Why you shouldn't use bleach for cleaning filter socks: my point of view

[grassi]

I'm reading pretty much everywhere about the common practice to add household bleach for cleaning filter socks.
I never used it for many reason, some due to the facts, some to some suspects.

Some facts:

-Even in small amount, the Sodium hypochloride contained in the household bleach will be released in your water column.
-Sodium hypochloride (NaOCl) reacts with metals, it can release chlorine gas and many other fun stuff that you don't want to happen in your tank.
-It also causes the precipitation of minerals such as calcium carbonate which is present in good amount in our tanks mostly producing trihalomethanes which are carcinogenic
-When mixed with some sort of ammonia (that we have in our tanks) it produces chloramines which are toxic.
-NaOCl will damage the fibers and the lifespan of the sock will be shortened. We all know that this is true for natural fibers, but it is also proven that some polymer can be damaged by acid and bleach
-There are some more effects of bleach on a water solution, you can find a lot of readings online.

Again, it will be present in a low level on a dry filter sock, but it will be present.


The suspect:

When beaching a filter sock you are just getting rid of stains, but you are not really cleaning the sock better, that being done with the mechanical action of cleaning (extra rinse in your washing machine).

So if you are just getting rid of stains for the pleasure of your eyes while introducing potential hazard for your tank, why you should use it?
I had to prove my suspect so I decided to perform a couple of tests.
I cut a used filter sock (felt) in 2 parts and washed one with and another one without bleach. Then I prepared a section and mounted it on a few slides.
At first sight under the microscope looks like the bleached one is much more clean than the other one.
But after I stained the sample I was able to see pretty much the same amount of particles (mostly algae) in the two samples.

The bleach just "bleached" the algae (what a genius!!!) but it DID NOT REMOVE THEM FROM THE SOCK.
The purpose of cleaning a filter sock is to get rid, as much as we can, of the particles that are clogging it. The test I performed showed me that bleach is not helping that way. I thought that bleach was able to somehow "destroy" the particles present in the sock, helping the mechanical cleaning, but it is not, probably due to the nature of the fiber used for filter socks.

As a side note, most of the socks we are using in the hobby are generally used in industrial environment. They are sold in two different families, as for the cleaning. Some can be used only once, while there is a kind that can be "regenerated" and reused. This cleaning process is usually done by industrial cleaning processes, using pressure and other way for cleaning and regenerating them.
Who knows which kind we are getting... the only think I'm sure of is that we cannot bring them back to the "new" status with or without bleach, but we can get rid of some particles in a way that they can be reused in our sump, at least for a while.

[BrianB]

Good information but at $6 a sock x3 per week without cleaning it would get quite spendy. How do YOU clean your socks or what method do you recommend?

[grassi]

I was not suggesting to get rid of them each time. Just saying that if cleaned at home they will have a lifetime. I don't know how much it is and depends on the tank, but I would change them every 15/20 time you wash them at least.
I clean mines in the washing machine at hot temperature + extra rinse, and I let them dry

[NoobtoSalt]

I put my washer on sanitize and hang dry with no cleaner. This had worked out great

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

[grassi]

Yes I forgot to mention: no cleaner!!!
Maybe some softener? lol

[BrianB]

I do use bleach on a high temp. soak them for 30 minutes rinse. repeat with no bleach and rinse 3 more times to be sure bleach is gone then let them air dry. So far so good.

[reefnjunkie]

Interesting read-
I know I have filter socks that I have been using for well, almost 2 years on 2 of them.

My routine is to run them on a cycle that my washer calls "soak". I add a capful of bleach, it fills the drum, I use "medium" setting so the drum has about 15-20 gallons is my guess, I usually wait until I have at least 4-5 socks. Mine are the 7" by 16" 100 micron.
The soak goes through an agitate period and then just soaks until I change cycles. I usually soak for about 6-8 hours-most of the time I forget and they soak over night.
After this soak, I soak one more time for about 3 hours, then I run them on a small load wash cycle of 6 mins.

I've always don’t it his way, and I just thought "bleach is what you use"

Being I have not had any issues, it may be the fact that I "over" clean.

I tend to do quite a bit "to the extreme"-

Good info though, just thought I would share my regiment

[Rick]

Some facts:

-Even in small amount, the Sodium hypochloride contained in the household bleach will be released in your water column.

