Last vinegar question. Randy, tmz, bertoni

[nothingfishy]

So you guys have been really good just not in response to my posts but other threads as well in regards to carbon dosing.

I am about a week into it, and yesterday I did 40 mls vinegar (white distilled) 20 in am and 20 in afternoon.

My water is for the most part clear, and I attribute not having 100 percent clear to uv light being off for last few days.

My nitrates started at the 120 mark. I have about ten size decent fish in this 155 .
I just use a skimmer, sock, and about 120 lbs of rock.

Question is, ultimately what dose may I end up at. I would think the guide out out for
Amount is geared more towards reef tanks with less fish and bioload. Being mine is high, does that mean per gallon I will be using more to compensate for more dense bioload?

Also, too offset ph, can I place x amount of vinegar in say a gallon of ro water, and then drip it into sump, this way it will get the necessary mls , but over a span if a few hours vs instant? Or does having it diluted in ro water effect it?

Thanks.

Again using 40 ml, no bloom, attributing to just having bio pellets. In tank prior to dosing, which may have had colonies of
Bacteria already in effect.

 

[swk]

Do not dilute the vinegar. Bacteria will grow and wont have the desired effect in your tank.

Final dose is different in every tank. Monitor nutrient levels and stop increasing when your nutrients are where you want them. Often times you can cut the dose by a third and keep the same levels.

You can have 2 reef tanks at 75 gal each with similar stocking levels that could end up with different doses. My tank gets 27 ml a day to keep nitrates at 2.5 in a 75 gal system for what it's woeth

 

[tmz]

Reducing 120ppm nitrate via vinegar dosing will take along time; months, IMO. Knowing the maintenace dose is a separate circumstance than dealing with a high starting level. Most settle out between 0.4ml to 0.8ml of 5% acetic acid vinegar or and equivalent amount of vodka as a maintenace dose. Some are higher some lower. It's hard to know what the best maintenance dose for your tank will be. I'd amp it up to 0.7 or so and wait a few months before going higher if it were my tank. More risks a bacterial bloom.

 

[bertoni]

You can dilute the vinegar if you add some Kalk as a preservative, although you might need to compensate for the added calcium and alkalinity, at least in theory.

 

[nothingfishy]

Thanks all.

Tmz- so amp it up to .7 starting tomorrow? Or gradually? Right now at 40 ml I am at a .25.

Ramping to .7 would out me at 108.

That's a bit much to drop in one shot manually. I am thinking using a liter soda bottle, no water just vinegar, and siphon in using a valve so it's about one drop very two seconds or so thought the day with light on for ph.

 

[tmz]

I'd take it up .2 per week. Dose it slowly during daylight to avoid precipitous pH drops. I get about -.15 pHwhen I dose 80ml of vinegar to 650 gallons at once but it bounces back in less than an hour . BTW, if you are inclined to bolus dose vodka is fine for that approach.

 

[nothingfishy]

Thanks rmz.

I am using an api nitrate kit. I understand they aren't the best of quality, however in using the same regents as I always have, as well as same procedure timing etc. about 9 days ago, I did a wc, 1/3 tota water volume. (50 gal) two days after, right before vinegar usage, and removal of pellets, I used this kit, and read my 120 plus nitrate reading. I havnt done a water change since 9 days ago, and again tonight, I measured with api kit, same way I did a week ago.

A week ago, I noted in my notes it was blood red, similar to the 120 reading. Tonight's reading was more of the Orange color on the scale, debatable between 60 and 80.

I always go the higher number when looking at it, a week ago it was 120 if not higher. Tonight, no where near as red, more like the red orange.

I also have the dipsticks, which I know suxk, but a week ago the no3 turned purple, today pink. Coincidence maybe. However I was expecting higher than last week, due to not so freshwater after wc.
Only possible explanation I have is the biopellets I had for nonths kickstarted the bacteria, but the vinegar is feeding them proportiontly to the bioload.