NITRATE REDUCTION: Top 3 ways to keep Nitrates down?

[revhtree Verified Admin]

NITRATE REDUCTION: How are you keeping Nitrates down?

Nitrate is an ion that has long dogged aquarists. It is typically formed in aquaria through the digestion of foods, and in many aquaria it builds up and can be difficult to keep at natural levels. In the past, many aquarists performed water changes with nitrate reduction as one of the primary goals. Fortunately, we now have a wide array of ways to keep nitrate in check, and modern aquaria suffer far less from elevated nitrate than they have in the past. In some case, aquarists have even found that they have reduced it too far, and nitrate dosing can even be beneficial.

Elevated nitrate is often associated with algae, and indeed the growth of algae is often spurred by excess nutrients, including nitrate. The same can be said for other potential pests in aquaria, such as dinoflagellates. Nitrate itself is not acutely toxic at the levels usually attained in aquaria, at least as it is so far known in the scientific literature, but elevated levels do seem detrimental to the health of fish. Additionally, elevated nitrate can spur the growth of zooxanthellae in corals, which can darken corals and may decrease the growth rate of a host coral.

For these reasons, most reef aquarists strive to keep nitrate levels down. Some are very successful, and others are not. This article provides some background on nitrate in the ocean and in aquaria, and describes a number of techniques that aquarists have successfully used to keep nitrate levels down to more natural levels in reef aquaria. - @Randy Holmes-Farley


This question of the day comes to you as a request by one of our members! Today let's talk about how YOU are keeping your nitrates down. Let's discuss and talk nitrate reduction methods!

1. What methods do you employ to keep nitrate levels in check?

2. Do you have a problem keeping your nitrate level at an acceptable range?

3. What is an acceptable range for you and nitrates in your reef aquarium?

 

[brandon429]

1. being a low detritus storage tank
2. no problems, algae and coral color are balanced year after year
3. I don’t know my nitrate. Too busy collecting threads where one sample registers 50ppm difference between testers. I figure eyeballing it is as accurate as basing on a titration testing kit. I could state a reading and that would be taken as accurate, is the problem. I try to manage physical accumulation as the chief way of managing nitrates and my feed input is high that way nothing starves or goes out of balance.

 

[Jase4224]

I use primarily Caulerpa Brachypus (paddle Caulerpa) in my fuge to lower nitrates and phosphate. The reason I use it is because it grows faster than Chaeto and under more varied conditions, does not need high flow and doesn’t need substrate. It also never ‘goes sexual’ and dies off.

As for water changes I believe they can only remove a meaningful amount of nitrates if you are changing large amounts often, therefore they should be used to rid the system of anything that has potential to build up and start producing excess nutrients. It’s not how much water you change but how much ‘stuff’ you remove with it. Vacuuming your sand bed frequently with smaller water changes will turn out more efficient in the long run than leaving all the detritus to build up and trying to do larger water changes to keep up with rising nitrates.

 

[jda]

• 2-3 inches of sand - back end removal
• Real Live Rock - back end removal
• Heavy skimming to remove organics before they enter the N cycle - front end removal

Fourth would be macro/chaeto in a fuge.

I did not know that some of those things on the list removed nitrates. I hope that people do not think that Lan Chloride or Bio Balls will do this job after seeing the list.

All of these things keep my N between .1 and .5, but usually at .1. Have to use a ICP to even tell since all hobbyist test kits (terrible) are not this accurate. Low, but more than enough naturally.

 

[brandon429]

Someone will soon chime in with a nitrate reducing sandbed in its prime, accepted proof. It’s handy to think of nitrate control in terms of what works consistently per 100 reefs assembled

not for one tank

per 100 deep sandbeds left in place and unexported, three have no nitrate and 97 are dosing carbon or arranging offsets constantly for reasons you mention Jase.

live rock: once claimed to universally reduce nitrate measurably and can do so in a small percentage of tanks. Reality: dose some carbon




the reason we have denitration schemes from all sorts of arrangements is because the 97% need a way to control nitrate even though they have a dsb using every care and control variant you could imagine. Given the current state of nitrate testing accuracy, I think 3% of nitrate control reactions were accurate and 97% took place because a ballpark measure said so.


even the reefs claiming nitrate control off a dsb, what if it’s really at 50 ppm, how were your measures verified

 

[Dr. Dendrostein]

NITRATE REDUCTION: How are you keeping Nitrates down?

