vodka dosing,gfo,bio beads,or lantium chloride

[GREATMIKE]

using rodi water. whats best way to dose lanthium chloride and how often.

 

[Alex]

Alex I am the one who turned richie onto the lanthium
he picked it up at my house
he isnt the only one on this forum who has ideas
and has tryed different things
LOL

With all that he still has what we'd consider high phosphates,:lol2::lol2:

 

[jhart]

Stay away from Lanthanum Chloride if you over dose you will regret ever using it .. IMO

 

[jhart]

Besides weekly water changes ,which is the best cost effective way to keep down nitrates and phospates.vodka dosing, gfo,bio beads,or lantium chloride.

Gfo is good to reduce phosphates in a reactor.
Vodka dosing why bother drink it instead!!!
Bio beads not really effective .. Coral Mister is Correct!!!

I would say more cured live rock( how much do you have ) live sand, plenum systems are great ways to keep you Nitrates down..

Phosphates can be introduced in many ways .. such as the Food you feed and how much you feed .
Also Clean up crews are a necessary evil to eat left over food..
Cleaning your skimmer regularly , and cleaning and changing your filter sock/ media pad are a must!
Light bulbs must be changed regularly unless your using LED's ..

These are some of the things that will screw your system up if left unintended. IMHO

BTW last weekend the store I work at on sundays a gentleman came in who has a 2000 gallon Reef system who been using Lantium had deadly consequences in his system and he's and experienced reefer..

That said dilution is the solution in reefs systems and 2000 gallons gives you a bigger window for error and he lost alot of livestock cause of Lantium..
Think before you use Lantium! It can screw up your system real quick, especially smaller systems..

 

[NYreefNoob]

bio-pellets work very well, vodka works very well, vinegar and sugar mix work very well.......
as stated you will hear different opinions and results, i have tried about everything myself, some with better results then others, some work quicker then others also and some can cause a crash faster then other,
alot of the failed attempts with bio-pellets came from using the wrong type of reactor, other issue's as well, if you plan to use any of these methods better make sure you have a good skimmer, btw what skimmer are you using

if you check some of my threads you will find info on most of the above uses except lc, never tried it

 

[GREATMIKE]

Using ASM G-4 skimmer

 

[jhart]

Straight from Anthony Calfo's book " The best method of control is prevention by screening for phosphate prior to its import into aquarium systems. Phosphate occurring In source water may be removed with phosphate sponges. Phosphate sponges can be integrated with components of a typical, raw water per-treatments. Once phosphate enters the aquarium , however , efficient protien skimming and the use of calcium hydroxide to precipitate phosphorus compounds may be helpful, otherwise, the very best way of exporting phosphate from aquaria is dilution... Large , frequent water changes."

 

[jhart]

Btw Anthony Calfo's book of coral propergation is a must buy!!!

 

[CoralMeister]

Changing GFO twice a month must run a fortune. As for the rest, those are merely your opinion. At least offer some reasons why you feel this way.

Personal Experience.

 

[tomtoothdoc]

Besides weekly water changes ,which is the best cost effective way to keep down nitrates and phospates.vodka dosing, gfo,bio beads,or lantium chloride.

which is the best cost effective way to skin a cat..... first catch the cat....lol.

but seriously, i've read this question with emphasis on cost effectiveness.

never used lanthanum chloride so i can't comment on risks and benefits on that method....but it may be the cheapest way to implement.

vodka works well if you're very consistent on the daily dosing....which for a busy(lazy) person like me, was not something i could keep up with. never stuck with it to really see the long term effect. cheap vodka goes a long way.

gfo works but i hate changing it out every 2-4 weeks, it leaves rusty color residue everywhere. gfo ain't cheap.

biopellets works very well for me....been running it for over 2 years. i only need to refill and maintain the reactor about every 6 months....perfect for a busy ...ahem...lazy...reefer like me.
it's slow to show initial effectiveness but once it's set, my skimmer works like a sh*t factory....producing some really nasty stinky cruddy skimmate.....lol only a reefer could possibly appreciate that.
i use the brs biopellets and for my 300 gal. system, the 1/2 gal size would last me about a year. so $80-90/yr or about 7-8 bucks a month. yes there were the initial costs of the reactor...super reef octopus br-140 @ $199, a marineland utility pump 5500 @ $129, valve and hoses @ $15 or so.
this may be the costliest method with the initial equipment expense but it's the key to success with biopellets, the right reactor and a strong pump to run it. i have tried several other reactors and pumps but find them to be lacking until this combination.
it may appear not to be as cost effective as other methods but if i factor in the "price of personal time" spent implementing, fiddling, forgetting, worrying, etc. it's the best cost effective method for me.:wink1: