High Nitrate after water change

S

Shariesue

New member
I just checked the Nitrate level in my 90 gallon tank and it's very high (in the red zone on the chart). Yesterday we did a 20 gallon water change (I purchase distilled water to make the SW so no tap water is involved) and yet the nitrate level is still high.

My tank is well established but I've always had some problems with high Nitrates since day one and it never seems to get better. I have had the water tested in the past by a very competent person that is in the Marine wholesale business and he seemed to think that the sand in the bottom of my tank might be contributing to this high level.

Is there anything else I can do to lower this level that I'm not aware of? Also, will this high level be harmful to my fish.
 
First - can you be more specific about the nitrate level. "Red zone" isn't very informative.

Second - Where are the nitrates coming from? What fish, how many and how large are they? What do you feed and how often?
How often do you do water changes and how much water is replaced? What kind of filtration do you have? What are your other water parameters? - ammonia, nitrite, salinity, temp, etc.

Third - Nitrates build up over time and can only be removed by bacteria, water changes or harvesting macros in or out of a refugium. Unless you have a deep sand bed you probably don't have sufficient bacteria to keep up with the nitrates being produced. I'm assuming from your sig that you do not have a refugium or macros in the tank so that leaves water changes.

To get the level down initially you'll need to do several large water changes of around 30-40 gallons. I'd do 3 of them - 1 every 3 days. After that, IMO, to keep the nitrates down you'll need to do weekly water changes of about 20 gallons unless you figure out what is causing the high nitrate level.

A 20 gallon water change really isn't that big.
 
an actual ppm number would help us to determin how high of a level you have and if it is a problem.


Also when you do water changes are you just drawing out water or are you aggitating the sand bed ? Unless your sand bed is being aggitated nutriants will build up in there and continue to decompose . They will eventually become a type of poision gas and if released in to large of a quanity can kill your tank .
 
Nitrate details

Nitrate details

I used a new SW Master Liquid Test Kit today and the Nitrate level seemed to be between 40 and 80 on the card (red zone). The other tests were Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, PH bet. 7.8 and 8.0.

I just read an article that the salt mix might contribute to high Nitrates..I'm using Oceanic brand.

I have 2 large Tangs (Yellow and Blue), 1 Firefish, 2 Pajama Cardinalfish (medium size), 3 Green Chromis, 2 Clowns (1 Med. and 1 small). I just recently lost a medium Singapore Angel and a month ago 1 Royal gramma. I have 2 starfish and some snails, crabs, etc.

We usually remove 20 gallons of water every 5 weeks. I have to buy the water (I get distilled from Wal-Mart), then make my own SW.

We have a Eheim filter plus a small Whisper Filter. The sand I mentioned is not deep at all...less than 1/4" I'd say.

I do not disturb the sand when I displace the water. We siphon the old out and we pump the new in. (I was never taught to mess with the sand at all).

If there's more questions, I'll try my best to respond quickly. It is very inconvenient for me to go and get 20 to 30 gallons of water and do constant water changes unless I can use our well water from home. That would be the only way I could do all those water changes you suggested. Would that be better than distilled?
 
I have a 90 gallon tank and I don't think I have many fish at all based on what I've been told.....fish vs. gallons of water.
 
BTW - Introducing carbon in the form of sugar or ethanol will work, but you need to have a good skimmer to pull out the dead bacteria or else you it will just become N again.

Even if you get your N and P to zero, it is still a good idea to change water.
 
......What does introducing carbon in the way of sugar or ethanol mean?

I'm glad you asked that question....what does it mean???
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7288833#post7288833 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Shariesue
......What does introducing carbon in the way of sugar or ethanol mean?

I'm glad you asked that question....what does it mean???
Click to expand...
it feeds a specific typeof bacteria that breaks down nitrate :)
 
Re: Nitrate details

Re: Nitrate details

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7260932#post7260932 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Shariesue
I used a new SW Master Liquid Test Kit today and the Nitrate level seemed to be between 40 and 80 on the card (red zone). The other tests were Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, PH bet. 7.8 and 8.0.

I just read an article that the salt mix might contribute to high Nitrates..I'm using Oceanic brand.

I have 2 large Tangs (Yellow and Blue), 1 Firefish, 2 Pajama Cardinalfish (medium size), 3 Green Chromis, 2 Clowns (1 Med. and 1 small). I just recently lost a medium Singapore Angel and a month ago 1 Royal gramma. I have 2 starfish and some snails, crabs, etc.

We usually remove 20 gallons of water every 5 weeks. I have to buy the water (I get distilled from Wal-Mart), then make my own SW.

We have a Eheim filter plus a small Whisper Filter. The sand I mentioned is not deep at all...less than 1/4" I'd say.

I do not disturb the sand when I displace the water. We siphon the old out and we pump the new in. (I was never taught to mess with the sand at all).

If there's more questions, I'll try my best to respond quickly. It is very inconvenient for me to go and get 20 to 30 gallons of water and do constant water changes unless I can use our well water from home. That would be the only way I could do all those water changes you suggested. Would that be better than distilled?
Click to expand...
First, your ph is to low. you need to adding a good buffer like kent's super buffer dkh, at least weekly
your fishload isnt that bad, i have seen worse, but i am guessing tha tyour tangs are not happy in your 4 foot tank, and you shouldnt havee bought an angel that gets 10 inches in the fist place.
Salt generally isnt going to cause the problems that you are describing. usually they containg ammonia, and need to be "gassed off" for at least 24 hours after being mixed through aggitation.
your water change schedule is extremely negligent at best. idealy you should be changing 10-15% weekly, slack is 20-25% every 2 weeks. also distilled water is not what you should be using. if you have publix wher you live, buy their water called real r.o. you whould be using reverse osmosis water. distilled can cause you problems down the line.
trash the canister (i am guessing you dont maintenance your filters that much either) and all the funk that your filters collect doesnt make a difference until you physically remove it from the filter. i would use the hang on the back for carbon and purigen. invest in an overflow box and a sump. but most importantly get the best skimmer money can buy.
you must "gravel wash" your substrate every time you do a water change in order to make a dent in your nitrates, use the python to siphon the bottom and use your free hand to crimp and adjust he flow so you dont suck up all the sand.
and finally, well water is fine. test it for heavy metals and phosphates before using it in your tank, but i use tap that is dechlorinated and add my own salt and am able to keep very difficult spacies happy. also if your well water is insufficent, you can purchase an r.o. unit for your home that hooks onto a utility sink and make your own water. r.o. units start at around $150
 
Shariesue,

I just went thru what you are going thru. My 120 gal had nitrate levels off the chart. I am talking about above 100 (red as red can be). What I did was syphon the detritus that settled on the bottom of the tank about 30 gallons worth of water change. Afterwards, used a product called Algone. Literally, within three to four days after using this product, my nitrates went down to 30 ppm. Thru continued use, my nitrate level is at a more manageable level of 20. I got Algone thru my LFS but in case yours does not, here is the site where you can get it for much cheaper. www.algone.com

Good Luck.
 
Vinhpooh, thanks so much for your reply. I've done several water changes, cut back on feeding, and the level is still higher than I want. I do think I've been overfeeding for a long time and that certainly hasn't helped the situation any. How often do you feed your fish and do you use flake type food as I do?

I've been told so many different things that it gets confusing. So far my fish seem to be surviving despite this high nitrate level but I don't want to stress them out either.

How exactly do you syphon the sand without sucking it all out? I've never done that. I've tried stirring it up a bit just before we siphon off the water but that must not be enough.

I've seen something on the "Algone" before but can't remember where. I can certainly order it and it may help when all else has failed. I was told by a friend who's had reef tanks for years that the high nitrates are not good but with a fish only tank, they are not as dangerous as some tell me. He suggested I give much less food, do more water changes, filter changes, etc. so that's what I've been trying.

I really appreciate your helpful info....this Algone sounds like a good plan to me!

Thanks again for writing....
 
your nitrates arent very high and it wont hurt your fish.

i suggest continue to do water changes and try to get some macro algae growing in their if possible. alternatively, you could put xenia o in your tank and they might help use up the nitrates.
 
it depends on whether your fish eat it.

i have a tank with a puffer that is loaded with macro algae. it actually looks really cool, like some type of sea grass environment. he doesn't touch the stuff.

In my 240 Reef I keep the macro in a refugium since my tang eats it and makes a mess of things. you could also argue that the refugium can have it's lights on longer.
 
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