Nitrate Reduction 101 with sugar!!!

If I were you I'd just give it a chance to settle in a bit and get on a regular water change cycle... Definitely a good enough skimmer!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10707014#post10707014 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Zoom
I stop trying to keep the PH high all the kalk it was binding all the pump up.
It is not fun getting up in the mid of the night by the tunze alarms system screaming when the circulation pumps stop running .
I had kept the ph as high as 8.5/8.6 for about two weeks the dinos stop growing some but soon as i stop they are right back to there formal glory :lol: .
I don't know what to do now you got me thinking about dosing sugar.....I still have a full reef and don't need to kill it yet.
I think i just wait to see if they just go away on there own they can not live in this tank forever......I do no water changes or any thing that will feed them so they may die eventually.
Like you said the sugar dosing it may give them something to feed on.
Thank you any way.
Click to expand...

Don't know if you've read this but I figured I'd post it anyway.
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-11/rhf/index.php
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10707014#post10707014 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Zoom
I stop trying to keep the PH high all the kalk it was binding all the pump up.
It is not fun getting up in the mid of the night by the tunze alarms system screaming when the circulation pumps stop running .
I had kept the ph as high as 8.5/8.6 for about two weeks the dinos stop growing some but soon as i stop they are right back to there formal glory :lol: .
I don't know what to do now you got me thinking about dosing sugar.....I still have a full reef and don't need to kill it yet.
I think i just wait to see if they just go away on there own they can not live in this tank forever......I do no water changes or any thing that will feed them so they may die eventually.
Like you said the sugar dosing it may give them something to feed on.
Thank you any way.
Click to expand...

When I added UV and Ozone my dino's disappeared. Don't know if it was the ozone or UV.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10704826#post10704826 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by thriceanangel
No I'm not saying that at all, I think you're misunderstanding me. The carbon is ALWAYS used by the nitrosonomas and nitrobacter, but carbon is limiting, controlling their population. If you increase the amount of carbon, they will metabolize more nitrogen from ALL sources including Ammonia, Nitrate, and Nitrite do to the increased population.

This is common in industries such as fish farming (where they add molasses as a carbon source) or waste water treatment.

For more information an Australian newsletter documenting this:
http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/cps/rde/xchg/dpi/hs.xsl/30_2790_ENA_HTML.htm

Hope that helps!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the article. A small amount of organics is needed for growth of bacteria.

In a typical tank during cycling, there must be enough organics for nitrification bacterial to grow. In mean grow, not to eat ammonia and nitrite.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10708557#post10708557 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by stevenw56
When I added UV and Ozone my dino's disappeared. Don't know if it was the ozone or UV.
Click to expand...
I use ozone every day but i don't have UV...... Hmmmmm. ;)
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10711133#post10711133 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wooden_reefer
Thanks for the article. A small amount of organics is needed for growth of bacteria.

In a typical tank during cycling, there must be enough organics for nitrification bacterial to grow. In mean grow, not to eat ammonia and nitrite.
Click to expand...

Depends on the system. Bacteria always grow, and consume organics, it's just that they are limited by the amount of carbon which is readily accessible in the form of sugar or CH3OH (methanol) which you can dose to increase their level.

So although most systems have enough bacteria to digest Nitrate so to speak, some don't have enough to keep up with the nitrogen cycle... Adding carbon just spikes their numbers so that the nitrate can be used.

It's like building a house where you have all the nails you could want (nitrates) but have to wait for some gomer to bring wood (carbon)1 sheet at a time to you. If someone were to drop off a flatbed of wood (dose the carbon) you could use up your nails rather fast (eat up the nitrates). I don't know if thats aa good analogy, but it's been a long day!
 
I tried adding Equal like affan mentioned to reduce the nitrates last night and this morning all my fish were dead. I wanted to keep some nitrates in the tank to feed my macroalgae, but this destroyed my aquarium. Help!:lol:
 
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this thread has been going on for a year now. Can we get some feed back from the people that started this on how their system is doing a year later.
 
I sold off my last system, and started a much smaller system with a lighter bioload. I don't have to dose the new tank. The last one never had a problem...
 
I have been dosing sugar every other day for about a year now. No water change for the last 1.5 years, four medium size fish fed once a day with two cubes of frozen shrimp or Formular 2. Skimmer is small for my 20g tank, a 60g rated NW. Nitrate is at 10ppm, algae does not look bad at all and my fish are fat and happy.

I am finally about ready to try some hardy soft coral.
 
ok is there an optimal level to dose? i have a 70 gallon with always a high nitrate. its a fowlr but has some inverts like snails, crabs, and CB shrimp. its been at more than 60 for about 6 months and my shrimps has in there for this long. i have about 5 fishes in there including a small naso, damsels and maroon clown. thanks.
 
hasn't bothered either of our RBTAs. We have been dosing sugar for 6+ months now, I guess. RBTAs are approximately 1 yr old
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11567291#post11567291 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Sparkss
hasn't bothered either of our RBTAs. We have been dosing sugar for 6+ months now, I guess. RBTAs are approximately 1 yr old
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Sparkss can you give me any feedback on sugar dosing you been using this for six months now..
You think sugar dosing will take care some of the bad Algae i get in my tank .
Like Dinos , Green Hair algae, Cyno.
 
Zoom, try only using your supplemental lighting for 3 days. No halides. (You're simulating a very cloudy period, every animal in your tank will be fine, but the nuisance algae won't) Don't forget to turn off the lights in your fuge if they are high intensity 9anything above NO fluorescents)

Dose Kalk -add one teaspoon per 100 gallon TOTAL SYSTEM to about a half cup of RO water and make a slurry. Dose it slowly into a high flow area of your sump, this will raise your pH by .3 . That and the lights being off SHOULD take care of all your algae problems, as well as your Dinos, and Cyano. Post your results!
 
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