Hoe to get above 0 PPM NO3?

Halo_003 · Apr 14, 2020

Hey guys,

I’m having a problem with nitrate in my tank being 0, and I can’t get them up. I’ve tracked for a couple of months and I’ve consistently been reading 0 (Red Sea Nitrate Pro test kit). WWC checked with a Salifert kit and also read 0.

bout the system:
Nuvo 30G with roughly 10G in a Skimz sump
Mesh filter socks changed 2x/week
Deltec 600i skimmer
IM Minimax in sumo reactor (running ROX 0.8) changed once a month

Rock/Livestock:
3 fish currently (adult Occ. clown, helfrichi firefish, Springer’s dottyback) - adding a pair of Bangaii cardinals once they finish quarantine.
About 15lbs Pukani rock (cycled in March of 2019)
1/2”-1” shallow sandbed

Nutrition:
Dosing 6mL each of Reef Energy A&B daily
Feeding cube of PE mysis in the evening
Feeding pellets mid day (auto feeder)
Started doing BRS Reef Chili (2 scoops) daily

My goal is for this to be a BTA dominant tank but they’re not happy in the zero nutrient environment. I have tried leaving the skimmer turned off (up to 2 weeks) and I still was reading 0 PPM. I get no algae growth (literally zero) on the rocks and sand, hardly any on the glass and no coralline algae.

I know my fish load is low for the water volume, but in the mean time while I slowly quarantine and add additional fish any ideas for how to boost to 2-5PPM nitrate would be helpful. I’m fine with dosing and testing frequently if that’s the best route. If so, is there a particular additive that you would recommend?

Backreefing · Apr 14, 2020

Just add fish , and make some coffee.
And do you have to wipe the glass every two or three days..... if you answered yes , then you have nutrients.

Halo_003 · Apr 14, 2020

Backreefing said:
Just add fish , and make some coffee.
And do you have to wipe the glass every two or three days..... if you answered yes , then you have nutrients.

Funny you mention coffee, I just got my beans shipment this morning.

Regarding the glass, I see barely any growth and it has been 2 weeks since I’ve used the scraper.

Backreefing · Apr 14, 2020

Are you running any gfo or other media ? And just turn off the skimmer, permanently.

Backreefing · Apr 14, 2020

And I’m surprised you ain’t got a Dino outbreak.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Apr 15, 2020

If phosphate is also low, feed more.

If phosphate is high, then dosing sodium nitrate is a good plan. You can buy food grade sodium nitrate on line. If you cannot find it, food grade potassium nitrate is acceptable.

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Halo_003 · Apr 15, 2020

No GFO, just carbon for water clarity. Phosphate is .02PPM which in my mind is pretty low.

I’ll give it a shot feeding frozen twice daily instead of pellets.

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
If phosphate is also low, feed more.

If phosphate is high, then dosing sodium nitrate is a good plan. You can buy food grade sodium nitrate on line. If you cannot find it, food grade potassium nitrate is acceptable.

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Thanks Randy! Is that essentially the same as Brightwell Neonitro? I did some searching last night and it seemed like a bunch of people recommend KNO3 powder, BW Neonitro or the one you linked. Any advantage to one of those three routes, or will they all do the same thing with little difference?

Randy Holmes-Farley · Apr 15, 2020

Brightwell doesn't indicate purity. I prefer to know the purity.

Unless you are measuring potassium to know it isn't rising, I'd stick to sodium nitrate.

Halo_003 · Apr 15, 2020

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
Brightwell doesn't indicate purity. I prefer to know the purity.

Unless you are measuring potassium to know it isn't rising, I'd stick to sodium nitrate.

sounds good, thank you!

Coronus · Apr 20, 2020

Is there a formula to mix sodium nitrate and Tri sodium phosphate with water for dosing?
I would like to make a 1 gallon stock solution of each for dosing.

Halo_003 · Apr 21, 2020

Coronus said:
Is there a formula to mix sodium nitrate and Tri sodium phosphate with water for dosing?
I would like to make a 1 gallon stock solution of each for dosing.

Good question! I order the NaNO3 that Randy linked earlier on this thread, and it arrived yesterday. I did some searching and found a calculator that he linked here: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/calculating-sodium-nitrate-dosage.328408/post-4073900

I gave it a shot with 120mL of saltwater, added 5 grams of the NaNO3, and last night right after a 5 gallon water change I dosed 2mL. I should note I completely forgot to do the .84 multiplication that he described, but I dosed such a small amount that it won’t hurt.

This morning (about 12hours later) I registered about .4-.5PPM nitrate(between .25 and .50 on Red Sea), the first time I’ve had detectable nitrate in this tank since setting up.

I also have a bottle of KZ Pohl’s Xtra Special on the way from BRS, so I’m going to give them both a shot (not concurrently) and compare results.

Fishko · Apr 21, 2020

Halo_003 said:
Good question! I order the NaNO3 that Randy linked earlier on this thread, and it arrived yesterday. I did some searching and found a calculator that he linked here: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/calculating-sodium-nitrate-dosage.328408/post-4073900

I gave it a shot with 120mL of saltwater, added 5 grams of the NaNO3, and last night right after a 5 gallon water change I dosed 2mL. I should note I completely forgot to do the .84 multiplication that he described, but I dosed such a small amount that it won’t hurt.

This morning (about 12hours later) I registered about .4-.5PPM nitrate(between .25 and .50 on Red Sea), the first time I’ve had detectable nitrate in this tank since setting up.

I also have a bottle of KZ Pohl’s Xtra Special on the way from BRS, so I’m going to give them both a shot (not concurrently) and compare results.

Do you multiply the dose by .84? I am also looking to buy the sodium nitrate that randy was referring to. Struggling to get nitrate above 1ppm.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Apr 21, 2020

Fishko said:
Do you multiply the dose by .84? I am also looking to buy the sodium nitrate that randy was referring to. Struggling to get nitrate above 1ppm.

Yes, but as noted, the multiplication factor is not very important as the exact dose is not critical.