Sulfer vs BioPellet Reactors

[Andrew Schubert]

Background: I've been Running Zeovite for the past 2 years and really haven't been too happy with its results (especially with as much as it all costs). Anyways, I ran across these BioPellet reactors and Sulfur reactors for controlling nitrates and am interested in maybe making the switch. So here is my question?

I've read a LOT of really positive reviews for Sulfur reactors. However, it doesn't seem to be very popular these days. BRS doesn't even sell Sulfur reactors. Seems all the rave is about BioPellet. So what makes BioPellet so much better then Sulfur. Seems the only downside to Sulfur is a reduction in PH and ALK. But I already dose KALK, so I don't see that as much of a problem.

Sulfur media also only has to be replaced 1x every couple of years it appears, where BioPellets it seems have to be replaced much more often. Plus, it seems BioPellets are still very reliant on your skimmer, where Sulfur will help control your nitrates to a certain degree even without a Skimmer.

Anyways, are my assessments correct? If you have run a BioPellet or Sulfur reactor I would love your input on this. Which do you prefer and why? Or maybe you are like me and had never heard of a Sulfur reactor until I ran across on at MarineDepot.

 

[Montiman]

I have run both in the past and while both work they work even better together.

BioPellets are simpler IMO. The reactor design is simpler, no nitrogen venting and generally faster results.

Sulfur reactors are great too but tend to take longer to establish and reestablish if you ever open one to clean it out. The reactor itself is more complicated and tends to have more clogging problems than a pellet reactor.

The biggest down side to pellets for me is the cost. On my heavily stocked 200 gallon I go through about $180 of pellets a year. Maybe this is no big deal but I wish it were cheaper. Maintenance wise I only open the reactor 3 times a year to add pellets and I clean the pump annually. This is much less work than when I have used a fuge that required frequent pruning, collected detritus, and bled light (and algae) into all of the sump chambers. When I had sulfur reactors I would vent nitrogen weekly, and clean the reactor once a year to replace some media and get sludge and detritus out. While this was cheaper it was certainly more work than pellets.

Since the sulfur reactor and carbon dosing use different processes I have found they work better together. Especially if you are running a sulfur reactor you may find that adding some organic carbon will jump start it much faster and give you better results.

 

[moosevandyke]

Just bought the avast marine spy glass reactor with bio pellets. Can’t say how it’s working as new tank but setup was easy and takes up very little space.

 

[tippin.turtle]

I run bio pellets for the reduction of nitrates, phosphates, and the bacteria themselves are a vehicle for phosphate transport when corals consume them. In my minds eye a bio pellet reactor is simply a nursery for beneficial bacteria.
I run bare bottom and vacuum once a week. I meticulously clean my aquarium and maintain a rigid water change schedule. I'm an OCD aquarist. So bio pellets serve me very well and I do not run a large amount.
I think a lot of people have difficulty with them as they use a large amount at the start and suffer ill effects as the bio pellets mature.
I do not test nitrates but my phosphates are generally between 0.070-0.030ppm on average.
So with your aquarium maintenance, feeding schedule and amount fed, it's possible to use bio pellets in an effective beneficial manor.
Start with 1/3 the amount recommended for tank volume and increase the amount your using over time .
I added the recommended amount for my tank volume after 6 months of use. You do as you see fit but this was effective and safe for me.
I'm including a shot of my tank taken two days ago because many on this forum who give advice do not.

 

[blasterman]

I run biopellets without a reactor for pesky nitrate when it happens.. Throw them in a media bag and in your sump in a high flow area. Takes them a couple weeks to ramp up

Tumbling biopellets in a plastic cylinder looks cool but doesn't have any biological merit. As long as there's decent water flow there won't be any problems. Done it for years.

In the 2000s fluidized beds were a thang for awhile and just like biowheels and wet/drys they were retired to the museum of junk science gimmicks. The fluidized bed got a name change to "reactor" and is still hanging around in the biopellet industry.

