# Peat Filtration and Purigen Questions



## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

I may need to use peat in my filter to lower my pH. I have an AquaClear 20, 3 stage filter. Top layer, BioMax biological, second layer, carbon, bottom layer, foam. What layer would I put the peat in? 

Secondly, if I used Seachem Purigen, a resin, which layer would I use that in? I have a hunch it would replace the carbon but I'm not 100% so if anyone can tell me, that would be great.

Almost forgot. Does carbon remove fertilizers like Flourish?


----------



## Thunderloon (Feb 6, 2011)

Peat goes in after the bio-media pellets, usually you don't need to use it as a filtration layer - simply having it in a pouch in the tank works.

Purigen is a strong puppy. Before you use it you need to keep in mind that the way to regenerate it is high chlorine and Prime treatments as per label. It works kinda like carbon but isn't a mechanical filtration material. If you're going to use the Purigen you'll want to clean the filter fairly well then place it as the last item in the stack with even flow through the pouch. If there's any bypass in or around the pouch it will work for a short while then stop until you force the water through. Purigen itself isn't for reducing mineral content in the water.

To be honest you want the standard set-up in the filter to have the flow going through foam, then bio-max and then the carbon/Purigen. Doing it the other way will cause biological load to seal the carbon/Purigen. In the specific case of an Aquaclear the flow bypass goes only through the lower and middle layer filtering components and then the top layer filters only what goes back into the tank. 

If I may I shall instruct you to get a pre-filter sponge that fits on the intake pipe of the Aquaclear. It saves on maintenance of the stack inside.

Carbon WILL remove portions of fertilizers but Purigen will remove ALL the fertilizers. When I run a layer of Purigen and Hypersorb in my canister filter on the 10g or 20g it will "polish" the water to just about pH 6.2 by removing almost all minerals and metals. This reduction in pH comes primarily from the Hypersorb. 

So we look at what Carbon, Purigen and Hypersorb are for:

Carbon is a mechanical filter with some chemical negation properties, it effectively detains most chemicals that flow through the fine pores in its structure even if you accidentally reverse flow direction. The carbon is bound together with some other minerals (it is created by the kiln burning of bone) and extremely soft water will simply eat carbon up.

Purigen is designed to "grab" the oils, proteins and other tank decay materials before they decompose into ammonia. Because of the material it is made from it will also grab minerals and nutrients up the same way it grabs molecular poop and some antibiotics. 

Hypersorb is an ion exchange resin which is designed for the mineral types in an aquarium but does NOT regenerate when exposed to salt.

So if you're looking for regular filtration, get a nice couple carbon pouches for Aquaclear filters and when they become depleted (guesswork without a milligram scale) you can trim off the end and swap the old carbon out for new carbon from a box. Do not use any carbon other than regular API/etc flake style. Formed, pressed, impregnated or modified in any way carbon will not filter. The water MUST flow through the carbon for it to trap material, it is a mechanical filter.

If you're looking to reduce the bio-processing load of the tank by removing the fine particulate waste before it decomposes, you use Purigen in the filter stack as the last item. Just like the carbon; water must flow through the pouch.

If you're looking to reduce the mineral content of the water you want to use Hypersorb or Ion Exchange Resin. The Hypersorb will do a much wider spectrum and pick up much of the extraneous minerals such as phosphorus and magnesium. My Hypersorb pouches come out pink! 

Ion exchange resin will clean iron, copper and calcium out of the water but releases sodium back into the water to do so... The sodium then reacts to the "safe" bound chlorine and releases components of the chemicals in the dechlorinator. Its designed to do the simple task of holding iron and iron-like minerals out of the water service in a building to improve the wateryness of water simply to keep iron and mineral stains to a minimum. The problem is it is NOT designed to produce healthy drinking water and extended use of Ion Exchange resins in the filtration system will begin to raise sodium levels in the plants, fish and substrate of the tank. When I use ion exchange resins I do it in my make-water bucket with untreated tap water. The sodium released from it reacts to the chlorine in the water from the tap and becomes salt. Once I've pulled the make-water bucket's hardness down (I temp control it at the same time) I then mix in the dechlorinator and move it on to the tank.

If you need a second description http://www.seachem.com/Library/Articles.html#Carbon leads to an article written by SeaChem's own pet super-genius. Prime, Purigen and Hypersorb are all SeaChem products, instructions for their use are available from that web site as well.


----------



## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Wow, Thunderloon. :shock: I am SOOOO glad I posted this before I purchased anything or did anything. You sure know a lot about filters and things like that. Thank goodness because a lot of it is a mystery to me, which I think you can tell, hehe.

The reason I was thinking of using Purigen or another resin is I have a lot of organic sediment floating around in my tank due to having Fluorite. My tank is quite a cloudy mess because I've had to fiddle with the plants a few times. But I think the best thing I can do is lots of water changes, yes? I DO have a micro polishing pad in the filter right now. I'm actually on my 3rd pad in 4 days, that's how much sediment is in the tank. Within a day, the pad turns totally brown. I did try Seachem Clarity but it didn't do much. 

The only reason I have the media in that order is because it's what AquaClear states in their manual. Per your instructions, I think I'll rearrange the order and hope it increases the filter capabilities. So, foam on the bottom, BioMax in the middle, then the carbon or Purigen?

Will peat be sufficient to lower a pH of 7.8 down to neutral or close to that? My LFS gave me Kent R/O Right to use, telling me it would stabilize my pH better than any buffers. I have a water softener, not an R/O system but they said it would work anyway. I haven't used it yet because I'm just not sure about it. What do you think?

Oh, and I will pick up a pre-filter too. Thank you for the advice. I really appreciate your knowledge.


----------

