Re: Nitra-Guard Bio-cubes from Orca Labs promises denitrification free of Redfield's
- Thread starter Aquarist007
- Start date
Well for this stuff is working very slowly and has been a bit frustrating to use. First off this is the only really change I did on my tank. Since using this product my tank has become over run with this brown hair algea stuff all over the rocks. I have never had this before. I am still using this stuff, as this just might be part of the course for me with having my nitrates and phospates so high but its been over a month and the algea has not gone away. I also found trying to use the bomb method a real pita. Due to having flow in my sump, the bags would move and the air stone would just make its way to the top of the bag making it useless. I have done some reworking this past week to help fix that by putting the air stones under the bags and traping them in a corner of my sump with egg crate. I am not give up on these yet. Any ideas about the brown type of hair algea. Its not super long and its not green and it has covered all the rocks.
bobbychanna
New member
I'm experiencing the same brown algae problem.
bobbychanna
New member
Nitrates - 0ppm (salifert)
PO4 - 0ppm with Salifert and 0.01 with Hanna
PO4 - 0ppm with Salifert and 0.01 with Hanna
Shoryureppa
New member
I have been using these for 3 weeks and they seem to be working.
Tank is a 120gal with 108 total volume of water.
Nitrates were at 10ppm and have now been reduced to 2ppm. I was a bit surprised to so I tested it 3 times in a row. Tests were done with salifert.
I run 750ml bombed. I had a montipora setosa that was stn'ing and that has stopped.
Tank is a 120gal with 108 total volume of water.
Nitrates were at 10ppm and have now been reduced to 2ppm. I was a bit surprised to so I tested it 3 times in a row. Tests were done with salifert.
I run 750ml bombed. I had a montipora setosa that was stn'ing and that has stopped.
So a little update. Since starting these I started to get the brown type of hair algea and it got to the point of completely covering all my rock. My phos and nitrates did go down a little but then would go up a little and down a little. I also had a hard time with using the bomb method as with the current in my sump the bags would float around and the air stone would make its way to the top of the bag. I know at least one other person on the US main site also mentioned having this issue even with low level of nitrate and phosphates.
I am not giving up on these yet as biopellets have been very successful.
So I have take the air stones out and but them under the bags and sectioned off a coner of my sump for them.
I did two days of no lights to kill off most of the algea which is has done great but I will not go full three days with have manderines. I might do another round of couple of days off in a week to try and completely get rid of the last of it.
I have also started to put back in GFO to get the phospates down as I have read other products stating that exact thing to do before using thier media you need very low phosphates. Also read a few threads now that even people using other bio pellets and carbon dosing have found its great for nitrates but doesn't do much for phosphates and having to put back in GFO. Lucking GFO is easy to regenerate.
I am not giving up on these yet as biopellets have been very successful.
So I have take the air stones out and but them under the bags and sectioned off a coner of my sump for them.
I did two days of no lights to kill off most of the algea which is has done great but I will not go full three days with have manderines. I might do another round of couple of days off in a week to try and completely get rid of the last of it.
I have also started to put back in GFO to get the phospates down as I have read other products stating that exact thing to do before using thier media you need very low phosphates. Also read a few threads now that even people using other bio pellets and carbon dosing have found its great for nitrates but doesn't do much for phosphates and having to put back in GFO. Lucking GFO is easy to regenerate.
Well For me nitrates have no moved, my phosphates got down by gfo and even after a couple of weeks no reduction in nitrates.
No though through some more digging about about these cubes, I found something very confusing.
Now from most of the reading it the preferred method is to use the bomb method as O2 is needed. Now is it O2 or just a good flow to removed the film?
What I found confusing is that now on their own web site and the polylabs distributor its stats this:
"For best results, use Nitra-Guard BIO-Cubes in a denitrator reactor and commission the denitrator as specified by the manufacturer."
Source:
http://www.orcalabs.co.za/?page_id=33
http://www.polyplab.ca/ocra-laborat...guard-bio-cubes-v4-330lts-1-000lts-1000ml.php
Now I am sorry I may be wrong but my understand of a denitrator is a very low oxygen environment, and a recirculating reactor with a slow output. What is everyone's thoughts?
No though through some more digging about about these cubes, I found something very confusing.
Now from most of the reading it the preferred method is to use the bomb method as O2 is needed. Now is it O2 or just a good flow to removed the film?
What I found confusing is that now on their own web site and the polylabs distributor its stats this:
"For best results, use Nitra-Guard BIO-Cubes in a denitrator reactor and commission the denitrator as specified by the manufacturer."
Source:
http://www.orcalabs.co.za/?page_id=33
http://www.polyplab.ca/ocra-laborat...guard-bio-cubes-v4-330lts-1-000lts-1000ml.php
Now I am sorry I may be wrong but my understand of a denitrator is a very low oxygen environment, and a recirculating reactor with a slow output. What is everyone's thoughts?