Biopellets are basically starch and are a slow form of carbon dosing that builds up localized bacteria. The retail markup is insane on biopellets considering their actual value.

 

[josephxsxn]

Used a sulfur reactor a while ago on my 120 gallon but never hooked it back up when I moved. It worked great without any issues besides as some people mention the flow sometimes clogging. Converted my new tank to biopellets and it took so long I thought they were not working and ended up over dosing the tank killing a few corals before taking it offline. Everything has hence recovered but I went back to sulfur reactors and lanthium chloride to solve my problems.

 

[DrZoidburg]

I don't have a problem with ph and sulfur. A good reactor buffers the effluent. The alkalinity does get drained though. Good to start off with a little sulfur media then work up. They work extremely well.

 

[KenO]

I know this is an old thread, but does the output of a Sulfur Denitrator have to be zero? I like my NO3 to be in the 5-10ppm range, so can the output be set to something other than zero to maintain the 5-10ppm range?

 

[Sean Clark]

I know this is an old thread, but does the output of a Sulfur Denitrator have to be zero? I like my NO3 to be in the 5-10ppm range, so can the output be set to something other than zero to maintain the 5-10ppm range?

No it does not have to be zero. It can be anything you want it to be (well it can't be higher than what goes in of course) by controlling the flow rate through the reactor and balancing that with how much sulfur media you keep in the reactor and your average nitrate rise in the system. I consider this the "hard way" to do it though.

I keep mine with enough sulfur in it to allow pretty a high flow rate through it and still output zero ppm. This way all I do is adjust how much zero nitrate I push out of the reactor.

Lets say I want to maintain my 10ppm nitrate on my existing system.

Week 1 I test and see that my levels were rising let's say 12ppm. All I need to to is Increase the flow to process more water through the reactor.

Test week 2 and my nitrates are 10. Cool.

Week 3 I test and I see that the tank has 8ppm. I slow the flow down and process less through the reactor.

Week 4 I see that I have 9ppm. So I bump up the flow just a little bit.

Eventually you will find the flow rate that matches your nitrate input and reactor output.

I also run my effluent through a large secondary chamber with Ca reactor media in it. This helps buffer the pH of the effluent while having the added benefit of adding a bit of calcium and alkalinity at the same time. This solves the main problems that people attach to sulfur reactors, lowering pH and consuming alkalinity.

Sulfur dioxide generation (which is another potential problem) is not an issue at the higher flow rates that is allowed by having a larger amount of sulfur.

As for the maintenance of removing the nitrogen gas that is generated I just choose to do this automatically. I have the gas vent tied directly into my effluent. It bubbles out naturally and with zero effort on my part. So we have solved the maintenance issue to.

Here is a photo of how I have it set up. This is on my new system that is not even a year old yet but I have been using variants of this setup for about 10 years.

Let me know if you have any questions. I am sure I missed something.

 

[KenO]

No it does not have to be zero. It can be anything you want it to be (well it can't be higher than what goes in of course) by controlling the flow rate through the reactor and balancing that with how much sulfur media you keep in the reactor and your average nitrate rise in the system. I consider this the "hard way" to do it though.

I keep mine with enough sulfur in it to allow pretty a high flow rate through it and still output zero ppm. This way all I do is adjust how much zero nitrate I push out of the reactor.

Lets say I want to maintain my 10ppm nitrate on my existing system.

Week 1 I test and see that my levels were rising let's say 12ppm. All I need to to is Increase the flow to process more water through the reactor.

Test week 2 and my nitrates are 10. Cool.

Week 3 I test and I see that the tank has 8ppm. I slow the flow down and process less through the reactor.

Week 4 I see that I have 9ppm. So I bump up the flow just a little bit.

Eventually you will find the flow rate that matches your nitrate input and reactor output.

I also run my effluent through a large secondary chamber with Ca reactor media in it. This helps buffer the pH of the effluent while having the added benefit of adding a bit of calcium and alkalinity at the same time. This solves the main problems that people attach to sulfur reactors, lowering pH and consuming alkalinity.

