high nitrates what to do?
- Thread starter beeker
- Start date
chip721
Premium Member
Re: high nitrates what to do?
Kyle, IMO if you continue running the Magnum with GAC, be sure not to neglect the blue pre-filter sponge. If left unchecked , they quickly turn into dirt traps. Do you notice decreased flow from the Magnum's output? If so, that's a good indicator that pre-filter needs attention. As a minimum I would rinse it weekly in fresh sw. (What a chore huh?) Even better yet, remove the pre-filter and just run GAC in the media basket. Then you can just replace the GAC bi-weekly or monthly as you and your tanks bio-load determines. But as recommended earlier, don't do too many things at once. Stability is key. Good luck.
i change the filter pad every 2 weeks and clean all the piping then as well, i know all about the flow and my magnums ability to lose it in two weeks.
i replace the carbon every 3 monthes...it says for the chemi pure to change evry 6 monthes but i know that could potientally lead to carbon shock is my water got to yellow so i change it sooner than later.
i replace the carbon every 3 monthes...it says for the chemi pure to change evry 6 monthes but i know that could potientally lead to carbon shock is my water got to yellow so i change it sooner than later.
REEF-DADDY
New member
Nothing wrong with that. I like the overall look of my tank with about 5ppm no3. Growth seems better, colors more rich, and the rock more colorful. The thing people miss about BB tanks is the control factor. I can crank the Beckett to skim wetter, vacuum daily rather than weekly and maybe cut out a feeding and I can get my n03 back to 0.
ok well ill have to get my sand out of my tank, along with my corals, then ill have to remove my rock, add more sand to 5 inches, then ill have to redo my rockscape (which is fine with me wanted to change it a few weeks ago, now this will give me a reason too.
is there anything else i should look at getting?
is there anything else i should look at getting?
REEF-DADDY
New member
For me it seems that BB tanks have a smaller sweet spot so to speak than DSB tanks. They are either right, detritus gets into the water column and gets skimmed out. If they are wrong, it builds up somewhere, and no3 rises. I think the hardest part is to set up the rock work so it looks somewhat natural, but does not build up detritus
rutz81
New member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7571399#post7571399 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by REEF-DADDY
Nothing wrong with that. I like the overall look of my tank with about 5ppm no3. Growth seems better, colors more rich, and the rock more colorful. The thing people miss about BB tanks is the control factor. I can crank the Beckett to skim wetter, vacuum daily rather than weekly and maybe cut out a feeding and I can get my n03 back to 0.
I think my problem lies in that I didn't go with a Beckett skimmer, don't get me wrong, I really like my Deltec, but, I can only skim so wet. If I had the room, I'd buy a nice big ol' Beckett in a second. Also, detritus seems to get stuck between my starboard and glass. No matter what I do, short of taking my tank apart and removing the starboard completely, I think it will be there for the life of the tank. Becasue of these two things I run Rowaphos(which keeps my phosphates at 0) 24/7 to keep any phospahtes under control if they start to rise at all.
What do you think about running a remote DSB; essentially making one compartment of my sump a DSB? As long as I changed the sand out when it became exhausted, therefore lowering my nitrates??
Sorry for the hijack, beeker.
REEF-DADDY
New member
IMHO thats the best use of a sand bed. As long as you make sure only detritus free water enters your bucket it should work great. Make is nice and deep so you have plenty or area for anaerobic bacteria to thrive. Just think about all the surface area you are creating for bacteria.
REEF-DADDY
New member
Do you have the flow, and skimmer in place to run a BB tank. IMHO your better off tweaking your DSB until you've REALLY done your homework on BB tanks. Its ALOT more than just removing sand.
CW from the OC
New member
Using a compartment of your sump for a DSB is a good idea IMO. However, most peoples sumps collect detrius (especially mine, lol!) so I suggest that you use a filter sock on your overflow as it enters the sump to reduce the amount of detruis that reaches the sump. You could also use a compartment as near the return (and as far from the overflow coming in) as possible, to let any detrius settle out in the comparmtents before the DSB.
Besides detrius, the only other negative I can think of with your DSB in your sump is that you can't easily drain and completely clean out your sump. This alone is making me consider making the sump on my new 210 shorter, to allow for an actual bucket for the DSB, which I would feed with a maxijet or something. Doing this also allows you to us a bucket taller than your sump, and you could go up to a 10,15 or maybe a 20 gallon bucket.
Hhmm, now I need to redesign and shorten my sump design. ROFL!
Besides detrius, the only other negative I can think of with your DSB in your sump is that you can't easily drain and completely clean out your sump. This alone is making me consider making the sump on my new 210 shorter, to allow for an actual bucket for the DSB, which I would feed with a maxijet or something. Doing this also allows you to us a bucket taller than your sump, and you could go up to a 10,15 or maybe a 20 gallon bucket.
Hhmm, now I need to redesign and shorten my sump design. ROFL!
rutz81
New member
REEF-DADDY: I think I may give it a try. I run a 100 micron filter sock right before the compartment that I was thinking of using, so detritus is non-existent in there. It is an area about 12"x12", so I figure about 5"-6" of sand in there and we'll see how it goes. I'll keep everyone posted. I know this goes against the "true" definition of BB, but, if it can save me from buying a new skimmer that I can't really fit anyway, I'll be happy.
One more thing, approximately how often should I change out the sand?
One more thing, approximately how often should I change out the sand?