Perhaps. That does not mean it will be dangerous though. It isn't necessarily what the chemical is but rather it is what concentration of it becomes harmful.



-Sodium hypochloride (NaOCl) reacts with metals, it can release chlorine gas and many other fun stuff that you don't want to happen in your tank.

If you soak some metals in it then yes it can release toxic gases. Fortunately we do not need to worry about this. If we did then there would be people poisoned daily in restaurants, hospitals, etc. where chlorine bleach is used extensively for cleaning surfaces which are often metal.



-It also causes the precipitation of minerals such as calcium carbonate which is present in good amount in our tanks mostly producing trihalomethanes which are carcinogenic

At what percentage does this occur? How much precipitation will be caused for say 1/50,000 ppt of it? I suspect there are other things in the air we breath that will cause more precipitation than any residue left on our filter socks.



-When mixed with some sort of ammonia (that we have in our tanks) it produces chloramines which are toxic.

The level of ammonia that would be necessary for this to occur is much higher than what we will ever encounter in our tanks. The danger is much greater cleaning our bathrooms which have much higher concentrations of ammonia yet chlorine bleach is still the primary cleaning agent for such use.



-NaOCl will damage the fibers and the lifespan of the sock will be shortened. We all know that this is true for natural fibers, but it is also proven that some polymer can be damaged by acid and bleach

This may be true. It would amount to about the same as the damage to white underwear which is often bleached in every wash. Nevertheless it doesn't stop us from bleaching our underwear since we prefer that it not be stained.



-There are some more effects of bleach on a water solution, you can find a lot of readings online.

Just be sure to keep it on perspective. I.E. The amount of chlorine we are adding to our tank is an extremely small fraction. We contaminate our tanks more with the air we breath than the amount on a filter sock is going to. And how much more is there already in the water that is left after it goes through our RO/DI filters. (Yes, we drink this stuff everyday as it is placed into our driking water)



Again, it will be present in a low level on a dry filter sock, but it will be present.

As mentioned we would often be surprised at what exists in low levels in the air we breath that is much more dangerous than the low level that will exist on a filter sock. I'm only guessing however I suspect there is already more in our RO/DI water even after filtering than what a filter sock will add to it.

Some additional notes:
Chlorine bleach is "NOT" just used to make things white. Chlorine bleach is used is to kill bacteria as a disinfectant and it is used extensively for this purpose. To do so effectively though the concentration of it needs to be much greater than the amount we would add to our tank with residue in a filter sock. (It should be enough in our wash to kill bacteria in the filter sock though)

If you read the instructions on Purigen with which people are often successful at using to reduce nitrates and phosphates it actually instructs you to soak the media in chlorine bleach for 4 hours (if I recall correctly) and then soak it in regular water for a day (which is to neutralize the chlorine) to regenerate it. If bleaching our filter soaks was going to be harmful then this certainly would be too. (I used Purigen for about 6 months and never had any ill effects from regenerating it)

[CCR]

I bleach. Soak and extra rinse. Then run en through the dryer. I never have had a problem.

[ReeFit]

they why do you use bleach to restore purigen products. it removes the organics out of purigen.

[grassi]

Rick, my point was that using bleach is not gonna help much in cleaning filter socks.
You are using a chemical that is not useful for the goal you are trying to achieve.
Even in small quantities it can have some effects on a tank, unless you rinse them well as some of the members are doing.
I'll suggest to go without and save some energy and time.

As for the sterilization, we don't really need to sterilize something that is gonna be put in the same bacteria rich environment from where it came from, unless we are having some issues.

I also forgot to say that I reverse them before to wash. I mean.. put the inside part outside. I don't know the word :)

[grassi]

they why do you use bleach to restore purigen products. it removes the organics out of purigen.

I don't know. I didn't test that media. If I conducted the test well, it does not help to restore felt filter socks

[Lowman]

I wash mine twice on the whites cycle. No bleach, no cleaner, spin dry them in the washer, then hang dry them for a couple days.

