Coil Denitrator

[rsman]

Effluent in my denitrator systems tends to be very acid. Depending on the ability of an individual systems ability to buffer, I prefer to monitor the values. Especially on my smaller systems.

yea your right its generally loaded with co2 and has little oxygen (what a shock )

ive tested for kicks but dont test anything resembling regularly even on my 10gallons, my output usually goes into a skimmer.

 

[traveller7]

......... my output usually goes into a skimmer.

I could not agree more, too bad some folks don't take the time to plumb the output that way.

 

[reef2003]

Saw this denitrator set up in Alf Nielsen first book. It is a tank that is partitioned inside with up / down baffle plates and filled with bio balls. The tank is fully enclosed including the top to create a truly anaerobic condition. Water flow rate is controlled by a ball valve at the PVC out pipe, which leads back to the sump. The book also mentioned using lactos to seed the denitrator. Has anyone made one before. Maybe it will simplify the process of building a coil denitrator and end all the problems of hose clogging.

 

[traveller7]

Saw this denitrator set up in Alf Nielsen first book. It is a tank that is partitioned inside with up / down baffle plates and filled with bio balls. The tank is fully enclosed including the top to create a truly anaerobic condition. Water flow rate is controlled by a ball valve at the PVC out pipe, which leads back to the sump. The book also mentioned using lactos to seed the denitrator. Has anyone made one before. Maybe it will simplify the process of building a coil denitrator and end all the problems of hose clogging.

Same concept.

Typically you see them in combination, tubing and bio balls. Proper flow level is easier to properly adjust/control with tubing vs bio chambers and bio balls.

Never used lactos, but I don't had the denitrator until the system is well established.

 

[reef2003]

Same concept.

Proper flow level is easier to properly adjust/control with tubing vs bio chambers and bio balls.

Why is this so? In my experience, gravity siphon stops because the diameter of the hose inside is so small it sometimes clogs. By using a half inch pvc pipe with a ball valve at the end will surely prevent it from clogging, right?

 

[rsman]

ive never had any of my coils clog, but I have always taken precautions to prevent them from cloging, ive heard ppl talk about it happening but the hose has never been the problem for me, inline valves have ive found removal of the valves after the unit is cycled as the best option, I have a coil on a 10gallon that uses a thin wall .125 OD tubing its been going nicely for about a year now. and several that use .25 OD ice maker sized tubing that are going on a few years old.

that pictured device looks a lot like sever other denitrators that are available commercially, one of which uses bioballs made out of a food supply, you will also want to use a gate valve instead of a ball valve, the valve will become the cloged area but you can always work it open and closed a few times to unclog it.

 

[traveller7]

Why is this so? In my experience, gravity siphon stops because the diameter of the hose inside is so small it sometimes clogs. By using a half inch pvc pipe with a ball valve at the end will surely prevent it from clogging, right?

Not sure when the "half inch" or gravity specs were added to the design description, but I share rsman's experience:

Once I put proper prefiltration and light prevention in place, I have not had issues with even 3/16" tubing clogging.

While I have not used a design like you have posted, I prefer the reduced space of a coil and the infinite adjustments a pump with a bypass allows.

I am sure the posted design would work as it is the same principle, but I have no experience with it to share.

Best of luck.

 

[Yellotang]

May I but in and ask how effiecient at Nitrate reduction are denitrators?

I am removing my DSB and I am looking for an alternative for nitrate reduction.

My tank is a 180 and My nitrates usually float between 30 - 40 ppm.

 

[rsman]

May I but in and ask how effiecient at Nitrate reduction are denitrators?

I have a heavily loaded 125 FO, with the coil running nitrates hover between 3ppm ~ 10ppm(its kinda undersized for load) without it running in a weeks time nitrate reaches 100ppm

I am removing my DSB and I am looking for an alternative for nitrate reduction.

in most cases I look at it as not an alternative, but an additive. my FO's are definately the exception.

My tank is a 180 and My nitrates usually float between 30 - 40 ppm.

if you have LR and a low to moderate bio load a coil will do nice in lowering your 30~40 to less than probibly 5

 

[Yellotang]

Thank you rsman.

Can I ask another question?

If I do DIY, which I am really good at, how many feet of irrigation pipe should I run on it. I am thinking 150+ feet at least.

Also, How tall and wide should I make the chamber?

 

[rsman]

Thank you rsman.
Can I ask another question?

no problem ask away

If I do DIY, which I am really good at, how many feet of irrigation pipe should I run on it. I am thinking 150+ feet at least.

I have DIY'd a few, and am in the process of DIYing another for my breeding tanks so whenever i can help. it depends on the diameter but generally I wouldnt recomend anything longer than 100ft, and would advise the use of thinner tubing but more seperate lengths, my current favorite, homedepot sells the icemaker tubing in a roll for about $20 for 400' Ive used that its easy to work with and cheap enough. 50' is long enough 75' seems better 100' is too long.

