Well I ordered a Reef Octopus BR-140 Bio Pellet reactor from Tim on Monday afternoon at 4:00 PM and he called that day and it was here Thursday. I could not have been happier with it so big thanks to Tim for coming through as always!

I got it unboxed and was extremely pleased. The build quality is excellent and this thing is HUGE. Ive got a 60g tank at the moment but will be doing a major upgrade soon and wanted something that would work for future builds

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z149/dawgdude1150/ReefOctoBP140.jpg

Overall: 98/100

Pros: The cone shaped bottom does an excellent job of keeping the pellets from getting clumped and the mesh on the top keeps any of them that getting back into the sump.

Cons: My ONLY complaint is the size of the inlet and outlet. Its 1/2"! For a reactor that is going to run at MAYBE 300gph 1/2" is complete overkill. Ive got just the bottom part covered with media and I have a MJ1200 running at 1/3 power on it doing great. I cant think of any pump with a fitting that size that would run this reactor without having to be seriously throttled back. I will say they have built in quick disconnects so swapping them out wouldn't be that difficult.

Would recommend to others: Absolutely. I researched as many reactors as I could find online If I purchase any reactors for my nanos then it will be the smallest of the Reef Octo Bio pellet reactors in a heartbeat. I had the BRS reactor before this and it didnt work worth a darn.

And of course a picture of the reactor in action.

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z149/dawgdude1150/biopelletrunning.jpg

I'm curious about the flow rate (which will obviously increase as the volume of media increases)... can you post a video of your flow through the reactor?


I've seen some of these reactors setup with a gentle tumbling of the media and I've seen some that look like a tornado in the reaction chamber..

You're using the BRS BioPellets, correct?

I am using the brs bio pellets and they seem to work just fine. I have mine gently tumbling and edged the flow up continuously until it was tumbling enough to eventually tumble all the media. From my experience I've seen the best results with it gently tumbling.

As requested...heres the video.

I need to adjust the spray tube a bit so its centered but other than that its working like a champ!

YouTube - Reef Octopus BR-140 Bio Pellet Reactor

How much media did you start with? In relation to the amount recommened by BRS? Have you seen any HA growing? Thanks!

How much media did you start with? In relation to the amount recommened by BRS? Have you seen any HA growing? Thanks!

I started with about 200 ml and have ramped up to probably 350-400 ml? I am not a full on dose yet. Havent had any hair algae growth and I noticed my cyano got worse in the time between the BRS reactor going offline until I got the Reef Octo back online. The skimmer production fell off as well and immediately picked back up 2 days after putting it back online.

Main thing is you need to watch for an algae bloom. If you wake up to a cloudy tank then just put a pump in there to increase O2 and remove some of the media.

nice write up. I'm thinking the 1/2 inch inlet/outlet is that they recommend a mag 3 as a pump for that beast.....I'll be getting one sooner or later....

nice write up. I'm thinking the 1/2 inch inlet/outlet is that they recommend a mag 3 as a pump for that beast.....I'll be getting one sooner or later....

Yeah that's a good point but even still 1/2" tubing is a PITA to deal with and it's just not necessary with the flow rate this uses.

thank you for posting the video..

I'm sure that once that monster is half full of pellets, you'll be looking for something stronger than a mj1200 to move those pellets...


I'm going to set up a GEOs Reactor with bio pellets, I'll let ya know how that goes.. (and post bunches o pics, of course..)

thank you for posting the video..

I'm sure that once that monster is half full of pellets, you'll be looking for something stronger than a mj1200 to move those pellets...


I'm going to set up a GEOs Reactor with bio pellets, I'll let ya know how that goes.. (and post bunches o pics, of course..)

You may be right for huge tanks but the mj1200 is throttled back so far I think it could even keep them tumbling with it 1/4 of the way full which would probably be 1500-2000 ml? That should be enough for my even with a larger tank and my skimmer I plan to put on my next tank :) I've found coupling with a solid skimmer is key.

I've never held the biopellets in my hand... i guess it would depend on their mass (almost neutrally buoyant?)..

good to know that it's working for you.. (maybe i'll have time to get my reactor plumbed in this weekend.. then it'll just be a matter of ordering the media)

I like the design of the reef octopus better than the Geo. I have the Geo media reactor with bio pellets and it does not tumble uniformly. The mesh screen was added to replace foam. It was hard to cut circular and make it stay flush over the bottom. I had to go to Michael's to get a sewing disk to cut it and wedge in place. It now works okay. Its a heavy duty piece of gear but seems its a plain ole media reactor adapted to a bio pellet reactor.

I like the design of the reef octopus better than the Geo. I have the Geo media reactor with bio pellets and it does not tumble uniformly. The mesh screen was added to replace foam. It was hard to cut circular and make it stay flush over the bottom. I had to go to Michael's to get a sewing disk to cut it and wedge in place. It now works okay. Its a heavy duty piece of gear but seems its a plain ole media reactor adapted to a bio pellet reactor.
I'm trying the GEOs because that's what I've got... if it doesn't end up working.. I'll try the octopus...

Just ordered the Octo reactor. I have two Phosban 150's, one modded, but it is a PITA to keep the tumble....

Thanks for the review.

Just ordered the Octo reactor. I have two Phosban 150's, one modded, but it is a PITA to keep the tumble....

Thanks for the review.

They are set and forget, you will like it.

For anyone else interested I may have found another reactor at an attractive price point we could do a powerbuy on that might work. I'll let you all know once I get it and can work out the details.

Do you still have the BRS one? Why do you think the Octo will work better. I may have asked this before to you and I apologize if you have answered it already

Media should be here today... so I would think that by wednesday I should be able to let y'all know how the reactor works with the pellets.

HERE (http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2004605) IS a good deal on the small octopus reactor with media..

can it be used for any other media too? (GFO, carbon)

Edit: They are set and forget, you will like it.

For anyone else interested I may have found another reactor at an attractive price point we could do a powerbuy on that might work. I'll let you all know once I get it and can work out the details.
What is the attractive price?

I'll let you all know once I get it and can work out the details.
What is the attractive price?

...

Im considering trying out this reactor and am a newb to bio pellets all together. Any good articles anyone can point me to that wont confuse me? Would this be a replacement for my carbon/gfo reactor? gfo is so expensive and has to be replaced frequently, but works.

How often should you change the bio pellet media?

I need the the BR-140 as my tank calls for 1100 ml of biopellets by the brs recomendation. Can anyone recommend a good efficient submersible pump for roughly 400-500 gph?

It wont replace your carbon or gfo, it mainly removes nitrates. Bulk reef supply has a nice lil write up and vid. I think it takes a while to get it going.

Edit: I think you would be a good candidate though, You've got alot of stock and feed heavy right

Installed the Octo reactor today. Really nice quality and it works well. Very happy with it.

Now I run two TLF 150's with carbon and phosban, which is great.
Having a reactor specifically geared for pellets us the way to go. Huge difference...no clumping.

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