Seachem CupriSorb

• Copper-specific chelating resin – it targets copper in all its forms rather than adsorbing indiscriminately like carbon.
• Tells you when it is finished – the beads turn a pronounced deep blue-black, so you are not guessing at a replacement interval.
• Does not leach copper back – once exhausted it holds what it has captured rather than releasing it into the tank.
• Regenerable – an acid soak restores it, which changes the economics on the larger sizes if you are equipped to do it safely.
• Removes other heavy metals too – cadmium, iron, nickel, zinc, cobalt and manganese.
• Four sizes – 100 mL through to a 4 L bulk container.

Seachem's published rate is 250 mL for every 600 L, removing up to 7,500 mg (12 ppm) of copper. The other rows below scale that rate directly.

Those figures are ceilings, not schedules. Real capacity depends on how much copper is actually present, so the colour change is the reliable indicator rather than elapsed time.

• Place Seachem CupriSorb in a filter media bag and site it where water flow through the resin is greatest – a canister filter, a chemical filtration module, a box filter, or a high-flow area of a trickle filter.
• Contact time is everything. Resin sitting in a dead spot does very little.
• Keep it running for at least two weeks after copper tests read zero. Substrate and rock can leach copper at levels a test kit will not show, and the resin keeps working on that residue.
• Watch the colour. Deep blue-black means it is loaded and needs replacing or regenerating.

CupriSorb can be restored rather than discarded. The procedure uses muriatic acid – hydrochloric acid – which is corrosive. Do it outdoors, in a non-metal container, with gloves and eye protection, or treat the resin as single-use.

1. Soak the resin in a non-metal container with 2 cups of water and half a cup of muriatic acid for one hour.
2. Rinse thoroughly.
3. Repeat as required until the original colour returns.
4. Rinse well, add sodium bicarbonate until foaming stops, then rinse again before returning it to the filter.

Match the size to the system volume, not the severity of the problem, because the rated capacity scales with volume. A 240 L tank is a 100 mL job. A 600 L system is a 250 mL job. Anything up to about 1,200 L takes the 500 mL container.

The 4 L bucket is a bulk pack for shops, quarantine facilities and large systems. There is also a pre-bagged 100 mL option if you would rather not deal with loose resin and a separate media bag.

Buying larger than you need is reasonable here in a way it is not with liquids – dry resin stores well, and the leftover is available the next time a copper treatment finishes.

Suitable for

• Clearing copper out of a hospital or quarantine tank after a course of copper medication
• Preparing a tank that has previously held copper for invertebrates or corals
• Removing heavy metals that have entered through tap water, plumbing or decor
• Reef systems where any copper at all is a problem
• Chasing down substrate-bound copper that a test kit is no longer detecting

Not suitable for

• Running permanently in a display tank. Seachem does not recommend it as a fixed filter addition, because it will also strip essential trace elements over time.
• Use during a deliberate copper treatment – it will remove the medication you are dosing. Run it after the course, not during it.
• Organic pollutants, tannins or yellowing. That is a job for Purigen or MatrixCarbon.
• Phosphate or silicate. Use PhosGuard for those.

• Rinse the resin before first use and keep it out of reach of children.
• Regeneration involves muriatic acid, a corrosive. Gloves, eye protection, a non-metal container and outdoor ventilation are the minimum. Always add acid to water, never water to acid.
• Neutralise with sodium bicarbonate until foaming stops before the resin goes back in the tank, and rinse again afterwards.
• Do not regenerate in a metal bucket or sink.
• Seachem publishes a Safety Data Sheet for this product at sds.seachem.com.

• Seachem CupriSorb 100 mL pre-bagged – the same resin already in a bag, for smaller jobs
• Seachem The Bag – a 13 x 25 cm media bag for the loose sizes
• Seachem Zip Bag – resealable media bag for resin you plan to regenerate and reuse
• Seachem Purigen – organic filtration alongside the metal removal
• Seachem Prime – conditions tap water and binds heavy metals at each water change
• Seachem Fresh Trace – replaces the freshwater trace elements a long CupriSorb run will also have stripped

This is a consumable filter medium, so no manufacturer equipment warranty applies. Your rights under the Australian Consumer Law apply in addition to anything the manufacturer states, including the guarantees that goods are of acceptable quality and fit for the purpose described.

The 100 mL, 250 mL and 500 mL containers ship as ordinary parcels. The 4 L container is a bulk pack and is considerably heavier and bulkier than the others.

How do I know when CupriSorb is used up?

The beads discolour to a pronounced deep blue-black. That colour change is the exhaustion indicator, and it is more reliable than counting weeks, because capacity depends on how much copper is actually in the water.

Does exhausted CupriSorb release the copper back into the tank?

No. Seachem states that CupriSorb does not leach captured copper back once it is exhausted. It should still be removed or regenerated, because a loaded resin is no longer doing anything useful.

Can CupriSorb stay in the filter permanently?

Seachem does not recommend it as a permanent filter addition. Left in indefinitely, Seachem CupriSorb will also deplete essential trace elements, so treat it as a corrective medium rather than a standing one.

What else does it remove besides copper?

Cadmium, iron, nickel, zinc, cobalt and manganese are all removed alongside copper, which is worth knowing if you dose iron or trace supplements.

How long should it run after copper tests read zero?

At least two weeks. Substrate and rock can hold copper that leaches back at concentrations below what a test kit will detect, and the extra fortnight deals with that residue.

Can it be used while dosing a copper medication?

No. It will strip the medication out of the water along with any other copper. Use it after the treatment course is finished, when the goal is getting the copper out.