Will an algae reactor do anything for nitrates?

[reefmutts]

My phosphates are 0 by Hanna phosphates meter.
Can’t seem to get my nitrates down below 15 for the last 4 weeks
Using Red Sea test kit nitrate test kit. Tested water change saltwater and test kit comes up 0. So I assume the kit is accurate

I am dosing vodka with good success but would an algae reactor do anything for nitrates???

[duckeram85]

It all depends on your growth cycle and the amount of time needed to supercharge the Chaeto Reactor. I have one and all my levels are extremely stable and low. I run only biopellet media and no filter socks. I run a DIY cost me $150 to build! I have a thread on here about it. Simple answer is mine has replace GFO, Filter socks, and reduction of water changes.

Originally Posted by reefmutts

My phosphates are 0 by Hanna phosphates meter.

Can’t seem to get my nitrates down below 15 for the last 4 weeks

Using Red Sea test kit nitrate test kit. Tested water change saltwater and test kit comes up 0. So I assume the kit is accurate



I am dosing vodka with good success but would an algae reactor do anything for nitrates???

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[duckeram85]

UV & Chaeto Reactor! Am I crazy?
https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?sha...3&share_type=t


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[anthonys51]

Macro will not lower nitrates without phosphates. You need both to grow Macro. Look up redfield ratio it will explain more. Also are you running Gfo Vodka dosing actually depletes nitrates faster than phosphates.


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[reefmutts]

I’m not running any Gfo
Took it offline the minute I started dosing
So if my phosphates are 0 and nitrates are 15 should I lower my dosage of vodka or keep up the same vodka dosage. I’m at 1.0ml of vodka

[anthonys51]

I would just increase your water change schedule. What are you currently changing now.


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[reefmutts]

Changes 30% over the weekend
Nitrates went down to 8ppm.
Going to keep on dosing the same amount of vodka
And do weekly water changes. See what happens.

[anthonys51]

Yes I tired to do less water changes once I got my 650 system up Things started good st first but nothing beats weekly water changes. It’s old fashion but it’s like good old fashion exercise when it comes to dieting. May have all these new fads. Some actually work but nothing like exercise


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[reefgeezer]

You may not be lowering nitrates by carbon dosing because your system is phosphate limited. If you dose some phosphate and your nitrates should start to fall.

[anthonys51]

Originally Posted by reefgeezer

You may not be lowering nitrates by carbon dosing because your system is phosphate limited. If you dose some phosphate and your nitrates should start to fall.

Why on earth would you dose phosphates to lower nitrates. Yes I agree phosphates is a limiting factor but anytime you dose you run the risk or dosing incorrect amount. We are hobbies not scientist Water changes solves problem the right way 100 precent of the time. No risk involved if done correctly


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[reefgeezer]

Originally Posted by anthonys51

Why on earth would you dose phosphates to lower nitrates. Yes I agree phosphates is a limiting factor but anytime you dose you run the risk or dosing incorrect amount. We are hobbies not scientist Water changes solves problem the right way 100 precent of the time. No risk involved if done correctly


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No argument that water changes work, but to answer your "Why of earth" question... Many hobbyists add phosphate or nitrite solutions to their systems to maintain a balance, or maintain desired levels, of N & P. In addition to correcting limiting factors, the opinion that a small amount of bioavailable phosphate is necessary for a thriving system is becoming more accepted in the hobby.

As to the "risk" argument, IMO, the risk of mixing nitrate or phosphate solutions and dosing small amounts of them may be no greater than mixing ASW and doing the large water changes. Dosing nitrate and/or phosphate is cheaper and less labor intensive than water changes.

It seems somewhat close minded to say that doing water changes is the "right way". In this hobby there are always several way do something and more often than not, they are all the "right way".

[reefmutts]

I thought all foods have Phosphates in them, so feeding a bit more to the fish and coral should bring phosphates up correct, or will nitrates go up as well?
Dont think I want top play around with dosing phosphates....
My tank is 15 years old mostly LPS and softies,,,,want to get some SPS hence the reason to get nitrates down, but 8ppm should be too bad for some Monti's

[reefgeezer]

Originally Posted by reefmutts

I thought all foods have Phosphates in them, so feeding a bit more to the fish and coral should bring phosphates up correct, or will nitrates go up as well?
Dont think I want top play around with dosing phosphates....
My tank is 15 years old mostly LPS and softies,,,,want to get some SPS hence the reason to get nitrates down, but 8ppm should be too bad for some Monti's

No problem. I wasn't necessarily recommending dosing phosphate. I just wanted to help you understand why carbon dosing wasn't lowering your nitrates any further. FWIW, your tank will probably support most SPS without any changes.

[reefmutts]

Will just keep up with water changes. Have some large spots of sand/debris accumulated in my sump over the years, I believe that these are also a cause of higher nitrate reading.

[Shia]

The redfield ratio states the uptake of N to P is 16:1 my organic matter. So if you truly have 0 phosphate then that will limit how much nitrates will be taken up by macroalgae. The opposite is also true, if you have 0 nitrates and phosphates are higher, macroalgae will not be able to purely uptake just the phosphate. An algae reactor will reduce both nitrates and phosphates, as well as some trace nutrients.

