nitrates

[30galreefkeepr]

My current set up will be in the signature under this post, use that to think about possibilities (and ask other questions if you need to)

Here are my water parameters

PH - 8.1-8.3
kH/Alk - 9
Calcium - 400+ppm and decending at 20-30 points a day.
Ammonia - .25 constantly
Nitrates - 20 constantly (even with a tri-weekly 2 gallon water change)
Nitrites - 0

Is there anything wrong with having nitrates at a constant 20? I'm worried but I assume a tank such as mine (crammed with corals wall to wall) would have a higher bio-load.

I use the remora hang on the back skimmer which works up to 75 gallons, I also have the optional over-flow box installed. It skims my whole tank about 40 times an hour. (seems over-kill but apparently it is not)

If anyone can help I would really appreciate it, If nothing else I can put this issue to a rest. I work at a LFS and talk to the people I work with about it quite a bit, noone seems to think it's a big deal, but I just want to make sure.

 

[hgbarwick]

i would try to lower it as much as you can . It would be perfect at 0

 

[30galreefkeepr]

yeah, I mean I understand that, I've cut back feeding and only feed a small amount every 2-3 days. 0 is perfect but I rarely see 0 at work, most people usually have 10-20. If nitrates are at 0 then you aren't using up your whole bio-load, or so I was told. I'm gonna keep struggling to get it down, but I'm not sure if it'll take a while or what, I found out on saturday and I've been fighting it since ( I've done 3 water changes since then, plus the one I did the week before)

 

[hgbarwick]

Well I feed my fish every day and my nitrates are around 3 in my 12 gallon. Its only finished cycoling. My 90 gallons nitrates are pretty close to perfect.

 

[Sk8r]

You also need that calcium around 400 for corals.
What's your cleanup crew? Worms help. They're compact and they go where no critter has gone before.

 

[natureboy]

If your corals are doing well with that nitrate level, then there really isn't a reason to change, is there?

You could either decrease the nutrients by feeding less, or increase the nutrient export by running carbon or doing larger water changes.

I think you should change more water and do it on a weekly basis rather than every other day. Even if you changed your six gallons all at once, you would be exporting more nutrients than three 2 gallon changes.

My corals really perk up after a large water change of 50% so there's no reason to worry about "shocking" your inhabitants. Small water changes are for large tanks where the cost becomes greater, but we can afford to do it on our nanos.

 

[Kogo]

you havnt said anything about any fish in the system or the amount of live rock. this would be helpfull information.

also testing water at the LFS will give you a scewed idea of what the average levels for hobbyests are. advanced aquarist generaly have thier own test kits and dont rely on the LFS. in addition those with stable tanks may tend to test more infrequently. for example, my 20L is always at zero nitrate. i seldom test it unless i cant sleep.

in the end, the condition of your corals is the best indication of water quality in relation to the needs of your corals, so dont loose sleep over a hobby thats supposed to be relaxing, but if you can get a zero then definatly do it.

 

[30galreefkeepr]

Oh yeah, I agree with that. I have about 38-40 lbs live rock in the tank. one baby yellow tang, one mandarin, one yellow watchman, and one tailspot blenny.

Heres a full tank shot to show you all what kind of rock/coral set up we're talking about.

<img src="http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y85/silentiumaereum/fullystocked.jpg">

 

[30galreefkeepr]

oh and of course, red, blue and zebra hermits, one margarita snail and a cleaner shrimp.

 

[jnb]

if you go to more major water changes, make sure you are using a good measuring device of your salinity, maybe not a swing arm but instead a properly calibrated refractometer (sp?)

me, I would never let anyone make my water without absolute proven trust or i watched - do they:

do they clean their buckets?
do they know what they are doing:
or did they forgot to watch the newbie who happened to just flicked his cig ashes in the mixture?
use a good measure of salinity?
do they watch the tds of their ro - do they use rodi?
etc

 

[theop]

Beautiful tank. It seems like you have plenty of LR, a good skimmer, are not overstocked, etc.

A couple of thoughts:

1. Are you sure your nitrate is really 20 and you have ammonia? I would verify the test results with another kit, preferably one you know is new. The consistent ammonia reading is really strange.

2. What type of water are you using? RO/DI, tap, etc...
Some tap water can have nitrates, and RO units can malfunction. You may want to do a nitrate test on your water change water just to make sure.

3. Do you have anything that could be trapping detritus, like filter pads, sponges or bio-balls? If so, that could be a problem.

 

[Kogo]

i would be suspect (after seeing the tank) of the water being used for water changes. does the water test out to zero before its put in the tank.

otherwise, the only thing i see that could in any way contribute a significant amount of amonia (to be turned into nitrate) is the tang or uneaten food. (but i doubt it)

nice aquascape by the way.

 

[angelsj247]

id be more worried about the ammonia being .25.
Ammonia should always be zero.
Fish can handle a little bit of nitrates but can not tolerate ammonia

 

[30galreefkeepr]

yeah, i actually went back home today, checked the nitrates and they're down to an undetectible/< 10 reading. Ammonia is 0, Nitrites are 0. So, I think (putting the new skimmer on last weekend) did the work. That thing has been a life saver. I believe I just wasn't getting proper performance from my skimmer.

Thanks to everyone for all the help. I appreciate all the correspondance.

 

[30galreefkeepr]

Also, i've been using water from work, its R.O. but premixed with instant ocean. for topping off I use the regular R.O.