[h2odvl]

I watched this the other day and thought it would go well here
Video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbnX7oMvhIU)

[grassi]

I went ahead and I did another couple of tests.
First of all I put 3 samples of algae (which is most of the stuff trapped in your filter socks) in 3 liquids: household bleach, hydrogen peroxide and white vinegar

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPq-rhTyfcI/AAAAAAAAElM/4Kv8lDXMqTc/s720/IMG_6180.JPG

I let them sit for 30 minutes. The bleach turned the algae white, while the other 2 liquids left the color.

Then I did an empiric test, pulling apart the algae. As I imagined the bleach was the one who performed worst, followed by the vinegar and then, the winner: hydrogen peroxide*
You can try yourself

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPq-sV-Pz2I/AAAAAAAAElU/nfqPy6erbI4/s720/IMG_6183.JPG

I then prepared my slides
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPq-r4AtgZI/AAAAAAAAElQ/yKD5NzccJh0/s720/IMG_6182.JPG

And I put them under the scope
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPq-s-Nhi2I/AAAAAAAAElY/EhkRWzO08AY/s720/IMG_6184.JPG

What I've seen under magnification confirmed my theory: bleach just remove the color from pigments (you can see at the end the solution is kinda green), while the other 2 solutions act more deeper on the algae structure. You can see how they started to break down

I will try to wash a filter sock after soaking it into hydrogen peroxide and blowing it with compressed air.

* For the usage of hydrogen peroxide, take a look at the work of Justin Bieber.
I'm testing it with great result on removing hair algae from frags. Who visited my place recently saw some sample of it. I had great results, but I'm still working on the dipping time, in order to not bleach the coral.

[Rick]

Rick, my point was that using bleach is not gonna help much in cleaning filter socks.

It does help make them white again regardless of whether they are any cleaner or not. One advantage to this is that it is easier to look at them in use and determine from the color when they need to be changed. Really bleach isn't much of a cleaner as such. It disenfects and bleaches. (Which you already verified)



You are using a chemical that is not useful for the goal you are trying to achieve.

Not necessarily true. If my goal is to make my clean but stained underwear white then it is the chemical to use for the particular goal I wish to achieve. In this case I'm using it to make the filter sock white again.



Even in small quantities it can have some effects on a tank, unless you rinse them well as some of the members are doing.

And I'm questioning the validity of this. I don't believe the quantity we are talking about is enough to have a negative impact. I also believe that the quantity involved is only a fraction of what we already put in the tanks with our RO/DI water. I don;t think anyone is just dipping them in bleach and then putting them in our tanks without rinsing them first and I most also let them dry as well. (Doing both helps to neutralize the chlorine)



I'll suggest to go without and save some energy and time.

This is fine as long as the reasons are valid. I.E. If someone is using it just to get the particles out then it is questionable as to the effectiveness. If they are doing so in order to get them white again then we already know that it helps. If the reason is to prevent it from harming our tanks I don't think it is a valid reason as it apparently isn't doing so.



As for the sterilization, we don't really need to sterilize something that is gonna be put in the same bacteria rich environment from where it came from, unless we are having some issues.

If the sock sits for any length of time outside of the water before washing then it should be sterilized as the bacteria growing on it then will be a whole different animal than what we have in our tanks.



I also forgot to say that I reverse them before to wash. I mean.. put the inside part outside. I don't know the word :)
This would be the same thing as "Turn them inside out". Everyone understands it either way though.

Once again, I just don't think the amounts we are talking about are enough to have a negative impact and therefore I don't think it's doing any harm. The experience of many people tends to confirm this. I do think having a filter that starts out white when it's cleaned and then gets dark as it's used has it's advantages though. I.E. We are less likely to leave one in that's too dirty which I do believe to be more harmful.

[grassi]

I know I have to change it every saturday. I don't need to see the color change. The raising water level in the sock will tell me if it need to be changed before.
I just save myself time and water not using bleach. And not using another chemical make me feel better :)

As for being armful or not, with the testing equipment we have at hand, we can't say either way. It also depends on what kind of species you are keeping.
What I'm saying is that, other than for our eyes, we are not cleaning it better in order to have a better filtration performance. I'm sure some people, me included, were thinking that using bleach was a way to clean the sock better.

