My reasoning lies directly with the carbon, and the RN.
If I understand the usage of this system it is basicly a bioball filter (meaning mass surface area of the carbon is comparable to bioballs) with an "instant" bacteria kick-starter.
BUT: Carbon absorbs chemical compounds no matter how well you rinse it. All sorts of nasties will be absorbed by the carbon breeding all sorts of the wrong type of bacteria over time being feed by the nasties in the carbon its self.
The Bacteria that your introducing into the system is not natural, its cultured, man made. What happends when your LR starts to develope its own natural bacteria? Will this new RN colonize the rock and substrate permenantly? If it dosent then will a bacterial warfare will be the end result , and a tank crash shortly after when the LR matures, and starts to re-grow the microbial bacteria that is present in small numbers now?
What I ment by bleached dead rock was this:
If you scrubbed it down before it died off, then it died off again and bleached that means a lack of large enough microbial colonies present to sustain the rock.
Since you put it in to the tank as wet base rock ( basicly) Then there couldnt have been that large of a spike in anything since there were no large numbers of microbial colonies on the rock to start with.
So the addition of the RN a couple days later just stabelized it so it could colonize again right? Its not in a curing stage right now. Its in a "needs to be seeded" stage. JMHO.
But that idea is superseded by your readings from the test kits you gave a couple posts up that I aprerantly missed LOL!! As well as the fact that you stated you had put the rock in directly from the box. ( I guess I was runing posts together or somthing? LOL).
I just thought I would explain my train of thought on it at the time.
Like I said your set up looks very nice and has GREAT potential using that rock. I love the shapes.
This whole topic and discussion is very interesting to me and I will be asking alot of questions that may seem obstrusive , or "picky".
I just want to understand in every detail how this works/will work.
I am not trying to argue with you so please dont take it that way
. I am only trying to draw out every possible effect or reaction this could cause on yours/our systems long term, as far as the carbon absortbtion, and the potential RN back-fireing over time when the LR re-colonizes its self.
( circle of life type thing. What was once will be again over time.)
Cost effectiveness ( every thing needs replacing even high grade carbon).
So I take it you have the TBC set up in that red hydrant looking cylinder inline with your filter? Hense the name "torpedo" I guess huh? LOL!
Where is the PH rock? ( or are you only using the RN and the TBC?)
