Going to give BP a try...

[rrasco]

I have been mulling over starting up on BP for a while now. I looked long and hard for a 'good' reactor and after much research I have opted to try the Innovative Marine full size BP reactor. I am going to use Warner Marine's ecoBAK pellets to start off, they seemed to be pretty popular with great reviews, so I figured I'd give them a run.

[Big_Pun]

good luck i love them, no problems in few years ive run them. start slow since you have established tank, about half dose.

[rrasco]

Thanks. Yeah, I know to start slow. I might even just try it with 1/4 of the dosage and work my way up from there.

Which pellets are you using?

[ramsey]

I know he was using Warner marine. I'm currently using those. Just be careful not to overdo it. I noticed decreased soft and LPS growth when I had a ton in a reactor on my 185. Everything's been doing great in my 38 so far. Are you looking to go ULNs?

[Big_Pun]

Thanks. Yeah, I know to start slow. I might even just try it with 1/4 of the dosage and work my way up from there.

Which pellets are you using?

lol so i went eco bak, then dr tims bio pearls which where awesome. then my reactor fudged up and 1/4 clumped and turned black(figured out why coral was angry) so now for last month ive been using BRS(which looks diff now than it did 6 months ago) i kick start them with waste away dosed into pump inlet.

[BBQHILLBILLY]

so I just walked in, is this the pellet area, i got this smr1 with brs pellets 2 cups 500 ml on 100 gallon with 2 big sumps. had to move some coral out they were looking a little deflated

[Big_Pun]

so I just walked in, is this the pellet area, i got this smr1 with brs pellets 2 cups 500 ml on 100 gallon with 2 big sumps. had to move some coral out they were looking a little deflated

first off lets talk about what matters with pellets. how many gallons is your system, how ML not cups does BRS suggest per x-amount of gallons, how fast is your tumble rate, can you adjust the tumble/flow in reactor. no other info is needed besides are you testing nitrates? pellets take 3-4 weeks to kick in, unless you dose some kind pro-biotic. like robert said he starting skow and not with full amount needed.

[BBQHILLBILLY]

Biopellets are made of a bio-degradable polycarbonate plastic. When used in aquariums, the biopellets are placed in a reactor with moderately high flow. Various strains of bacteria colonize on the pellet's surface feeding from the carbon source, phosphate, and nitrate. The carbon acts more like an energy source. It speeds up the reproduction of the bacteria, and in the process the bacteria consumes no3 and po4. This bacteria is EXTREMELY dangerous in ample amounts. As the biopellets tumble in the reactor, the bacteria is constantly being knocked off so that inverts can feed on it and the skimmer can remove it. People generally feed their reactor's return directly into their skimmer intake. A GOOD skimmer effectively removes almost all of the bacteria before it can reach the display tank.


source http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=70974

[BBQHILLBILLY]

We recommend 1 cup (236 ml) of BRS biopellets per 50 gallons of system volume. See Instructions.

Maintaining low nitrates is key to maintaining the best coral coloration, healthy fish and avoiding algae outbreaks. Fish foods and resulting waste eventually break down into nitrates. Aquarists’ primary method of dealing with nitrate removal is water changes but over the years we have developed a few ways to remove nitrates with equipment like refugiums, sulfur reactors and deep sandbeds. All of these methods work to various degrees but are often less efficient than we would like or the level of complexity, expense and maintenance is beyond what the average reefer would desire
.
Solid carbon dosing (biopellets) has recently become an extremely popular method of removing nitrates from the aquarium. The exact method of denitration can be different for each tank but it mainly consists of a few things:



Nitrate laden Bacteria is removed via the protein skimmer
Bacteria directly converts nitrite into nitrous oxide so nitrate is never produced
Bacteria consumes nitrates and processes them down into nitrogen gas
Nitrate laden Bacteria is consumed by tank inhabitants like corals and sponges


Depending on the system it should take 4-8 weeks for the bacteria population to multiply and begin its work on your nitrates. Once you have the reactor going we suggest not making any adjustments for 8 weeks. Give the media and bacteria time to adjust to the parameters found in your tank and begin working. The absolute best advice we can give with this system is to set it up and forget about it for two months. Unless something is obviously not right resist all temptation to make any changes until the two months are up.

source http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-bulk-biopellets.html

[Scutterborn]

I'm going to go out on a limb and ask if you seed the bio pellets prior to implementing them, would they start to show results faster?

[BBQHILLBILLY]

who has it here in town? lmk im sure your right

[Scutterborn]

Chris was seeding with a dr Tim's probiotic I believe. Waste-away or Eco-bak.

[Scutterborn]

I've got a reactor not being used in the sump and have been considering doing this. Not sure if the reactor will tumble the pellets correctly though. I may do a test run tonight.

[BBQHILLBILLY]

i may get a stronger pump, right now using a reef octopus skimmer pump found in the garage, seems to be ok for now, not touching the sw for a month at least, just top offs
as much as want to do a sw change real bad, may do 5 gallon sw change

[rrasco]

I've got a reactor not being used in the sump and have been considering doing this. Not sure if the reactor will tumble the pellets correctly though. I may do a test run tonight.

What kind of reactor?

[BBQHILLBILLY]

rrasco did you test your parameters before running the bp reactor

[Scutterborn]

What kind of reactor?

One Ace built for me.

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/08/08/5azygy5y.jpg

The one on the left has about 2.5 lbs of carbon in it. They are awesome reactors but I hadn't planned to utilize them for BP.

[Scutterborn]

i may get a stronger pump, right now using a reef octopus skimmer pump found in the garage, seems to be ok for now, not touching the sw for a month at least, just top offs
as much as want to do a sw change real bad, may do 5 gallon sw change

BRS suggests you continue your normal water change schedule.

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/instructions/article/BRS-Biopellets

Last line on step 4

[BBQHILLBILLY]

after a top off and 5 gallon sw change new test PO4 is .64ppm and NO3 is greater than 10ppm yuk
gfo/carbon/pellets all running, I have noticed a small change in algae on the glass

[Zack]

Shane what tests are you using? Just curious?

[BBQHILLBILLY]

RED SEA algae pro test kit from BRS I also used the NUTRAFIN to test nitrates and I get same result

[rrasco]

rrasco did you test your parameters before running the bp reactor

I don't have my reactor yet. Waiting for it to come in. NO3 is 20-30ppm, hence my desire to fix it.

[Big_Pun]

yea i run waste away to start the bacteria up, i use it on weekly basis, along with eco balance. since going this route my algae issues have cleared up and tank looks 100% better than it did. i still run GFO(but not always changing it as much as i should) tank looks good but could be better if i stayed on top of phos control. i keep them tumbling at
a med speed, i adjust till i get right to the point that they all tumble no more no less.

[Big_Pun]

I don't have my reactor yet. Waiting for it to come in. NO3 is 20-30ppm, hence my desire to fix it.

i know you want to see the pellets knock this down but i suggest water changes to knock it down that way pellets can get up to speed per-say. remember it can take weeks for colony to start especially if your not dosing pro-biotics.

[BBQHILLBILLY]

yea i run waste away to start the bacteria up, i use it on weekly basis, along with eco balance. since going this route my algae issues have cleared up and tank looks 100% better than it did. i still run GFO(but not always changing it as much as i should) tank looks good but could be better if i stayed on top of phos control. i keep them tumbling at
a med speed, i adjust till i get right to the point that they all tumble no more no less.

where can you get this waste away for the pellets lmk does elegant reef have them?

[Big_Pun]

yes at ER, if he has it in stock but since i like it so much i order the big jugs from the dr tims website

[rrasco]

Reactor is in. I started out slow, very slow. 1/4 cup. I'll give that a few weeks and see what it does then bump it up gradually.

[BBQHILLBILLY]

congrats . keep updating.