[finch6013]

With bleached filter socks I need to change them once per week. With unbleached filter socks I still change them once per week. I get 7 days out of a filter sock before the water level rises to the top either way. I agree with no bleach as I have not seen a difference with it.

[grassi]

With bleached filter socks I need to change them once per week. With unbleached filter socks I still change them once per week. I get 7 days out of a filter sock before the water level rises to the top either way. I agree with no bleach as I have not seen a difference with it.

Yes, this is the point. I'm doing a test right now with hydrogen peroxide.
I want to see if the decomposing action of it will allow to be cleaned better and more in deep. The test suggested that, but I have no idea if the washing machine can get rid of the more soft particles stuck into the mesh

[finch6013]

I tried cleaning with the hose and high pressure spray attachment and got them very clean to the eye. They almost looked new, but it's a pain to clean them that way.

[Smann]

I did not use filter socks before now with this tank and sump I designed it with two filter socks. The main drain needs to be changed every week, the second can go a month but I uasually change it at three weeks or so since it also contains carbon
We have a HE top loader so it will not clean without soap. I keep them wet then hose them on concrete, inside out both sides twice, they come pretty clean. Then I WAS putting them in a 5 gal bucket full of water and a capfull of bleach. I read one tablespoon to a gallon for general but I was also told that "if it smells like bleach" its enough. Ive even reused the bucket a few times, The socks come out really white and the hose removes the particals, I do hose them again before letting dry.
Maybe I'll try a half cap or what would you consider a safe amount?

[OwenReefin]

Don't you wash a new tank out with bleach? Cuz thats what I am doing with my setup... I'm not screwing myself am I?

[Rick]

Don't you wash a new tank out with bleach? Cuz thats what I am doing with my setup... I'm not screwing myself am I?
No, Most of us use white vinegar. Be sure to wash it out very very well afterwards and you will probably be okay. Afterwards, I would fill it up with tap water and leave it for a few days which should neutralize any chlorine left over and then empty it back out. I would not suggest using bleach though for cleaning your tank if you haven't already done so.

[OwenReefin]

No I haven't yet, but fully intended to bleach everything, including sump and plumbing, glad I read over this thread.

[ReeFit]

i cleaned out a turtle tank once with clorox bleach and soft scrub, i rinsed that thing out what i thought was really well and let it sit for a few days. i put goldfish in the tank after i set it back up and they all died within a matter of hours. not gonna use bleach on a tank ever again.

[jackaninny]

The recharge instructions for Purigen are:

"Soak in a 1:1 bleach:water solution for 24 hours in a non-metalic container in a well ventilated area and away from children. Rinse well, then soak for 8 hours with a solution containing 2 tablespoons of ChlorGuard(TM), Prime®, or equivalent dechlorinator per cup of water. Rinse well."


IF I were bleaching anything I would probably add a soak in a dechlorinator such as Prime just to be safe.

[grassi]

Don't you wash a new tank out with bleach? Cuz thats what I am doing with my setup... I'm not screwing myself am I?

I don't know about this. My tests were about the cleaning power of bleach on a filter sock, while the toxicity of it was just intended to be a possible side effect.
I know that some stores do use muriatic acid for cleaning used tanks.

[Lowman]

Don't clean your glass tanks with anything but white vinegar. Muratic acid will eat the silicone sealants. Every used glass tank I have ever set up got a cursory scrape of algae, then set right up. i think the material left helps with cycling. Muratic acid is good for cleaning acrylic tanks.

[fpd4308]

I am with bob on this one. Just a quick scrape down and set it up. I don't like to make things to complicated and worrisome.

[grassi]

Yes I wasn't suggesting to use it, just to let you know...
White vinegar here as well, razor blade for glass and dobie pad for acrylic (in case you don't have to buff it out)

[reefnjunkie]

I know I have to change it every saturday. I don't need to see the color change. The raising water level in the sock will tell me if it need to be changed before.
I just save myself time and water not using bleach. And not using another chemical make me feel better :)

As for being armful or not, with the testing equipment we have at hand, we can't say either way. It also depends on what kind of species you are keeping.
What I'm saying is that, other than for our eyes, we are not cleaning it better in order to have a better filtration performance. I'm sure some people, me included, were thinking that using bleach was a way to clean the sock better.



Good point-no sense in using the bleach perhaps-I usually spill the stuff on other laundry and the wife is not happy(wife)

[grassi]

GREAT!
It worked!!!
Soaked with about 1/4 of a cup of 3% hydrogen peroxide for a couple of hours, then washed (cotton, hot, extra rinse).
Hydrogen peroxide does not leave any chemical, it dissolves into water to water and oxygen. You can now safely have a white filter sock with no risk and without a lot of rinsing. I still suggest to let them dry to let the chlorine evaporate

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPs1CO3_YzI/AAAAAAAAEmE/4HKlQYMGzUk/s720/IMG_6190.JPG
Some algae already decomposing and living a brown juice
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPs1CdGYMgI/AAAAAAAAEmI/Z6IQ0jT6sv0/s512/IMG_6191.jpg
Clean as with bleach
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPs1CzPsqVI/AAAAAAAAEmM/kg6C5t3PGzI/s720/IMG_6195.JPG
But without the risk and the bad smell :)
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPs1DU1EbWI/AAAAAAAAEmQ/MI7EvrF0h44/s720/IMG_6197.JPG
Just a little bit of bubble noise lol
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_F6npdb4r8qI/TPs1ET2IH1I/AAAAAAAAEmU/c2b1sxFdQ6E/s512/IMG_6198.jpg

[grassi]

Ok, now I need a rocket scientist to know how to get rid of my dog hair from the filter sock :)

[Smann]

Ok, now I need a rocket scientist to know how to get rid of my dog hair from the filter sock :)

Yeah and everything else i own including my toothbrush

[grassi]

Yeah and everything else i own including my toothbrush

Yeah, they go everywhere. Proteins for corals... not too bad (naughty)

[ReeFit]

How much peroxide to use ratio to water? I do 9-12 socks at a time.
Thanks for the research and info. I'll be changing up my cleaning routine.

[grassi]

You are welcome Robert, it was fun to play the crazy basement scientist :)
You don't mix it with water. You just pour some directly on the sock, each side. Better if you let it dry (dirty) so it will absorb all the peroxide (I had a dry dirty one and it worked well like that). I did about 1/4 of a cup, but I will try with less to make it cheaper, maybe with more time soaking (it was still working when I put it into the washer). We have to test a bit.
With more than one, I will just put them one on top of the other on a pile, so the peroxide will do down by gravity.
You have more socks than a millipedes! :)

[finch6013]

interesting experiment. I will consider trying peroxide in the future.

[grassi]

Somebody suggested me this article. Make your wife happy and suggest to try hydrogen peroxide instead of bleach :)



Cleaner's Chempanion
From Volume 20, Issue 8 - August 2005
http://www.cleanfax.com/article.asp?IndexID=6635521

The versatility of hydrogen peroxide

Everywhere you turn, you see peroxide touted as a cleaning tool of choice — it's a versatile solution to many challenges.
by: Aziz Ullah, Ph.D., MBA

Hydrogen peroxide is one of the most versatile, safe, dependable and environmentally desirable chemicals available.

Its many uses include bleaching of textiles and paper pulp, oxidizing, and an odor control agent for biological, industrial and municipal waste, including urine and fecal matter.

It is also used to detoxify organic and inorganic waste.

Hydrogen peroxide has many new applications, a number that is expanding each day. It is virtually the only bleaching agent for protein fibers, and is also very extensively used for cellulosic fibers like cotton.

Because oxygen bleaches do not damage dyestuffs, fabrics and fabric finishes, they are preferred to chlorine-based bleaches.

Hydrogen peroxide fights germs and bacteria — without staining.

Hydrogen peroxide is particularly attractive in that it:
Adds only water and oxygen to a system, and does not create additional environmental problems
Requires simple, minimal equipment to use
Is safe for textile finishes
Has excellent stain removal properties
Eliminates odors
Improves water quality in sewer systems
Helps reduce biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) — key parameters in determining water quality
Can detoxify cyanide, nitrogen compounds, chlorine, bisulfite, phenol and a host of other toxic based waste
It is both an oxidizer and reducer
Oxidation and reduction must occur at the same time in a chemical reaction.

For a substance to act as an oxidizing agent, it must gain electrons from another substance and have its own reduced (lose electrons), and vice versa.

A bleaching agent, which causes whitening to occur, does not itself become whiter because an oxidizing agent is not oxidized, but reduced.

Although hydrogen peroxide is a fairly strong oxidizer (gains electrons and gives up oxygen), it can act as a mild reducing agent (loses electrons, takes up oxygen); for example, towards permanganates, and reduces silver oxide to metallic silver.

Hydrogen peroxide, when an oxidizing agent, is reduced to water. It is also a reducing agent being oxidized to oxygen.

The decomposition of hydrogen peroxide is both an oxidation and a reduction reaction.

Marketed as a solution in water in a concentration of 3 to 90 percent by weight, solutions of hydrogen peroxide gradually deteriorate.

Hydrogen peroxide, especially when its concentration is over 50 percent by weight, requires great care in handling and storage. When dropped on paper or wood, it can ignite.

Understand weight, volume, percentage
The customary method expressing the strength of hydrogen peroxide solutions is by percentage weight (abbreviated w/w).

Formerly, it was common to use the expression "volume strength". Thus, 10 volume strength means that one volume unit of hydrogen peroxide will liberate 10 similar units of gaseous oxygen.

A 35 percent (w/w) solution of peroxide is equivalent to 130 volume strength, and a 50 percent (w/w) solution to 197 volume strength.

A 30 percent (w/w) solution of peroxide is equivalent to 100 volume strength.

The commercial strength supplied for textile uses are 35 and 50 percent.

Solutions containing more than 8 percent (w/w) hydrogen peroxide are corrosive to skin and cause intense irritation.

Contact with skin causes blotches that can be painful (should be washed away immediately), but will disappear after a few hours, without leaving traces.

Traces of certain metals or their salts act as catalysts, causing rapid decomposition of hydrogen peroxide.

Particularly active in this respect are copper and iron. If they are present in cotton before bleaching, the promoted oxidizing action will cause degradation or disintegration of the textile.

Solid forms of hydrogen peroxide
A number of solid peroxygen compounds are available in solid form, which release hydrogen peroxide when dissolved in water. These are more stable than the liquid form and easier to handle.

Since the 1960s, U.S. manufacturers have used sodium perborate tetrahydrate in heavy-duty powders and dry bleaches. In addition to its stability, the product exhibits excellent bleaching characteristics and is relatively safe and easy to handle. The low solubility in water of this product limits its use.

Drying sodium perborate tetrahydrate produces sodium perborate monohydrate. This product dissolves much more readily than the tetrahydrate and shows good stability. Because the perborates are either activated (release hydrogen peroxide) at high temperatures or by the use of activator catalysts, they have not gained much in popularity.

Sodium percarbonate or sodium carbonate peroxyhydrate gives good alkalinity and a good rate of dissolution. It has good performance characteristics, but is less easy to formulate into other products. Sodium percarbonate is available from suppliers of carpet cleaning chemicals. Sodium percarbonate can be added to a ready to use cleaning solution, but because of the limited stability after the solution is made, only enough should be made that can be used for each job. Sodium percarbonate is kinder to fibers and safer to use on water cleanable fabrics and colorfast dyes. It can brighten and improve cleaning and remove oxidizable stains that normally resist cleaning chemicals. It reduces graying of colors and yellowing of whites, and improves brightness on repeat cleanings.

Magnesium monoperoxyphthalate hexahydrate, unlike other solid forms, liberates the peracid directly and is soluble at low temperatures. This product has the ability to rapidly bleach stains and has a high biocidal activity. This product has not achieved commercial importance.

Peroxide and stain removal
Much stain removal is carried out by oxidation, with oxidized bleaches such as hydrogen peroxide.

The oxidation removes most stains, while generally not affecting fast colors; unlike chlorine bleach, hydrogen peroxide has virtually no adverse effect on textile fibers or on most dyes.

Hydrogen peroxide in cold water removes blood stains from cotton and linen fabrics. Potassium permanganate, another oxidizing agent, removes most stains from white fabrics (except rayon). The resulting permanganate stain can then be removed by treatment with oxalic acid.

It was at one time thought that that the oxidizing action of hydrogen peroxide depended on the fact that it readily underwent decomposition with the liberation of oxygen:

H2O2 —> H2O + O
This explanation, however, is no longer valid. There is no absolute certainty about the nature of the bleaching action, but it is believed that the perhydroxyl ion is the active species.

