1st stage of cycle complete now what?

[laurichj]

Certainly way above 5ppm. NO3 is 3.6x the mass of NH3, not the 66 that 1.5 to 100ppm would require.

Possible its from the sand. Test your fresh saltwater mix for nitrates. If it's high then your mix or water has NO3 or your tests are off (totally possible, hobby NO3 tests aren't great).

 

[WvAquatics]

Certainly way above 5ppm. NO3 is 3.6x the mass of NH3, not the 66 that 1.5 to 100ppm would require.

Possible its from the sand. Test your fresh saltwater mix for nitrates. If it's high then your mix or water has NO3 or your tests are off (totally possible, hobby NO3 tests aren't great).

That's my thoughts too. I will mix a batch of saltwater and see. I'm using reef crystals. I'm using salifert test kit.
So high nitrates like this I will need a large water change before adding live rock or anything really right

 

[laurichj]

That's my thoughts too. I will mix a batch of saltwater and see. I'm using reef crystals. I'm using salifert test kit.
So high nitrates like this I will need a large water change before adding live rock or anything really right

The problems are algae if you add lights (so nothing that requires light), some inverts don't like high nitrates (shrimp would be the most likely) and the changes in water both introducing them into the tank and as you do WC to reduce nitrates.

Most things on the live rock would be fine, but it'll still just be easier to deal with before hand.

 

[WvAquatics]

Certainly way above 5ppm. NO3 is 3.6x the mass of NH3, not the 66 that 1.5 to 100ppm would require.

Possible its from the sand. Test your fresh saltwater mix for nitrates. If it's high then your mix or water has NO3 or your tests are off (totally possible, hobby NO3 tests aren't great).

Ok my feshly mixed reef crystals water has

nitrates. So what do I do about that? My rodi was 0 tds. So I don't think it was the rodi. I can make a small amount of rodi and check it.

 

[laurichj]

Ok my feshly mixed reef crystals water has

nitrates. So what do I do about that? My rodi was 0 tds. So I don't think it was the rodi. I can make a small amount of rodi and check it.

I don't think the salifert tests work on freshwater.

Unfortunately, you just need to keep running down where the issue is. Check the expiration date on the kits. It's surprisingly common to do the tests wrong, so watch a video to make sure you're doing it right (I did the red sea Mg tests wrong for years). Have your LFS do a test or try another test kit.

In my experience, since you've got a reasonably new RO system reading 0 TDS then the tests are probably the problem.

 

[WvAquatics]

I just changed 25 gallons out of the tank still sky high nitrates according to test. I have to wipe out mixing can and let it air dry to get salt out and then make rodi. I will test rodi with API kit.

 

[WvAquatics]

Think I found my issue. My 2nd di resin is showing tds. When filling the tank intially I must have ran too much water through and it tunneled through the resin. I tested tds frequently but may have missed the last portion and missed some. Still weird though my first nitrate test wasn't that high.

Will get to the bottom of it. Maybe just get refugium going sooner than later to work it down. I feel with a new cycle I need to feed bacteria. So I might have to feed some ammonia

 

[laurichj]

The bacteria can go many weeks without food, once a month will be fine. Putting macro algae in sooner is usually a good idea. Increases the bioload in a way that improves water quality, which makes it easier to feed enough but not too much.

 

[WvAquatics]

The bacteria can go many weeks without food, once a month will be fine. Putting macro algae in sooner is usually a good idea. Increases the bioload in a way that improves water quality, which makes it easier to feed enough but not too much.

I'm just afraid to add any fish yet. Worried about the high nitrates. Figure I'll work to lower nitrates and get refugium going. Guess I'll get a few fish to qt and start moving forward. Figure if I do a couple of 25g water changes a week I'll get nitrates Down.

 

[brandon429]

No that won’t work for nitrates. See article nitrate in the reef aquarium, Randy H Farley as to why/perpetual rebound.
a non digital nitrate test will vary wildly in accuracy brand to brand, in the chem forum there’s one thread up currently on the matter


if you put away the tests, you can be reefing now + add live rock

those are approximations above that can range all the way to zero on some kits.

you don’t need to know nitrate, nor phosphate at all to begin. Fish or no fish will not change the bacteria density or number on your rocks, bacteria build there independent to your bioload (the exact opposite of how forums advise it works)

-nothing is wrong with nitrate

- nothing can mess up your bacteria if you want to wait a long time to add fish. The rocks carry right now the max # of fish they can ever carry. If you waited six more months, same. Bac will eat via natural means if we withhold fish food or waste. And if you add fish, the current bac simply shift to processing more ammonia.

 

[WvAquatics]

No that won’t work for nitrates. See article nitrate in the reef aquarium, Randy H Farley as to why/perpetual rebound.
a non digital nitrate test will vary wildly in accuracy brand to brand, in the chem forum there’s one thread up currently on the matter


if you put away the tests, you can be reefing now + add live rock

those are approximations above that can range all the way to zero on some kits.

you don’t need to know nitrate, nor phosphate at all to begin. Fish or no fish will not change the bacteria density or number on your rocks, bacteria build there independent to your bioload (the exact opposite of how forums advise it works)

-nothing is wrong with nitrate

- nothing can mess up your bacteria if you want to wait a long time to add fish. The rocks carry right now the max # of fish they can ever carry. If you waited six more months, same. Bac will eat via natural means if we withhold fish food or waste. And if you add fish, the current bac simply shift to processing more ammonia.

Ok so I'll get live rock and start refugium. I was afraid about high nitrates killing everything. Guess a Hanna nitrate in my future.

 

[WvAquatics]

Do you think you treat it like a low test and divide the 100 by 10? That would explain why it's so high

 

[WvAquatics]

And of course Hanna doesn't make one. So guess I go with adding some live rock and macro

 

[WvAquatics]

Red ogo sea lettuce and pom pom algea ordered. Adding ammonia tonight to monitor. Thursday will get macros.

 

[WvAquatics]

Rodi is 0 tds on netter 2ppm nitrate in salifert will test with API in am. Regardless I will be adding pods and macro this week

 

[cmoore806]

I had the same situation in my tank. Nitrates were always high/maxed out on the salifert nitrate test. I stopped checking them. I have a hanna nitrite checker and I tested high at first and without intervention it came down into range. My understanding is that the nitrifying bacteria that convert the nitrite into nitrate are slower to grow than the bacteria that process ammonia into nitrite. So it just takes time.

 

[WvAquatics]

Live rock fail. The nice store here in Columbus is closed today. The one I went to idk if they even sell live rock. But rock full of apista so no thanks. So we might be doing all dry for now. Thanks everyone for help with nitrates.