Nitrate is an ion that has long dogged aquarists. It is typically formed in aquaria through the digestion of foods, and in many aquaria it builds up and can be difficult to keep at natural levels. In the past, many aquarists performed water changes with nitrate reduction as one of the primary goals. Fortunately, we now have a wide array of ways to keep nitrate in check, and modern aquaria suffer far less from elevated nitrate than they have in the past. In some case, aquarists have even found that they have reduced it too far, and nitrate dosing can even be beneficial.

Elevated nitrate is often associated with algae, and indeed the growth of algae is often spurred by excess nutrients, including nitrate. The same can be said for other potential pests in aquaria, such as dinoflagellates. Nitrate itself is not acutely toxic at the levels usually attained in aquaria, at least as it is so far known in the scientific literature, but elevated levels do seem detrimental to the health of fish. Additionally, elevated nitrate can spur the growth of zooxanthellae in corals, which can darken corals and may decrease the growth rate of a host coral.

For these reasons, most reef aquarists strive to keep nitrate levels down. Some are very successful, and others are not. This article provides some background on nitrate in the ocean and in aquaria, and describes a number of techniques that aquarists have successfully used to keep nitrate levels down to more natural levels in reef aquaria. - @Randy Holmes-Farley


This question of the day comes to you as a request by one of our members! Today let's talk about how YOU are keeping your nitrates down. Let's discuss and talk nitrate reduction methods!

1. What methods do you employ to keep nitrate levels in check?

2. Do you have a problem keeping your nitrate level at an acceptable range?

3. What is an acceptable range for you and nitrates in your reef aquarium?

1. What methods do you employ to keep nitrate levels in check?

My one and only natural method is about 120 Pacific oysters for a water volume of 85 gallons, as soon as my nano tank is up and running it should be down to about a hundred or less oysters the main tank. Tank is NPS so heavy feeding and my nitrates are 5-10 mg/l, I do water changes also but that's to replenish the elements.

2. Do you have a problem keeping your nitrate level at an acceptable range?

Sulfur denitrator was my method before I began using oysters, Pacific oysters about 2 months ago. So now I have no issues trying to control nitrates

3. What is an acceptable range for you and nitrates in your reef aquarium?
15-25 mg/l

Her name is Deadpool

 

[dragon99]

 

[BCSreef]

I don't try to remove NO3. I have to dose NaNO3 to keep it detectable. I aim for 3-5 ppm NO3. PO4 is my main issue.

I feed heavy (Anthias), skim heavy, have real live rock (25 years old), sand and macroalgae.

 

[brandon429]

Mine could be high. Until I meet the seneye of nitrate testers, we r horseshoeing

 

[Fishko]

Ugh, im trying to raise nitrates, am trying feeding a lot more, nitrate at 1ppm phos at .03

 

[H3rm1tCr@b]

Water changes and macroalgae seem to work well for me.

 

[Reefs and Geeks]

I was unaware there was a liquid nitrate remover. Anyone know what that option is referring to?

Myself, I use vinegar for carbon dosing as my primary nitrate removal now. I was using a fuge which worked great, but am now using vibrant, so no fuge

 

[Ike]

I couldn't tell you if my nitrate is .5 or 50 as I haven't tested in about 5 years. I assume it's fine A good protein skimmer is all you really need, if your nitrates are too low you need more fish and food, if they're high a bigger skimmer will likely do the trick. Sure, there are other methods, but none as effective, safe and hassle free as that in my opinion.

 

[Fourstars]

Don’t overfeed or overstock the tank, skim and water changes. I’ve had to dos N and P for the last five years To keep them from bottoming out. I’d rather be in control of nutrients instead of them controlling me.

 

[ca1ore]

Since I already have overstocked my tank, thus requiring very heavy feeding ….. that horse has bolted the barn. I use a combination of sand bed/live rock denitrification, organics removal with skimmer, ATS and as the mechanism of last resort …. a sulfur reactor.

 

[dwest]

Liverock should be an option.

 

[Backreefing]

3-4” sand bed and real live rock. Is all that is needed to keep no3 low .

 

[techdef]

Clams. Its hard to keep measurable nitrates.

 

[Bill Urbanski]

Water changes. Feather caulerpa and vinegar keep me around 2.

 

[Gribbliest]

I’ve found that I struggle to keep nitrates up. I feed very heavily, including large amounts of aminos and coral foods.

I believe a combination of live rock, and live sand provides good nutrient export, but also that heavy stocking of corals and allies, provides heavy nutrient consumption...