These ions are formed when hydrogen peroxide dissociates in the following manner:

H2O2 <—> HO+ + HO-2
It is a well-known fact that bleaching is more rapid in alkaline than in acid solutions.

This may well be because the hydroxyl ions present in the alkaline solution neutralize the hydrogen ions, thereby promoting the liberation of perhydroxyl ions.

In most ceiling tile cleaners, the active component is hydrogen peroxide ranging in strength from 10 to 35 percent (w/w), and the inert component is a dilute alkaline detergent solution, sometimes ammoniated.

The two components are then mixed and sprayed on the tiles, resulting in oxidizing the stains and bleaching any other associated coloring matter.

Hydrogen peroxide has been effective in the removal of urine stains, and can be effectively employed to remove acid dye stains by the heat transfer method.

Hydrogen peroxide at about 10 percent (w/w), when mixed with ammoniated detergent solution, makes an effective coffee stain remover.

Odor control with peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide not only has a high biocidal activity but, unlike other biocides, actually breaks the bonds of odor-causing molecules, rendering them harmless, and in most cases, reducing them into the most elemental forms.

Hydrogen peroxide appears to be one of the most effective and reliable methods of odor control in sanitary sewers.

Hydrogen peroxide is being commercially employed in tannery effluent clean-up, waste odor problems in dairies, for treatment of shipboard waste, and waste cleanup at breweries.


Hydrogen peroxide adds dissolved oxygen to water, which helps prevent anaerobic (absence of oxygen) conditions, which causes malodorous conditions.

Hydrogen peroxide has been successfully used in control of fecal and urine odors.

Skunk odor removal
Alkaline hydrogen peroxide has been used to scrub hydrogen sulfide gas from waste gas streams.

This reagent works well with thiols that are smelly compounds of sulfur.

Because skunk spray is composed mainly of low molecular weight thiols, like n-butyl mercaptan and dicrotyl sulfide, a dilute solution of hydrogen peroxide mixed with baking soda and a little wetting agent such as liquid hand soap is very effective in removing skunk-type odors.

Bleaching
Calcium or sodium hypochlorite (chlorine bleach) should never be used on wool because they discolor and damage the fiber.

It is important when using hydrogen peroxide to achieve the right level of stability.

If the pH is too low, no perhydroxyl ions are set free, and bleaching will not take place. But when the pH is too high, the hydrogen peroxide becomes too unstable and the whole of perhydroxyl ions are decomposed with the liberation of oxygen before it has had time to act on the textile.

It is virtually impossible to adjust to the optimum pH with alkali alone, and it is necessary to add a stabilizer which will keep the pH within the limits of 8 to 9, when both wool and cotton goods can be effectively bleached.

Catalysts that speed up the decomposition of peroxide can be extremely dangerous in the peroxide bleaching of protein fibers.

Bleaching of protein fibers with hydrogen peroxide can cause degradation of the protein fiber, unless the alkalinity and temperature are properly controlled.

There are occasions when bleaching with hydrogen peroxide at a pH lower than 7 is desirable, especially when the goods contain colored fibers that do not show good color fastness to alkalis.

Shipping
Hydrogen peroxide of 8 to 20 percent by weight strength falls under hazard class 5.1 and must carry an "oxidizer" hazard label; maximum unit quantity that can be shipped is 2.5 liters (0.66 gallons) by UPS ground, and packaged according to packing group II.

Hydrogen peroxide of greater than 20 percent (w/w) strength has even greater restriction, and the unit quantities that may be shipped are smaller.

Violations of shipping regulations may subject the shipper to fines and/or prosecution by appropriate federal authorities. For details see DOT 49 Code of Federal Regulations Part 173.

A word of caution
Before you rush out to buy and use hydrogen peroxide, make sure you understand the product.

As mentioned earlier, hydrogen peroxide works very effectively, but you may have to experiment with the type of material or purpose you want to use it for, as well as the conditions, such as concentration, working temperature, stability of pH, and the use of a catalyst.

This may require patience.

