DSB in a bucket for nitrate control

[thriceanangel]

still @ 20ppm, no difference. Another water change coming up soon, we'll see how that affects it.

 

[EnderG60]

week 5 update

nitrates still in teh 20-30 range, did a big water change and next day nitrates were back at 20-30..they seem to be staying there no matter what i do.

decided to put the bucket on its own pump so we will see if that helps.

hope this thing kicks in soon

 

[Alan Strauss]

Structural Integrity

Structural Integrity

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8027557#post8027557 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by LRS078
You want nothing more than the anaerobic bacteria and anoxic bacteria and SAND in the RDSB. Anything further and it can turn into a fug factory. Prefilter the water and keep the flow low enough as not to disturb the sand. Also seems to help if you use a bulkhead to drain that is at least 25% bigger than the input but that is personal taste.

Update: Installed the RDSB on my 220 system on 8/18/06 in a 15 or so gallon rubbermaid. Saw some minor bulging in the rubbermaid when loaded and reinforced with 1/4" x 3' zip ties on all 3 axis. As of last night had to take the system down as the rubbermaid was bulging around the zip ties grossly and I could not count on its structural integrity. I want something bigger than a salt bucket but it NEEDS to be strong and/or cylindrical. I don't have the stuff to drill glass so making a sacrificial RDSB out of a 20 high is out. I now don't trust anything that isn't BURLY or isn't cylindrical. May have to function test a draining a drilled/bulkheaded cylindrical trashcan next to the tank. Will update as events unfold.

As always, input is more than welcome....

Check out here; My whole sump system utilizes these tanks I'm setting up a RDSB with a new one that they are making for me out of black material. http://www.plastic-mart.com/

Alan

 

[ctreefer]

Well, I haven’t read the whole thread, but I like the idea. I run BB and do miss some of the aspects of the DSB. This is the perfect fit since it never allows the DSB to build up in gunk as a result of good flow. Someone has probably already done this, but I’d throw it out just in case. I built mine last night out of some scrap acrylic. I placed it as shown in the image in my sump and it works perfectly so far. There is a constant flow over the whole top surface. I tested by dropping some detritus on the skimmer side and it flowed right over the whole RDSB.

One thing I noticed when I built my box (clear acrylic) is that there were a lot of air pockets in the sand. I’m wondering if this might be why some people’s RDSB’s don’t function that well. I had to remove the sand, add some water and displace the water with the sand to prevent air bubbles from getting trapped into the container. Again, someone might have already hit on this, but I haven’t had a chance to read the whole thing.

BTW, even though the container is clear, its in a dark sump area. I thought it would be nice to see if anything builds up in there.

 

[thriceanangel]

Looks nice, how much sand do you have in there?

 

[ctreefer]

Its actually very small. I have it running in my 10 gallon sump on my nano 29 gallon tank. The depth is 8 inches which looks like the minimum required from what little I read thus far. The total volume of sand is about 1.25 gallons with a surface area of about 40 square inches. I think Anthony mentioned a 5 gallon bucket would be good for a 90 and would only probably have about 4 gallons of sand in it. I’m not sure of the surface area, but I think its something like 110 square inches, so being about 1/3 the size of a 90, I’m hoping to have something adequate.

 

[EnderG60]

Week 6 update

welp I think/hope i found my where my nitrates were coming from. I had 20lbs of crushed coral as the substrate in my fuge, which after about 2 years was pretty nasty but being way at the bottom I never really could see it to tell....and totally forgot it was there.

Anyway I sucked all that crap out(crushed coral included), dunked off all the rocks in the fuge, and did a nice 30% water change and my nitrates went down to 15ish and havent spiked back up to the 30's.

So im hoping they go back down to the 5-10 where they used to be and the RDSB will take care of the rest...i hope

 

[thriceanangel]

Crushed coral bottom was my problem as well, but I still haven't had the nitrates disappear. Still in the 15-20ppm range. Even after a large water change.

 

[percula99]

When I ifirst set up my remote deep sand bed (RDSB) I waited for about four weeks and got a reading of about 5 for my nitrates. Then two weeks later it was back up to 20 and has stayed there ever since. That baffles me. Now I have seen a few people report that they took sand beds out of their sumps and that helped. I don't have any sand or crushed coral in there, but I do have a rather large amount of dirt in there that comes off the live rock. Seeing as my sump is on the ground, siphoning is almost impossible so I will use my canister filter to suck up the dirt. I hope that makes a difference.

 

[nautilus808]

https://www1.fishersci.com/Coupon?cid=1328&gid=40636&details=Y

I plan on using the 5 gallong container on the very left in this photo. I have a few of these lying around and I think it is very good for the RDSB. Im planning on putting two 1/2 inch bulkheads in the cap (input and output). My question is, should I have the sand bed full all the way to the neck of this container? I think that would provide a small area of water that could be flushed clean and eliminate settling. OR, should I only fill the container up to the point that will maximize the water / sand interface (about 4 inches from the top) Thanks for the great idea! I cant wait to get this going on my tank!

 

[Alan Strauss]

My understanding is that you want the most suface area of sand possible. I'm using a 5 gal square plastic tank.

 

[LRS078]

Week 6 (week 4 on version 2) update: nitrates started at about 12, two weeks later were mid 30's, week ago were down in mid 20's, last night were 15. Have a 25 tall tank about 80% full of sand w' cpr overflow box and pvc spraybar flushing ~500gph over it. Started it in a rubbermaid of similar size but even with 1/2" wide zipties on all 3 axis it bulged too much so I transplated into an empty tank. Seems to be working!

 

[EnderG60]

week 7, my trates are still in the 10-20 range. and im starting to think about ditching this thing and doing a coil denitrator. This thing doesnt appear to be doing anything at all

 

[eshook]

Enger you just got rid of your crushed coral. It has barely been a week, I would suggest more patience. You should know by now that these things take time (and should) otherwise its too much of a change and the tank can crash.

 

[thriceanangel]

I ran out of nitrate test kits, but the sps are opening further than I have seen before. I suspect that the nitrates are now dropping. Can't be sure until I get another test.

 

[thriceanangel]

Took about 2 months after removing crushed coral. Let this be a warning, nobody should use that crap.

 

[pjf]

Restocking Required?

Restocking Required?

It has been almost a year and a half since this thread was started. From our experience, how often should we discard most of the contents of a RDSB bucket and restock it with fresh media? Would restocking be necessary in a display tank DSB? Should sand sifters be placed in a display tank DSB to continually refresh the media?

 

[LRS078]

From what I've read and pm'd w' Calfo and others the consensus is that IF the system is flowed properly and never exposed to any solids/waste/etc then it will not become a nutrient sink. You could try a sand sifting star if you think it would help but the poor thing will probably starve.

Now if its a fuge or hybrid RDSB/fuge then that is a different matter....

Anyone w' first hand I'm sure can give better feedback.

 

[eshook]

It is my understanding that no living things should be placed in the RDSB as it will turn it into a nutrient sink when they die. In terms of rotation. If it were my tank I would rotate them every ~2 years. (similar to someone who stated they have been running RDSB for 6ish years) Although the RDSB should *not* crash, its possible so to save yourself I would rotate every 1-2 years... Of course this is my opinion from reading and keeping up with everyone elses thoughts and ideas, not personal experience.

 

[LRS078]

That is the beauty of test kit readings. They will tell us when something is off. With the ~1 month/2 month startup time minimum I would not replace lightly. (not to mention the cost of aragonite per pound most places) When your test results start to indicate the RDSB is failing then replace.

If you feel you must replace then perhaps the best bet is to do a dual setup where you replace 1/2 on alternate time tables....