Sulfur dioxide generation (which is another potential problem) is not an issue at the higher flow rates that is allowed by having a larger amount of sulfur.

As for the maintenance of removing the nitrogen gas that is generated I just choose to do this automatically. I have the gas vent tied directly into my effluent. It bubbles out naturally and with zero effort on my part. So we have solved the maintenance issue to.

Here is a photo of how I have it set up. This is on my new system that is not even a year old yet but I have been using variants of this setup for about 10 years.

Let me know if you have any questions. I am sure I missed something.

Thanks for the info, that does answer my question. As for the release of the nitrogen gas, the unit I am looking at, the exit port is in the lid. So wouldn't the nitrogen gas exit with the effluent?

 

[PeterC99]

@Sean Clark - Does your calcium reactor feed the Sulfur Denitrator?

 

[Sean Clark]

Thanks for the info, that does answer my question. As for the release of the nitrogen gas, the unit I am looking at, the exit port is in the lid. So wouldn't the nitrogen gas exit with the effluent?

That is correct. The normal effluent valve is the one that is in the closed position. I use the gas port as the effluent line. As gas builds up in the to of the sulfur chamber it escapes out with the effluent.

 

[Sean Clark]

@Sean Clark - Does your calcium reactor feed the Sulfur Denitrator?

That is not a calcium reactor in the traditional sense.

The versa pump pulls water from the sump and feeds it into the sulfur reactor recirculating pump inlet. The water circulates in the chamber and exits the gas port on the top. That effluent from the sulfur chamber whch has a low pH is pushed into the calcium media chambers. The water works its way up through the Ca media and the pH is buffered back up just like a traditional Ca reactor but without the use of CO2 from a bottle. The bacteria do it for me. This freshly buffered water is sent back to the sump.

So nitrate control and Ca/Alk supplementation in one package.

And it is self regulating by the nitrate levels fed into the sulfur which controls the bacterial population.

 

[PeterC99]

That is not a calcium reactor in the traditional sense.

The versa pump pulls water from the sump and feeds it into the sulfur reactor recirculating pump inlet. The water circulates in the chamber and exits the gas port on the top. That effluent from the sulfur chamber whch has a low pH is pushed into the calcium media chhamber. The water works its way up through the Ca media and the pH is buffered back up just like a traditional Ca reactor but without the use of CO2 from a bottle. The bacteria do it for me. This freshly buffered water is sent back to the sump.

So nitrate control and Ca/Alk supplementation in one package.

And it is self regulating by the nitrate levels fed into the sulfer which controls the bacterial population.

Very, very cool! Never heard of this but love how you eliminate CO2 and regulators. Do you know the alkalinity level of your effluent? Also, what level of Alk & Calc can you obtain in your aquarium with this setup?

 

[Sean Clark]

Very, very cool! Never heard of this but love how you eliminate CO2 and regulators. Do you know the alkalinity level of your effluent? Also, what level of Alk & Calc can you obtain in your aquarium with this setup?

I should clarify a little bit.

This can not replace all of the cal and alk that the tank needs. maybe if it were much much larger it could.

This can not replace a traditional Ca reactor because I can not "control" the pH coming out of the sulfur chamber. The biological process of the nitrate consumption by the bacteria does that.

That is part of how it is self regulating.
I am definitely not an expert; this is my understanding of what is going on:

More nitrates means more bacteria means lower pH and higher Alk demand.

Of course lower pH means more Ca media is melted means higher Alk supplementation.

What this setup does is comp eliminate the "issues" or shortcomings of using a sulfur denitrator.
-reduced pH in the tank
-high alkalinity consumption
-degassing maintenance
-sulfur dioxide generation at lower flow rates
-no need to find a "sweet spot" flow rate to allow for denitrification without being too slow to start producing sulfur dioxide.
-no need to find the "proper amount" of sulfur for your system.

I will measure the effluent Ca, Alk, and pH for you tonight, I have never measured it on this tank.

I will also measure the tank for the same to see what the delta is.

