Chemi-Pure - anything other than expensive carbon?

[KC2PED]

I treated a tank with copper and after many water changes a new snail quickly died. My first thought was that there was still copper in there somewhere -- maybe absorbed into the mopani wood? -- so I started searching the Internet for information on removing copper. The only thing I came up with was Chemi-Pure. Yesterday I cleaned the filter and replaced the plain old carbon with the bag of Chemi-Pure and it looks like I just put in more of the same. Is Chemi-Pure any different from "regular" filter carbon in any way other than price? I dont see any difference in appearance when look through the sealed bag. There are lots of claims on the jar but nothing that says what is actually in there.

[KC2PED]

After a week with Chemi-Pure in the canister filter my tank smells much worse than it ever did when there was theoretically expended Marineland Premium Activated Carbon in there.

[dsuperman]

Could something else have died in that tank? Without knowing your tank if it was me i would just continue with frequent large water changes. Maybe the chemi-pure did its job and absorbed your "smell". Now its time to remove the chemi-pure.

[elcue]

Here’s my two copper penny’s’ worth. Remove the carbon, after a week it’s probably removed all it can. Continue w/ the water changes – dilute, dilute, dilute. (never stop them, as long as you have fish, do regular water changes) Be sure to barrel out the gravel. Watch your ammonia levels, I’m thinking that the copper has killed some of your biological filter, which now has to reestablish itself. Copper can be tricky, what happened that you treated w/ it?

http://www.aquarium-medications.com/

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=16+2154&aid=2657

[stevem]

i dont see any difference
next time you use copper take out porous items like drift wood.
and change carbon often no matter what brand
1 week tops.

[stevem]

keep in mind carbon stop working after about 1 week
then can actually leach back in to the tank.