Help on nutrient levels.....

[Amtaylor417]

Hey everyone,

So I need a bit of help and guidance. I run a 110 gallon tank it's about 4 months old but had other tanks the is the now established upgraded tank. My tank is lps/soft corals and fish. I just did a 45 gallon water change on Sat. 2/5. Here is what my levels tested at today 2/9:
Nitrate: approx 15
Nitrite: 0
dKH: 11.2
Calcium: 485
Mag: 1680
Haven't dosed since before the water change.

One of my zoas just isn't looking good at all and I have a splatter green branching hammer that one of the heads isn't fully opened. And seems unhappy.

Not sure what to do.....can you guys give me suggestions please!!!!!!! Thank you in advance!

 

[Amtaylor417]

I do because I built my stand that way. When I was pressed for space I used a tall dog food container. Held about 6 gallons of water with a footprint of 6“ x 8“. You might want to look for something like that. All you need is something that is food safe and will fit in your stand. I’ll be more than happy to help you through the whole process if you think you’d like to pursue it

I would have to take all my random stuff underneath out and move the power cords. But I should have room for some kind of container that will do the trick!

 

[bruno3047]

I would have to take all my random stuff underneath out and move the power cords. But I should have room for some kind of container that will do the trick!

When you have your container all ready to go, you’ll need a small powerhead that can push the water over the top of the container, and the switch. You can post back here or DM me and I’ll walk you through the process to set it up. Where do you get your RO water?

 

[Amtaylor417]

When you have your container all ready to go, you’ll need a small powerhead that can push the water over the top of the container, and the switch. You can post back here or DM me and I’ll walk you through the process to set it up. Where do you get your RO water?

LFS. A d I have a power head I'm not using right now, I would just need the switch and the right size container to fit.

 

[bruno3047]

LFS. A d I have a power head I'm not using right now, I would just need the switch and the right size container to fit.

OK so you don’t make your own RO water. You’ll need a way to pump/pour the water from the RO container from the LFS into the reservoir. So that might need a second powerhead. Picture this. You bring the water home from the LFS. You pump/pour the water from the container from the LFS into the reservoir. You’re going to put the switch in your sump at the water level you want to maintain. You’re going to run a hose from the powerhead inside the reservoir into your sump. You’re going to have to put a little hole above the water level in the sump in the tubing to prevent creating a siphon from the sump back into the reservoir. Can you picture all that? If it would make it easier I can do a little drawing for you.

 

[Amtaylor417]

OK so you don’t make your own RO water. You’ll need a way to pump/pour the water from the RO container from the LFS into the reservoir. So that might need a second powerhead. Picture this. You bring the water home from the LFS. You pump/pour the water from the container from the LFS into the reservoir. You’re going to put the switch in your sump at the water level you want to maintain. You’re going to run a hose from the powerhead inside the reservoir into your sump. You’re going to have to put a little hole above the water level in the sump in the tubing to prevent creating a siphon from the sump back into the reservoir. Can you picture all that? If it would make it easier I can do a little drawing for you.

Lol maybe a drawing would help...I can Partially picture it, and what your talking about, it's the putting it into action and having it work correctly that may be the trouble some part. Lol I'm a hands on and visual learner for sure. If I see it I can normally mimic it.

 

[Amtaylor417]

here's the picture of the tank and a close up ok my zoas

 

[bruno3047]

Lol maybe a drawing would help...I can Partially picture it, and what your talking about, it's the putting it into action and having it work correctly that may be the trouble some part. Lol I'm a hands on and visual learner for sure. If I see it I can normally mimic it.

here's the picture of the tank and a close up ok my zoas

 

[bruno3047]

here's the picture of the tank and a close up ok my zoas

This picture is better. I forgot to add the electrical wire from the switch to the module. I’ve added it here.

 

[Amtaylor417]

Yea I definitely would have room for all that my sump is long. Wouldn't have the room to have the RO and the reservoir underneath, unless they were side by side maybe vertically. I'll have to try some things. Great drawing though! Thank you.

 

[bruno3047]

here's the picture of the tank and a close up ok my zoas

Let me know if you have any questions.

 

[Amtaylor417]

Let me know if you have any questions.

For sure! Thank you!!!!!!!!!

 

[bruno3047]

Yea I definitely would have room for all that my sump is long. Wouldn't have the room to have the RO and the reservoir underneath, unless they were side by side maybe vertically. I'll have to try some things. Great drawing though! Thank you.

The RO container would not be permanent. It only needs to be there until you pump the water from the container into the reservoir. Then you can put it away. Doesn’t have to be anywhere near the tank until you need to put water into the reservoir. The only thing you need room for is the reservoir and a way to access it to put water into it. The RO container could be outside the tank stand at all times.

 

[Amtaylor417]

The RO container would not be permanent. It only needs to be there until you pump the water from the container into the reservoir. Then you can put it away. Doesn’t have to be anywhere near the tank until you need to put water into the reservoir. The only thing you need room for is the reservoir and a way to access it to put water into it. The RO container could be outside the tank stand at all times.

Ohhh nice!!!!!

 

[Amtaylor417]

Ohhh nice!!!!!

Found a good set up for $45 I think....

 

[bruno3047]

.

 

[bruno3047]

Found a good set up for $45 I

Actually, I think you’ll be better off with the autotopoff.com unit. This is all that same equipment, only a little flimsier and cheaper. Go to autotopoff.com and look at the second unit from the top after the nano unit. It’s called single with bracket. I think it’s a little sturdier than this one and maybe even a little cheaper.

AutoTopoff.com

www.autotopoff.com

 

[Duncan62]

Btw, what's an ATO?

Auto top off. Replaces water lost to evaporation. It keeps salinity more constant than pouring in a gallon of water every day and it's also easier. There are many ato devices. Expensive and cheap. I opt for cheap. I think you should supplement you light. It's a strip fixture?

 

[Duncan62]

I could make one...but where do you keep the 10gallon bucket? I don't have room underneath. Lol do you?

The ato reservoir for my 30 is a gallon jar. I refill every 2 days. 75, 55 and 40 have 5 gallon water bottles that last a week of so. Simple float switch. No pump. Siphon offers enough pressure. 9 dollar float switch. No pumps or electricity required.

 

[Duncan62]

The ato reservoir for my 30 is a gallon jar. I refill every 2 days. 75, 55 and 40 have 5 gallon water bottles that last a week of so. Simple float switch. No pump. Siphon offers enough pressure. 9 dollar float switch. No pumps or electricity required.

 

[Amtaylor417]

Found a good set up for $45 I think....

Auto top off. Replaces water lost to evaporation. It keeps salinity more constant than pouring in a gallon of water every day and it's also easier. There are many ato devices. Expensive and cheap. I opt for cheap. I think you should supplement you light. It's a strip fixture?

Yes strip fixture