Rust in RO Tank

[shaywood]

I noticed my RO reserve tank was a little rusty (red tint) looking so I tore it apart and found two small screws holding the circulation pump. Of course, they are rusty. What impact has this had on my reef tank? I have removed them so it shouldn't be a problem again.

Is there anything that I can do to remove metals (rust) from existing tank water?

Shawn

125g tank with fish and soft corals.

[shaywood]

bump

[zhenya]

Shawn,

If you are concern or see some some effects of iron being present in the tank, you can run some Polyfilter in your sump's high flow area or in a power filter, if you have one.

[Ninong]

...and found two small screws holding the circulation pump. Of course, they are rusty. What impact has this had on my reef tank?

Little or none. The only danger would have been if the screws were brass because of the copper content. A little rust won't hurt anything. It could act as fertilizer for algae, but that's about it.

Is there anything that I can do to remove metals (rust) from existing tank water?

There wasn't enough to be concerned about in the first place. This is not really a problem. Even if you happen to lose a screw in the tank, it's not a problem unless it's brass or aluminum.

Iron oxide is dumped by the hundreds of tons in the ocean to increase the phytoplankton bloorm which in turn increases the zooplankton populations which results in larger fish populations.

P.S. -- Iron oxide is the media used in phosphate sponge products. It is harmless.

[CSeaSee]

I've heard that sharks are very sensitive to iron in the tank... any truth to this?

[Ninong]

Sharks are sensitive to metal equipment because of their extreme sensitivity to magnetism. For instance, they don't like re-rod in concrete tank walls.