and it's not THAT expensive (but depends on how much I need).

Thanks!
 
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Also take into consideration thats with black arag, you need very good lighting els the tank just looks dull

Black absorbs the brightness of the lights ,wereas white arag reflects making the tank bounce with brightness
 
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