Also, How tall and wide should I make the chamber?

IMO taller is better than wider to me the height allows for less dead spots which would be less productive as its very slow movement, its not based on testing it just kinda makes sence.

for details on my unit in progress I am using

us plastics tubing hope this works let me know if it doesnt.

4 columns of the cheaper 3"OD tubs the full 6' high, I am spirling the coil tubing down the chamber then filling the chamber with bio balls, I still have to work out a kink in the top of the unit but water will travel down the coil to the bottom of the columns then travil up the columns and then down a 5th column I hope to fill with argonite (the only removeable top portion) ive also added a hook up for an air pump to pump into the bottom of the argonite column depending on what ph i get out of the unit w/o the airpump I figure ill get some alk buffering out of it ca being only a bonus to keep water quality up as its for fish breeding.

 

[Yellotang]

ok here is another question, would it be better to run all this in a dark tube and not in a clea tube for the simple fact that it will block out all light. I thought that denitrating bacteria should also be shielded from the light.

 

[Yellotang]

BTW, I didn't mean to hijack this thread at all. If you want I can start a new thread.

 

[rsman]

hehe this thread is ok with me, it sounds totally on topic

if you start a new one, point me to it

I didnt cover light in my post, sorry, my entire unit will be in the dark, there are many ways to shield them, the one that I bought has a clear outside tube black vynil tubing wraped around a piece of PVC that is hung inside the outside tubing, the bio balls are inside the PVC and thus shilded, IME the coil doesnt need to be shilded and the unit I am replacing, and the one on my 125 has the coil seperate from the chamber the coil is exposed to light the chamber is not.

another reason I dont like the drip irigation tubing is I used it to build the coil on a 10, and found it to kink the ice maker tubing takes a lot of work to make it kink also a heat gun will worm it up enough to not melt it but make it "memorize" its shape if you are wraping around the outside of a tube its something to keep in mind.

 

[Yellotang]

I made a denitrator many years ago and never used it. I ended up taking it apart and using the parts for something else.

Last time I used the bathtub filled with hotwater to help make the tubing flexiable. do you think that the icemaker tubing would do the same thing?

For a denitrator, I am thinking on using 6 inch ABS instead of the clear pipe. It will blend itself nicely into the background without being seen.

 

[rsman]

I made a denitrator many years ago and never used it. I ended up taking it apart and using the parts for something else.

Last time I used the bathtub filled with hotwater to help make the tubing flexiable. do you think that the icemaker tubing would do the same thing?

yea probibly it doesnt take much to make it stay i have a fairly beefy electric heat gun and to get it to just keep the shape only took a second or so as i waved it around to hit a big area, and only a couple seconds more to make it bend harder than it normally allows.

For a denitrator, I am thinking on using 6 inch ABS instead of the clear pipe. It will blend itself nicely into the background without being seen.

while the color sounds good. i donno about abs to me when someone says 6 inch ABS there talking about plumbing pipe, id try to stick with food safe material abs can be food safe but much of the black ABS plumbing pieces are not.

 

[Yellotang]

Well, maybe I just need to go with PVC instead.

 

[rsman]

you can get colored pvc or paint just about anything you would use to build one

 

[Spring1]

Hey y'all, I'm ba-ack!

I tested the output on my denitrator this morning, 0 nitrites and 0 nitrate. Has been at a very slow drip rate, maybe 10 drops a minute. Does this mean it is cycled? Is it time to raise the flow rate. If so, how many drops do you recommend? I was very worried last week, when it was dripping all that nitrite in the tank, but it seems to be working now.

Couldn't have done it without you, rsman!:thumbsup: Thanks for all your great advice.

Spring

 

[rsman]

Hey y'all, I'm ba-ack!

:bounce2:

I tested the output on my denitrator this morning, 0 nitrites and 0 nitrate. Has been at a very slow drip rate, maybe 10 drops a minute.

good things

Does this mean it is cycled?

the odds are in your favor

Is it time to raise the flow rate. If so, how many drops do you recommend? I was very worried last week, when it was dripping all that nitrite in the tank, but it seems to be working now.

there is no exact flow rate that works for all coil's what you have to do is test then adjust, it is time to increase the flow, I would think you should be fine bringing 10 drops / minute up to say 30 w/o any problems, adjust to that, wait an hour or so and test, if you have nitrite turn it down, if not leave it for a few days. the next jump should be around 60 drops / min, once you get to 60 then what you need to do is take an empty measuring cup and time it to fill to 2 cups(or better 500ml), then adjust the output using the timing of that, the longer you take to adjust it, the less problems you will have while adjusting it.

Couldn't have done it without you, rsman!:thumbsup: Thanks for all your great advice.

:bounce1: :bounce1:
Spring