NoPox. a good idea?

You don't want to pull GFO right away, as other mention just make sure it doesn't reach zero. The bacteria that consume PO4 take much longer to colonize than denitrifying bacteria. When you first start using nopox you will notice your skimmate is usually very green - Once it turns from green to brown again (several months) you can typically start to reduce your GFO use as this signifies the PO4 bacteria is starting to get up to speed.
 
RivieraBayReef said:
This stuff has been amazing for my tank. Over the first 3 weeks of using, I saw most nuisance algae disappear. Since then coralline has taken off and I've started getting a number of yellow sponges appearing. Corals are looking better than ever. Big fan.
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What dosage did you start off with? Did you experience any bad side effects/ anything I should know.
 
Potatohead said:
The bacteria that consume PO4 take much longer to colonize than denitrifying bacteria.
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All organisms require both fixed nitrogen and phosphorus to grow. Generally, they consume a lot more nitrogen by weight than phosphate, which probably explains why phosphate often takes a long to to drop.
 
Julian.Rad17 said:
What dosage did you start off with? Did you experience any bad side effects/ anything I should know.
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No bad side effects other than dosing too much on the first 2 days causing a bacteria cloud in the tank. I immediately cut the dose in half, then slowly walked it down to where i ended with just a trace of nitrates. I dose 7 ml a day on a 250-260 total volume system.


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Julian.Rad17 said:
What dosage did you start off with? Did you experience any bad side effects/ anything I should know.
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Sorry, missed part of the question. On a 250-260 gallon system, I started with 21 ml, it clouded, cut it back to 14. I stayed at 14 for about 2 weeks when I noticed it took the nitrates down to nothing. Then just walked it down a couple ml every couple days until I got it to where I had a trace of nitrates when testing. 7 ml a day now.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Potatohead said:
You don't want to pull GFO right away, as other mention just make sure it doesn't reach zero. The bacteria that consume PO4 take much longer to colonize than denitrifying bacteria. When you first start using nopox you will notice your skimmate is usually very green - Once it turns from green to brown again (several months) you can typically start to reduce your GFO use as this signifies the PO4 bacteria is starting to get up to speed.
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I've decided to give NoPox a try after not being able to get my nitrates below 10-15. My phosphates have been undetectable (clear results with Salifert) which I assume means it's very close to zero, if not zero. I do run a GFO reactor and my skimmate is usually more brown than green.

All other parameters are stable and acceptable ranges. Question is, should stop using the GFO reactor when I start dosing NoPox?
 
dj98ram said:
I've decided to give NoPox a try after not being able to get my nitrates below 10-15. My phosphates have been undetectable (clear results with Salifert) which I assume means it's very close to zero, if not zero. I do run a GFO reactor and my skimmate is usually more brown than green.

All other parameters are stable and acceptable ranges. Question is, should stop using the GFO reactor when I start dosing NoPox?
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I wouldn't, if you are close to zero PO4 and simply stop using GFO it might rise too quickly. Also unless you are using a Hanna ULR you most likely have more PO4 in the tank than the Salifert test shows. My tank runs around .05 and Salifert still looks clear unless I actually get another vial of tank water and compare, you can see very very slight blue tint. If nopox doesn't reduce nitrate within two weeks I would then run half GFO and try for two weeks again. If no change to nitrate then I would pull it completely. You need some phosphate in order for nitrate to fall. If nitrate falls with gfo still running I would continue to use it.
 
Potatohead said:
I wouldn't, if you are close to zero PO4 and simply stop using GFO it might rise too quickly. Also unless you are using a Hanna ULR you most likely have more PO4 in the tank than the Salifert test shows. My tank runs around .05 and Salifert still looks clear unless I actually get another vial of tank water and compare, you can see very very slight blue tint. If nopox doesn't reduce nitrate within two weeks I would then run half GFO and try for two weeks again. If no change to nitrate then I would pull it completely. You need some phosphate in order for nitrate to fall. If nitrate falls with gfo still running I would continue to use it.
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Thank you, very helpful.
 
I agree. If and when you see the phosphate level dropping down to unmeasurable levels or signs of coral problems, then backing off on the GFO would be a good idea.
 
bertoni said:
I agree. If and when you see the phosphate level dropping down to unmeasurable levels or signs of coral problems, then backing off on the GFO would be a good idea.
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Also I forgot to mention I am dosing MicroBacter7 right now so when I start dosing nopox should I stop dosing MB7?
 
Supplying MicroBacter7 as a fresh bacterial population along with NoPox as the bacterial food source, sounds like the Zeovit system!
 
bertoni said:
I agree. If and when you see the phosphate level dropping down to unmeasurable levels or signs of coral problems, then backing off on the GFO would be a good idea.
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Thanks. I've tried taking the GFO reactor offline before in an attempt to drop nitrates, but I've seen an immediate spike in nitrates every time I do. Is there a period of time where that will happen before it starts to drop?

Sage advice from both of you on ramping down the reactor in conjunction with NoPox. I've never liked the idea of having undetectable PO4, but I haven't been able to control the nitrates when not running GFO. Hopefully the NoPox will help get it under control.
 
Yes, the system might take some time to adjust to the new phosphate level. It's certainly possible that nitrifying bacteria might get a bit more active with more phosphate in the mix.
 
bertoni said:
Yes, the system might take some time to adjust to the new phosphate level. It's certainly possible that nitrifying bacteria might get a bit more active with more phosphate in the mix.
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Makes sense. I started NOPOX in my dosing pump yesterday, so we'll see how things go. I have a 75g mixed reef with sump and about 75 lbs of live rock. I'm starting at 1/3 the recommended dosage, so I'm only adding 3ml each day in 1ml intervals. I'll test at the end of next week to see where levels are at.
 
dj98ram said:
Makes sense. I started NOPOX in my dosing pump yesterday, so we'll see how things go. I have a 75g mixed reef with sump and about 75 lbs of live rock. I'm starting at 1/3 the recommended dosage, so I'm only adding 3ml each day in 1ml intervals. I'll test at the end of next week to see where levels are at.
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Can you start your own thread
 
I'm curious when dosing NOPOX to lower nitrates will you have to make it a part of your regular dosing schedule or once the acceptable levels are achieved do you slowly decrease the dosing levels to nothing and then stop dosing NOPOX all together?
 
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