carbon in filter in a planted tank

nikkigill50

I just read on another post..
"but with carbon in your filter, I wouldn't recommend doing a planted tank, the carbon removes the nutrients the plants need."

Just wanted to get everyone't take on is this right?

I have had my tank up and running for 5 weeks with plants and 2 guppies who are doing great, but am having some algae trouble.

Should I take the carbon insert out of the filter and just have the sponge and bioMax filter inster?

Edited to add: I do a 30% waterchange once a week and add liquid fertilizer and used laterite in the gravel when I set up.

Age of Aquariums

I used a sump aka a wet/dry filter, a trickle filter, all the same thing. I don't know if you need a protein skimmer or not for a freshwater tank, there's always sand filters to.[info][/info]

nikkigill50

Thanks for the reply, i'm not really looking to change my power filter, i'm just wondering if I am doing damange to my plants keeping the carbon insert in the filter and if I should take it out.

herefishy

I don't use carbon at all, unless I am removing meds from the tank. Carbon does have the ability to remove needed, as well as unneeded, chemicals from the water. My power filters and canister filters have a filtering medium or sponge type medium to filter particulates. I also use these filters to place a softening pillow for those biotopes requiring a softer water. I do know, from experience, that carbon removes tanins from a blackwater tank. I didn't want that to happen. One of my many foobas in my fish keeping history.

Ian_R

I'm curious about what chemicals would be removed by activated carbon that plants might need. AFAIK, carbon will only remove larger organics, while the main thing aquatic plants need (other than nitrogen/phosphorus/potassium) would be iron...which isn't something carbon should remove from the water.

Am I missing something?

leifthebunny

Carbon filters remove plant food from the water. Some plants are more tolerant than others when it comes to requirements of fertilization.

fish_4_all

I have read and been told that carbon can rmeove all of the needed nutrients incluidng iron. To me it makes sense because carbon is used to remove coppersafe which is a metal so I would suspect it can remove iron.

All I do know for sure is when I used carbon in my tanks my plants never thrived. When I removed it the plants grew much better and were much healthier not to mention the amount of algae I had decreased dramatically.