|
08/09/2020, 07:52 PM | #1 |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
High Nitrates on established tank
I noticed last week that my frog spawn wasn't extending like it normally does. So I checked parameters and all was within range with the exception of nitrates which read 40 ppm.
I have an 80 gallon with a 30 gallon refugium. I estimate with all the live rock and sand I probably have about 80 gallons of water. I've done three water changes (2 15 gallon and 1 30 gallon) in the last week and they still read 40. I added purigen but that did nothing. I'm at a loss at to what to do. I've checked my RO water and the nitrates were at 0. I've had a reef tank for 15 years. About 8 years ago I did upgrade my tank and moved some of the sand and live rock to the new tank. Could the nitrates spiking be old tank syndrome? I've thought about carbon dosing but if there is a better way of reducing nitrates I'd rather do that given I've read bad things can happen with carbon dosing. Any advice is welcome! Thank you!
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
08/09/2020, 08:54 PM | #2 |
Premium Member
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Visalia, CA
Posts: 1,350
|
Do you ever clean/vacuum the sand bed? How deep is it?
Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk |
08/09/2020, 09:28 PM | #3 |
RC Mod
|
Cleaning the sump, if it's collecting stuff, would help. You might need a better skimmer, depending on what you have. Consider refreshing the CUC and maybe feeding a little less for a while. All suggestions in additon to those above.
__________________
Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%. |
08/10/2020, 12:00 AM | #4 |
RC Mod
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA
Posts: 88,616
|
I would try running a nitrite test. Nitrite will confuse nitrate test kits. That problem is very rare, but it's annoying to discover that you're trying to solve the wrong problem.
Assuming the nitrite level is zero, I agree that the problem might be organic debris buildup, either in the sump or refugium, or the sand. Coarse sand is more prone to this problem, and crushed coral is terrible, in my experience. For the time being, since a coral seems to be having trouble, I'd stop feeding for a bit. If there's no debris issue, you might need to consider carbon dosing or adding more live rock to the system.
__________________
Jonathan Bertoni |
08/10/2020, 04:22 AM | #5 |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
I vacuum the sand with every water change. It's maybe 2-3" deep in some places. My refugium does have a dsb but I've never vacuumed that.
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
08/10/2020, 04:29 AM | #6 | |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
Quote:
I have the correct size skimmer for my tank but I HATE it! It will be running fine then it'll overflow everything right back in the the refugium (of course when I'm not home). So I'll have to unplug it until I have time to mess with it and it could stay off for a day or so. I don't remember the name of it but I got it at Marine Depot and it gets good reviews...not from me though. So I'm off to do research on a GOOD skimmer
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
|
08/10/2020, 04:34 AM | #7 |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
Thank you Bertoni..I'll do a nitrite test. Should I replace my sand? I've read that in an old tank the sand will need to be replaced or removed all together (which I'd rather not do due to the livestock).
Shouldn't I have seen some changes in the nitrate results given I did such large water changes?
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
08/10/2020, 10:12 AM | #8 |
Registered Seaweedist
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Boulder, CO
Posts: 5,807
|
What's going on in your 30 gallon refugium? Get it well-lit and put some macro algae in there. I recommend a combination of fast-growing greens and slower growing reds. Ulva and Grasilaria are two good examples.
__________________
As many naturalists and environmentalists have suggested, we should set aside our arrogance, our desire to conquer and control everything, and walk hand in hand with Mother Nature. -Walter Adey Current Tank Info: 180g Seagrass Sandbar Lagoon, START DATE November 28, 2018 |
08/10/2020, 11:54 AM | #9 |
RC Mod
|
As for skimmers, I have an Eshopps that's performed well. Needs some maintenance right now but that's after years of service, and I haven't angsted over it because I'm cultivating shrooms right now. It did bust my own nitrate problem.
__________________
Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%. |
08/10/2020, 03:56 PM | #10 |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
Really!! It helped with the nitrate problem? Thank you for the recommendation
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
08/10/2020, 03:59 PM | #11 | |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
Quote:
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
|
08/11/2020, 03:05 PM | #12 |
RC Mod
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA
Posts: 88,616
|
Nitrate levels can bounce back up rapidly, so depending on how long you waited before measuring, the water changes might not have much effect. You could try a 30% change and then measure immediately. If that doesn't help for a bit, then there might be a test kit problem.
I don't know how coarse the sand in your tank is, but anything above the finest grade can trap a fair amount of debris, and then need changing. Personally, I'd consider this after trying some other measures. Anything where debris builds up or is filtered aerobically can produce nitrate in the water column. That includes artificial bio-media, like bio-balls and the like.
__________________
Jonathan Bertoni |
08/11/2020, 04:27 PM | #13 | |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
Quote:
I believe that my skimmer is a big problem. I've been having problems with it for years. It's a Skimz and I hate it. I'm researching a good skimmer that'll fit in to my refugium. I'm currently looking at an Aquamaxx ConeS. Thank you for your advice Bertoni!
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
|
08/11/2020, 05:23 PM | #14 |
RC Mod
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA
Posts: 88,616
|
You're welcome. I agree that a good skimmer is an excellent investment. The digging by the tiger pistol shrimp could be part of the problem, too.
__________________
Jonathan Bertoni |
08/12/2020, 06:06 AM | #15 | |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
Quote:
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
|
08/12/2020, 08:02 PM | #16 |
RC Mod
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA
Posts: 88,616
|
You are welcome. Good luck!
__________________
Jonathan Bertoni |
08/13/2020, 04:18 AM | #17 |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
Thank you Retested yesterday and nitrates were down to 20. I did another water change after that. Maybe the water changes, aggressively vacuuming the sand and cutting back on feeding is working I also tested nitrites in the event that was affecting the nitrate readings..they were 0.
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
08/13/2020, 08:21 AM | #18 |
RC Mod
|
If you do go for another skimmer, get one that produces whipped-cream-like foam, not one that just bubbles. My own rule of thumb is get a skimmer rated higher than your tank size. Double is not too much.
__________________
Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%. |
08/13/2020, 02:27 PM | #19 | |
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Florida
Posts: 2,312
|
Quote:
__________________
80 gal frag with 30 gal refugium, Orphek Atlantik LED, Red Sea RSK300 skimmer, predominately SPS and LPS Current Tank Info: 80 gallon reef tank with 30 gal refugium |
|
|
|