Wet skimming to lower nitrates?
- Thread starter Mikro
- Start date
AllenFord_SC
New member
Have you asked on the chemistry forum? I have no idea but someone there might.
boxfishpooalot
Active member
Wet skimming may help out a little, but its not going to be signifigant. Especially if you have a sandbed tank.
The difference between wet skimming and dry is that wet brings out more water with it. So you essentially are doing mini water changes. With dry skimming you allow the dirt travelling up the to the collection cup a chance to draw water back into the aquarium, getting dryer. As the foam travells upward to the cup bacteria still have a chance to decompose the wate and create nitrates. Skimmers cannot remove nitrates because the molecule is too small to skimm. So any resulting nitrates with dry foam pushing upward spill back down with water, giving results in higher nitrates.
If it was me I would wet skimm a little and add some plant life like macro algae to reduce nitrates a little.
The difference between wet skimming and dry is that wet brings out more water with it. So you essentially are doing mini water changes. With dry skimming you allow the dirt travelling up the to the collection cup a chance to draw water back into the aquarium, getting dryer. As the foam travells upward to the cup bacteria still have a chance to decompose the wate and create nitrates. Skimmers cannot remove nitrates because the molecule is too small to skimm. So any resulting nitrates with dry foam pushing upward spill back down with water, giving results in higher nitrates.
If it was me I would wet skimm a little and add some plant life like macro algae to reduce nitrates a little.
