I recently decided to setup a refugium for a place to put some macro algae to combat my increasing levels of nitrates (20-35ppm) in a 55 gal long tank, which seemed to be taking a toll on my corals - I have been dealing with it in the past with frequent water changes.
I got it built and setup less than a week ago. I introduced 4 sandwich bags of chaeto from 2 different sources. When I checked the nitrate levels last night, much to my surprise they were less than 5ppm ... seems too good to be true. Does this process occur this fast? Is it more likely that the increased capacity of my tank is responsible for the lowering of nitrate levels? (I gained about 20 gallons of capacity by adding the refugium). Should I anticipate a bounce back of nitrate levels? (Nitrite and Ammonia seem fine still).
I got it built and setup less than a week ago. I introduced 4 sandwich bags of chaeto from 2 different sources. When I checked the nitrate levels last night, much to my surprise they were less than 5ppm ... seems too good to be true. Does this process occur this fast? Is it more likely that the increased capacity of my tank is responsible for the lowering of nitrate levels? (I gained about 20 gallons of capacity by adding the refugium). Should I anticipate a bounce back of nitrate levels? (Nitrite and Ammonia seem fine still).