Aziz Ullah, Ph.D., MBA, is president of Fabpro Manufacturing, a leading formulator of top-quality carpet and upholstery cleaning products. He is a member of the American Chemical Society, senior member of the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists, and a member of The Textile Institute (UK). He can be reached at www.fabpro.com.

[tigerv503]

Wow thank you for the time and effort on gathering all the facts. Reefing is a very difficult hobby, there are so many factors which can harm our livestock! Good work Grassi.

Vin B.O.M "Blue Ocean Marines Inc."

[CA2OR]

Dude....I think that is the longest post I have ever read on this forum. Jamie, or alex...whoever just posted that....I say bravo man. You are and always been a very knowledgable and informative member and I for one can say that it is members like you that keep me here and paying......there I said it.

I will say for you lazy folk who didn't read that entire post....I was told almost on day 1 "NEVER use bleach on anything that is involved with your tank....no socks, pads, foams, towels you use to dry your hand....or clean your tank or equipment with (because we all know when messing with your tanks....well....you get your hands wet) or anything I missed...you understand what I'm saying..." I think is how he said it. Basically....no bleach in tank.

Side note for you new fathers and mothers....Purell is really bad too. Take my word for it....oh....and so is gasoline and oil as well.....still unsure on spit up, drool ( I think I am safe here....or baby food and formula....any ideas?

Question....is blood bad for tanks for any reason?
Sent from my DROID2 using Tapatalk

[CA2OR]

I edited my previous post and ended up adding like 2 paragraphs so I wanted to bump this....serious question....is blood bad and why? If you must know....I....had a bad experience recently with one of my inhabitants...and that's all I am going to say about that....

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[OwenReefin]

Historically, chlorine bleach was developed as part of the military chemical weapon arsenal in the 1940s before WWII - the wonderful time period that also gave us petrochemical pesticides - byproducts of WWII nerve gasses

Lol found this when I exploring further the properties of bleach and H202.

[Bigjohnwoody]

Ok I have to know this! Why use a filter sock? I thought I read that they just turn into nitrite heaven's and they are a nuisance! I designed my setup not to have any should I reconsider?

[OwenReefin]

A filter sock is a nitrate haven? I've only heard that saying when people bash on bioballs ;)

[Smann]

How much peroxide needs to be applied, does it need to be saturated or could you use a spray bottle on the dirty side. Are you rinsng the sock first?
Thanks for the info Alex

[grassi]

Dude....I think that is the longest post I have ever read on this forum. Jamie, or alex...whoever just posted that....I say bravo man. You are and always been a very knowledgable and informative member and I for one can say that it is members like you that keep me here and paying......there I said it.

I will say for you lazy folk who didn't read that entire post....I was told almost on day 1 "NEVER use bleach on anything that is involved with your tank....no socks, pads, foams, towels you use to dry your hand....or clean your tank or equipment with (because we all know when messing with your tanks....well....you get your hands wet) or anything I missed...you understand what I'm saying..." I think is how he said it. Basically....no bleach in tank.

Side note for you new fathers and mothers....Purell is really bad too. Take my word for it....oh....and so is gasoline and oil as well.....still unsure on spit up, drool ( I think I am safe here....or baby food and formula....any ideas?

Question....is blood bad for tanks for any reason?
Sent from my DROID2 using Tapatalk

It was me (Alex). Thanks for your compliments Eric. I don't know about blood, but I'll tell you this: you can soak burp clothes into peroxide and they will come out clean and baby safe. It is where I got the idea from :D

[grassi]

Bigjohnwoody, I ran my system without socks for more than a year. Now I feel I need to and I'm using 2. I had some bubbles and the water wasn't as clear as I wanted. If you are diligent and you keep them clean, they are not gonna pollute your tank.

Smann, I don't rinse them (even if doing it would be better so your wife doesn't find snails in the filter!). The first time I saturated them. Yesterday just sprayed quickly on both sides. Then turned it so the peroxide reached all the sock. It worked well. You have to ear the hydrogen peroxide working (bubbles noise)

[Smann]

Last question, where do you buy it besides the small bottle at the grocery store?

[grassi]

I buy it the 1/4 gallon for $1,something at the grocery store. It will last a few months if cleaning a couple of socks weekly

[CA2OR]

I am going to have to look into getting some.