How to use zeolite

[irie ivan]

Used the "magic" stones, "blue dropper mystery bottles" many years ago and studied the crap out of it...
I suspect I managed & gained a teeny bit of understanding of the why's and the hows, but admittedly I have found easier ways to run my tank...
As a function of old age, time gone by, the odd partaking in sacramental herb and a lack of interest, i have forgotten most of it... but let me try and get the cogs turning..... in laymen's terms.
As mentioned, stick to the companies selling saltwater specific zeolites... let them do the research, sorting and quality control.
Yes... Mr Pohls magic greenish stones are
clinoptilolite.... alledgedly / apparently.
Have i tested and confirmed in a geological sense... nope... do i really care... neither.

Yes, other zeolites do have an affinity for calcium.... do not buy the cheaper freshwater ones.... you will regret it..

As mentioned above, the process is essentially the affinity of zeolites for ammonia, bacteria colonize due to the ammonia rich source /substrate, we add an organic carbon source, simply as this is often limited in auaria, it makes the bacterial population on the zeolites and any and all substrate, (as well as the water column) multiply quite fast and assimilate nitrogen compounds (N as in N in ammonia, nitrate, nitrite) into biomass. Quite exactly which one of the aforementioned I doubt is really important when following the zeolite based or any organic C fed filtration system. Whats important to note is that we are not dealing with the traditional oxygen gradient dependant filtration of aerobic > ammonia > nitrite aerobic > nitrate > anaerobic RESPIRATION here. We are dealing with ASSIMILATION
There is no doubt that some anaerobic layers exist within the porous structure of zeolites and that some anaerobic respiration does occur..... however, it is NOT the primary process at play.

Yes, the mulm film formed on the stones is essentially a nice little collection of assimilated and trapped nutrients, also coincidentally perfectly suited in terms of size as coral food. Shake the reactor, rub off mulm, corals chomp it and in turn assimilate that into biomass, and the rest gets skimmed out.
Bye the way.... interestingly....perhaps, just perhaps, the feeding of corals with a CNP rich biomass, alleviates the amount of xooxanthellae a coral "needs to farm" therefor reducing the amount brown in its appearance and exposing more colour pigments / sunscreen / flourescent pigments.... just maybe

Ok i think i have forgotten the questions asked on here...
Oh yes, used in a de-nitrator... why, as you are dealing with a very different process and there are much more cost effective media to use inside a denitrator, and honestly no point in using zeolites ability to "trap" ammonia inside a denitratir.
What you want in a denitrator is dissolved oxygen gradient controlled for use of nitrate in respiration...

Another few things to bear in mind....:

We replace the stones because they can only trap so much ammonia.

Something interesting I suspect the proponents of these systems stumbled upon, or knew...: zeolites also have an affinity for po4... perhaps its the aluminum in its make up.... hmmm phosguard ring a bell...?

Its not just me... apparently, its science:

Simultaneous ammonium and phosphate removal by metal inorganic salt modification of natural zeolite

https://www.researchgate.net/file.PostFileLoader.html?id=575542ffeeae397974473100&assetKey=AS:369912846536705@1465205503380

Annoyingly, a few years ago, needlewheel skimmers got anecdotally blamed for lower levels of pitassium... amazingly it was prominent in zeolite used systems...

But again, i think there is more to blame than skimmers:
Advanced regeneration and fixed-bed study of ammonium and potassium removal from anaerobic digested wastewater by natural zeolite.


https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/24218825/

Ok i am tired now

 

[2una]

Great read Ivan - would be interested to hear more on this assimilation part to understand that a bit more if you get a chance.

 

[zippy]

i managed to pick up a 40kg bag for R 102.00

 

[459b]

alleviates the amount of xooxanthellae a coral "needs to farm" therefor reducing the amount brown in its appearance and exposing more colour pigments / sunscreen / flourescent pigments.

Thats a good point. Most articles say the coral is starved and produces colour as sunscreen, which doesnt sound totally correct.

i managed to pick up a 40kg bag for R 102.00

That will cut the cost of running a zeo system by a bit

 

[irie ivan]

Whether it is starved or not, I cannot say, but the pale sticks assosciated with zeo and other carbon based systems in years gone by, also has me agreeing to starved corals.
With reduced N and P, essentially food for zooxanthellae, there is not enough to sustain a large population.
Whether the shaking of the mulm off the stones is enough to feed corals and avoid the pale look, i highly doubt.
But there has been a marked increase in hobbyists understanding the need to feed their tanks, less agressive skimming, having ever so slightly elevated N levels than the years of pretty pale zeo corals.
Regarding assimilation, simply put:
Its the uptake of nutrients and turning them into biomass.
All Life needs CNP, for biological processes, cell building, tissue, etc etc etc.
By adding a readily available organic carbon source, we are essentially sending bacteria into overdrive, think mass orgy, population explosion, grabbing N and P compounds to sustain the spurt.
The N and P is no longer available for algae

 

[2una]

Regarding assimilation, simply put:
Its the uptake of nutrients and turning them into biomass.
All Life needs CNP, for biological processes, cell building, tissue, etc etc etc.
By adding a readily available organic carbon source, we are essentially sending bacteria into overdrive, think mass orgy, population explosion, grabbing N and P compounds to sustain the spurt.
The N and P is no longer available for algae

Ah okay, so just the same like what's happening in a biopellet reactor....I thought you were touching on something i've read in regard to the zeolites pulling something so it doesn't get to be become part of the nutrient cycle...forget what it was, possibly ammonia/ammonium but just because the zeolites attract it doesn't mean its out of the equation does it.
There's nothing going on with positive charged ions stealing a N or H or anything along those lines?

 

[2una]

1 more if i may - Barry the Bacteria falls out of the zeovit/biopellet reactor ,misses the skimmer,misses the return pump & is lucky enough to get sucked up a 1/4" line feeding a carx......he goes thru water with a ph of 6 & a alk level of 20........does he come out the other side dead or alive?

 

[irie ivan]

Ah okay, so just the same like what's happening in a biopellet reactor....I thought you were touching on something i've read in regard to the zeolites pulling something so it doesn't get to be become part of the nutrient cycle...forget what it was, possibly ammonia/ammonium but just because the zeolites attract it doesn't mean its out of the equation does it.
There's nothing going on with positive charged ions stealing a N or H or anything along those lines?

As in ion exchange, yes, ammonia is taken up by the zeolites.
Barry the bacteria and the passing of him (or at least the mulm he finds himself within) through a carx... hmmm, i wonder, but hardly see the significance