This is the ORP inside of the sulfur chamber. The number is actually a negative number; not positive. Fusion can not display a negative value for ORP.

The spike at the end is because I accidentally pulled the power cable out of the versa pump when I took the previous photo earlier today. I guess I should turn that probe alarm on.

 

[Albatross17mako]

No it does not have to be zero. It can be anything you want it to be (well it can't be higher than what goes in of course) by controlling the flow rate through the reactor and balancing that with how much sulfur media you keep in the reactor and your average nitrate rise in the system. I consider this the "hard way" to do it though.

I keep mine with enough sulfur in it to allow pretty a high flow rate through it and still output zero ppm. This way all I do is adjust how much zero nitrate I push out of the reactor.

Lets say I want to maintain my 10ppm nitrate on my existing system.

Week 1 I test and see that my levels were rising let's say 12ppm. All I need to to is Increase the flow to process more water through the reactor.

Test week 2 and my nitrates are 10. Cool.

Week 3 I test and I see that the tank has 8ppm. I slow the flow down and process less through the reactor.

Week 4 I see that I have 9ppm. So I bump up the flow just a little bit.

Eventually you will find the flow rate that matches your nitrate input and reactor output.

I also run my effluent through a large secondary chamber with Ca reactor media in it. This helps buffer the pH of the effluent while having the added benefit of adding a bit of calcium and alkalinity at the same time. This solves the main problems that people attach to sulfur reactors, lowering pH and consuming alkalinity.

Sulfur dioxide generation (which is another potential problem) is not an issue at the higher flow rates that is allowed by having a larger amount of sulfur.

As for the maintenance of removing the nitrogen gas that is generated I just choose to do this automatically. I have the gas vent tied directly into my effluent. It bubbles out naturally and with zero effort on my part. So we have solved the maintenance issue to.

Here is a photo of how I have it set up. This is on my new system that is not even a year old yet but I have been using variants of this setup for about 10 years.

Let me know if you have any questions. I am sure I missed something.

What reactor is that

 

[Sean Clark]

What reactor is that

Korallin s1502

Here is the link:

KORALLIN Biodenitrator - KORALLIN Amphiprion Aquaristik Vertriebs GmbH

 

[AXBROWN]

Korallin s1502

Here is the link:

KORALLIN Biodenitrator - KORALLIN Amphiprion Aquaristik Vertriebs GmbH

Where do you get your refills for the Biodenitrator? I have one on my tank that I took offline because I'm preparing to move it, but want to replace everything inside and can't seem to find any sulfur pellets anywhere (that I know are reef safe at least). Also, I can't remember what the rock/media is above the sulfur pellets in the biodenitrator, is that the same rocks used in calcium reactors?

 

[Sean Clark]

Where do you get your refills for the Biodenitrator? I have one on my tank that I took offline because I'm preparing to move it, but want to replace everything inside. Also, I can't remember what the rock/media is above the sulfur pellets in the biodenitrator, is that the same rocks used in calcium reactors?

I use to get it from Marine Depot; they had a refill kit with both medias for about $100. I have not needed any since they shut down. Apparently the sulfur pellets are hard to find right now. Here are some 2.3-3.3mm pellets. Caribsea use to offer their LSM but I cannot find that anymore either. I have heard of people using sulfur prills that you can find on Amazon. You can use any CA reactor media on top. I use Seachem's because it last longer than Reborn.

 

[AXBROWN]

I use to get it from Marine Depot; they had a refill kit with both medias for about $100. I have not needed any since they shut down. Apparently the sulfur pellets are hard to find right now. Here are some 2.3-3.3mm pellets. Caribsea use to offer their LSM but I cannot find that anymore either. I have heard of people using sulfur prills that you can find on Amazon. You can use any CA reactor media on top. I use Seachem's because it last longer than Reborn.

You are the best! I appreciate your quick response. Doing some research I found a replacement kit from Canada at this site: Denitrator Refill but I wasn't sure if $129.99 was a good price. Thanks again!