Hello I recently purchased a redsea peninsula 500 I set everything up. I then bought a tank out in my local area and stocked my new tank. Took his sand LR love stock. When I did this I did a 50 gallon water change so a little less then half. I ran tests Sunday and my nitrates are high like 80+. I did another 25 gallon water change yesterday tested last night still the same. Nothing seems to be suffering everything is opening up. Fish ate. I tested the new saltwater reef crystals and nitrates are at 0. Any advice? Thanks. Jay
High Nitrates
- Thread starter JayJay81
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Crossfire
Community Member
You added sand from an old tank into your new one? There could be a ton of nutrients in that. How old was the sand and rock you added? Also, how long did you you cycle this new tank (redsea peninsula 500)?
Mykawl
Active Member
Keep up with the big water changes until you see them drop, can stir sand around too but be careful. Just keep on cleaning can also blow off rocks with turkey baster and do the endless syphon trick into a sock in the sump.
Ok thanks for the help I have been in and out of the hobby for awhile so I know some things but just wasn’t sure. I prob lost some beneficial bacteria with the move to. How often should I do a water change last one was 25 gallons yesterday.
BeejReef
2500 Club Member
What kind of livestock are you keeping? Some are more sensitive to nitrate than others. It may be a big deal to keep them very low or a non issue that you can work at over time.
I would want to know if I've simply made an oops and filled my tank with very very dirty rock and sand, or if there is something else at play. Perhaps the move/transfer killed a number of small snails or worms and now you're spiking?
What is your phosphate level? If it has bottomed out, that could be a possibiity.
I see you're brand new. Doing a water change should have an effect on your results. It has to. Be certain you're performing the test correctly. Many have a low range and high range option. Doublecheck. What kind of kits do you use?
Keep an eye on ammonia as well, just to be safe. If it is die off causing your nitrate, that process begins with ammonia. Sounds like your rock and sand was cycled, but anytime you transfer, it's probably best to be sure.
Congrats on your new tank. There are plenty of worse problems to have than high nitrate
I would want to know if I've simply made an oops and filled my tank with very very dirty rock and sand, or if there is something else at play. Perhaps the move/transfer killed a number of small snails or worms and now you're spiking?
What is your phosphate level? If it has bottomed out, that could be a possibiity.
I see you're brand new. Doing a water change should have an effect on your results. It has to. Be certain you're performing the test correctly. Many have a low range and high range option. Doublecheck. What kind of kits do you use?
Keep an eye on ammonia as well, just to be safe. If it is die off causing your nitrate, that process begins with ammonia. Sounds like your rock and sand was cycled, but anytime you transfer, it's probably best to be sure.
Congrats on your new tank. There are plenty of worse problems to have than high nitrate
Thank you I love the tank I have a yellow tang hippo tank 2 clowns coral is all hardy green star polyps Kenya trees. Some mushrooms cleaner shrimp. I use API and redsea foundation for cal,alk, and mag phos is like .08 nothing has died off so far I keep looking Amn is still 0 as is nitrite
BeejReef
2500 Club Member
That sounds fantastic! I'm jealous.
If you're confident there is no die off, then you probably have very icky, yucky rock and sand.
Just water changes won't do much for you all by themselves. Blowing any gunk off of the rocks with a turkey baster before water changes can help.
A number of things you could look into:
Rock and sand cleaning
Bacterial products
Nitrate export filtration solutions (skimmer, socks, rollermat, nitrate reactor, refugium, carbon dosing, deep sand bed, siporax, berlin method.... etc., etc.
The topic of nitrate export and pros and cons of using used live sand and cleaning sand are two of the most discussed topics in the whole hobby. I'm nowhere near qualified to suggest any particular approach. Happy reading
Most importantly, your tank is alive, stable, and happy.
If it were me, I'd do a little reading with my feet up in front of my beautiful tank! (reading r2r of course)
If you're confident there is no die off, then you probably have very icky, yucky rock and sand.
Just water changes won't do much for you all by themselves. Blowing any gunk off of the rocks with a turkey baster before water changes can help.
A number of things you could look into:
Rock and sand cleaning
Bacterial products
Nitrate export filtration solutions (skimmer, socks, rollermat, nitrate reactor, refugium, carbon dosing, deep sand bed, siporax, berlin method.... etc., etc.
The topic of nitrate export and pros and cons of using used live sand and cleaning sand are two of the most discussed topics in the whole hobby. I'm nowhere near qualified to suggest any particular approach. Happy reading
Most importantly, your tank is alive, stable, and happy.
If it were me, I'd do a little reading with my feet up in front of my beautiful tank! (reading r2r of course)
Mykawl
Active Member
If you stir the sand softly does it make huge clouds that don’t settle/dissipate quickly?
Double check if your API test kit is expired? And when testing make sure to rinse with ro/di or distilled water. But hmm interested to see you solve this!
Lastly keep up with the water changes 25 gallons is only 25% of your tank so your only removing 25% of the nitrate which might make it difficult to notice the decline
Double check if your API test kit is expired? And when testing make sure to rinse with ro/di or distilled water. But hmm interested to see you solve this!
Lastly keep up with the water changes 25 gallons is only 25% of your tank so your only removing 25% of the nitrate which might make it difficult to notice the decline
When I vac the sand there is not much cloud coming up or when I turkey baste the rock. I didn’t do the rodi rinse on the test tubes. But had a friend run it with his test kit and same result. It has me boggled I know the tank has not even been moved a week but you would think I would see some type of change. Other then water changes is there anything I can dose? Been reading online about vodka? Or Dr Tims?
Mykawl
Active Member
In general you can feed less etc but you’ll need to pick a nitrate remover strategy, Chaeto refugium/carbon dosing which is the vodka you suggested biopellets but again not as simple as a properly lit refugium.
Carbon dosing requires some good studying I would just run a refugium so easy and other benefits. Just calm down and enjoy your tank keep doing the water changes they’ll come down. Slowly is better anyways as long as everything looks good but a 50% or more water change should definitely show results some may advise against too big of one though. Just making sure to match all perameters
Carbon dosing requires some good studying I would just run a refugium so easy and other benefits. Just calm down and enjoy your tank keep doing the water changes they’ll come down. Slowly is better anyways as long as everything looks good but a 50% or more water change should definitely show results some may advise against too big of one though. Just making sure to match all perameters
I have a fuge full of cheato lights are opposite of display tank lights. I mean I can do a 50% water change but that will def expose a lot of corals. I can make water to do it just didn’t know if I was over doing it.