[anthonys51]

People dose nitrates and Phosphates because both levels are usually super low and there tank can’t keep up with the demand This is not the case in this instance. If you read He ran Gfo to control phosphates then stopped and started dosing nopox. I basically said your comment is silly because you don’t add something to lower nitrates or/and phosphates then add something else thing just tired to raise it your tank isn’t a science experiment. Come on just admit it your response was kind of Not smart. It’s ok we all make silly mistakes


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[anthonys51]

On a side note nitrates of 8 ppm is fine to grow most lps and sps. My friend is an acro master and me shoots for 5-10 ppm. So to grow monti 10-20 is ok. It’s really a balance of all the elements. When I first upgraded my system from 57 to 600 gallons. I used all my old rock and added 300 lbs of free dry rock I got off a friend who’s tank was loaded with gha. I basically was too lazy to cure that much rock. I waited a week added all my corals and Fish. Well after 2 weeks I tested phosphates where 1.2 and nitrates 80ppm. It took 3 month to lower both with macro and water changes. I didn’t lose a single coral. I think a lot of people make the mistake of having one high and one very low


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[reefmutts]

So to my original question? Getting an algae reactor (worth it or not?) online with reading of 0 Phosphates and 8ppm Nitrates would be more work than needed. Want to keep things simple, but efficient.

[anthonys51]

There is no answer to your question. Whether you helps your tank depends on the size of it and the rate and ratio of nutrients in your tank. But honestly it can’t hurt to add it and how much does it really cost


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[outy]

Originally Posted by reefmutts

So to my original question? .

I would section off a small part of the sump and use a clip on light with a grow bulb that has 3w leds. Start with a baseball size chaeto ball and see what it does.

In my tank it grows to a basketball size then slowly dies off after I harvest back to a baseball size.

have never been able to grow it long term, no matter what my water conditions are.

Always cheap chaeto reactors in the sale section, we used to set them up for 20 bucks back in the day with a simple halogen 7000k shop light

[reefgeezer]

Originally Posted by outy

I would section off a small part of the sump and use a clip on light with a grow bulb that has 3w leds. Start with a baseball size chaeto ball and see what it does.

In my tank it grows to a basketball size then slowly dies off after I harvest back to a baseball size.

have never been able to grow it long term, no matter what my water conditions are.

Always cheap chaeto reactors in the sale section, we used to set them up for 20 bucks back in the day with a simple halogen 7000k shop light

Nice suggestion. I would however use a CFL of LED bulb. The halogens can get really hot. Starting about baseball size seems good. If it grows, I'd harvest it back to baseball size quite often.

[outy]

Originally Posted by reefgeezer

. I would however use a CFL of LED bulb. The halogens can get really hot. .

use leds, no reason to go backwards

years ago and we did use CFL, and I agree it is better then halogen which was when we first started doing this.

The reason leds are best is less wattage and heat.

[reefmutts]

Im limited on sump area, looking at the SKIMZ reactor which you can put into the sump and only takes up a 7" footprint. for $185.00. I don't have any room externally.
ARID also has one that's interesting but its $455.00 OUCH! Cant figure out the difference between the two , looks liek they do the same thing, so what give with the extra $270.00. Also looking at a DIY, but it has to be submerged in the sump so that's really not an option. Anyone have a SKIMZ or ARID?

[djbon]

Use bacteria for nitrate control, and algae for phosphate along with nitrate. Nothing will go wrong with this two method. They co-exist naturally for millions years.

I specially made a bacteria tower (localized induced carbon dosing) for nitrate and a bit of phosphate, and a 2 feet 4" algae through utilizing excess light in my canopy. Very efficient combination for a complete nutrient control, at no extra running cost.

[der_wille_zur_macht]

Originally Posted by anthonys51

People dose nitrates and Phosphates because both levels are usually super low and there tank can’t keep up with the demand This is not the case in this instance. If you read He ran Gfo to control phosphates then stopped and started dosing nopox. I basically said your comment is silly because you don’t add something to lower nitrates or/and phosphates then add something else thing just tired to raise it your tank isn’t a science experiment. Come on just admit it your response was kind of Not smart. It’s ok we all make silly mistakes


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There is absolutely nothing silly or stupid about the suggestion he made. It's also not an experiment, it's basic (well understood) science. Whether it aligns with your own methods and preferences, and whether it makes sense for the OP or not, are different questions - but that doesn't invalidate the suggestion in the first place.

You're right, sometimes people dose both nitrate and phosphate when levels of both are too low. But that's not the only valid case for dosing either.

There are a handful of ways to control nutrients. Some of them are very effectively targeted at specific nutrients - typically, those methods that depend on specific chemical reactions, ie dosing LC or using GFO for phosphate control. On the other hand, biological methods for nutrient control that operate by binding nutrients in biomass (macro algae growth, bacterial growth via carbon dosing, etc) are rarely as narrowly targeted. Regardless of what your nitrate level is, these methods cannot reduce nitrate if phosphate (or carbon, or potentially lots of other elements like iron in the case of macro algae) are zero. If you're using a biological method of nutrient control, and your phosphate level is truly zero, then it makes perfect sense to dose phosphate in order to allow the biological control method to reduce it back down, bringing nitrate with it.

Again, whether or not you personally like that method, or whether the OP should try it or not, are different questions - but it's still a completely legitimate suggestion. If someone is already using a nutrient control method that depends on binding nutrients in biomass, and one of the major nutrients is sitting at zero while another is too high, then dosing the nutrient sitting at zero will get the undesirably high nutrient back into the target range.