For inquiry minds that want to know.
Not all Ferric Oxide products are created equal for the aquarium trade!
The following info is from direct sources (proprietary info).
I’m only talking about the top 3 most popular ferric oxide phosphate removers:
1). rust colored pellet formed / ferric oxide
2). black colored high capacity / ferric oxide
3). rust colored granular / ferric oxide
1). rust colored pellet formed / ferric oxide:
It’s great for what it was originally developed for but is inadequate for our trade for the following reasons.
They use binding agents to form the pellets, the binding agent compounds can break down and leach in to your aquarium water, not a good thing.
Pellets in a pile have large voids and water always takes the path of least resistance, again not a good thing.
The pellets are compacted very tightly and again water will always takes the path of least resistance.
2). black colored high capacity / ferric oxide:
I was not aware of this product until I heard from many fellow hobbyist complain about it did not produce good results for the cost of the product and they switched back to GFO.
3). rust colored granular / ferric oxide:
Granular Ferric Oxide from Germany is by far the most superior choice out of all three kinds of ferric oxide. It is up to 20 times or more superior and last longer then the competing competitors!
Reason being that the granular ferric oxide granular is all about the same size and weight, and should be based on a good grade of virgin light weight, small granular activated carbon, because they work on the same filtering principle. It’s recommended to run GFO and carbon slightly packed in a media reactor to minimize voids and to keep the media from spinning around in the chamber, so that the water flow can pass through the media and not the voids.
Here is how one knows when to replace GFO media.
Apply a new batch of GFO and wait at least 24 hours and test your phosphate levels, when phosphate levels begin to rise, it’s time to replace.
I was told from my sources that GFO will not leach phosphates back in to your aquarium.
Let your phosphate test kit tell you when to replace your GFO and save a ton of money on not prematurely replacing you GFO media.
I hope this info helps you to makes a better judgment call on how you spend your hard earned money.
Not all Ferric Oxide products are created equal for the aquarium trade!
The following info is from direct sources (proprietary info).
I’m only talking about the top 3 most popular ferric oxide phosphate removers:
1). rust colored pellet formed / ferric oxide
2). black colored high capacity / ferric oxide
3). rust colored granular / ferric oxide
1). rust colored pellet formed / ferric oxide:
It’s great for what it was originally developed for but is inadequate for our trade for the following reasons.
They use binding agents to form the pellets, the binding agent compounds can break down and leach in to your aquarium water, not a good thing.
Pellets in a pile have large voids and water always takes the path of least resistance, again not a good thing.
The pellets are compacted very tightly and again water will always takes the path of least resistance.
2). black colored high capacity / ferric oxide:
I was not aware of this product until I heard from many fellow hobbyist complain about it did not produce good results for the cost of the product and they switched back to GFO.
3). rust colored granular / ferric oxide:
Granular Ferric Oxide from Germany is by far the most superior choice out of all three kinds of ferric oxide. It is up to 20 times or more superior and last longer then the competing competitors!
Reason being that the granular ferric oxide granular is all about the same size and weight, and should be based on a good grade of virgin light weight, small granular activated carbon, because they work on the same filtering principle. It’s recommended to run GFO and carbon slightly packed in a media reactor to minimize voids and to keep the media from spinning around in the chamber, so that the water flow can pass through the media and not the voids.
Here is how one knows when to replace GFO media.
Apply a new batch of GFO and wait at least 24 hours and test your phosphate levels, when phosphate levels begin to rise, it’s time to replace.
I was told from my sources that GFO will not leach phosphates back in to your aquarium.
Let your phosphate test kit tell you when to replace your GFO and save a ton of money on not prematurely replacing you GFO media.
I hope this info helps you to makes a better judgment call on how you spend your hard earned money.