How many cubes come in the container? and how many ml's is the container of cubes?
1 cubic centimeter is equivalent to 1 milliliter. Therefore, if the cubes measure 1cm x 1cm x 1cm, then you are using 1mL of the product.
Well for me they never worked. I never saw a reduction in nitrates or phospated, about a month ago I ask for help from the supplier and he contacted the company. From my gather these are not as easy to use as advertised. This was there response:
He mentioned 2 things...Firstly, he has a biomass build up that looked like hair algae! Secondly, the airstone would not stay at the bottom of the bag. Now, that airstone is very important. Firstly, it acts as a gentle oxygen scrubber. I found that bacteria and yeast grow at their fastest from young to "teenage" stages. Thereafter, the growth rate of the cells slows down massively. We do not want this! The oxygen that flows through the cubes is strong enough to pull the larger and heavier adult cells off and keep the colony "young" and growing at a massive rate. However, the oxygen is gentle enough that it does not abrade the cubes like NP Pellets in a reactor do and that is why the cubes are so much more economical and longer lasting than NP pellets. The cubes only erode from bacterial / yeast actions while NP relies on micro-abrasion in the reactor to do this. Now, when that airstone starts moving upwards, we are removing that mechanism that selectively brings more nutrient rich water into the cubes colony and removes the older, heavier, less productive cells which end up in the skimmer. Eventually, the airstone reaches the top and then the bottom is seeing virtually no nutrient rich water to keep feeding it and they have selectively cut productivity because they have all become adult cells...retired senior citizens if you wish. OK...but how do I know that the cubes did work...simple...the "brown Hair Algae" that is the smoking gun in this investigation. The cubes did work, but, some of it's specially designed "powers" were taken away from it, reducing productivity and performance. Lower nutrients caused the lower parts of the bags colony to die back in response as they could no longer support such a large colony without "food" in the form of NO3 and PO4 in the water. So...when we look mathematically, yes, he did buy the right quantity to solve his problem, but, he is effectively using far less than what is required to sort his problem out. He needs to tie those bags TIGHT...that airstone MUST stay right at the bottom.
So since then I have done as requested and even put a long air stone right under then to ensure getting the air contact on all the stones. I also up to 4000ml in 4 bags with an air stone in each. Now at almost a month after this response, I tested again just last night and still saw no reduction with nitrates at 50-40 and phosphates at 2.0.
At this point I am leaving them in since I have them but I just bought a bio pellet reactor and am going to be setting up bio pellets as I fell they will be easier to use than this product. I would have been happy to see even some reduction but nothing in my case.
He mentioned 2 things...Firstly, he has a biomass build up that looked like hair algae! Secondly, the airstone would not stay at the bottom of the bag. Now, that airstone is very important. Firstly, it acts as a gentle oxygen scrubber. I found that bacteria and yeast grow at their fastest from young to "teenage" stages. Thereafter, the growth rate of the cells slows down massively. We do not want this! The oxygen that flows through the cubes is strong enough to pull the larger and heavier adult cells off and keep the colony "young" and growing at a massive rate. However, the oxygen is gentle enough that it does not abrade the cubes like NP Pellets in a reactor do and that is why the cubes are so much more economical and longer lasting than NP pellets. The cubes only erode from bacterial / yeast actions while NP relies on micro-abrasion in the reactor to do this. Now, when that airstone starts moving upwards, we are removing that mechanism that selectively brings more nutrient rich water into the cubes colony and removes the older, heavier, less productive cells which end up in the skimmer. Eventually, the airstone reaches the top and then the bottom is seeing virtually no nutrient rich water to keep feeding it and they have selectively cut productivity because they have all become adult cells...retired senior citizens if you wish. OK...but how do I know that the cubes did work...simple...the "brown Hair Algae" that is the smoking gun in this investigation. The cubes did work, but, some of it's specially designed "powers" were taken away from it, reducing productivity and performance. Lower nutrients caused the lower parts of the bags colony to die back in response as they could no longer support such a large colony without "food" in the form of NO3 and PO4 in the water. So...when we look mathematically, yes, he did buy the right quantity to solve his problem, but, he is effectively using far less than what is required to sort his problem out. He needs to tie those bags TIGHT...that airstone MUST stay right at the bottom.
So since then I have done as requested and even put a long air stone right under then to ensure getting the air contact on all the stones. I also up to 4000ml in 4 bags with an air stone in each. Now at almost a month after this response, I tested again just last night and still saw no reduction with nitrates at 50-40 and phosphates at 2.0.
At this point I am leaving them in since I have them but I just bought a bio pellet reactor and am going to be setting up bio pellets as I fell they will be easier to use than this product. I would have been happy to see even some reduction but nothing in my case.
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