NITRATES OVER 0.5---1.0 PLEASE HELP

[madweazl]

Not literally but yes I see your point

Ours is almost three years old and is still fine; I bought another bottle about six months ago just to double check (also do ICP a couple times a year for a sanity check). I do cap it right after I place the drops on the refractometer to help mitigate evaporation.

 

[Dom]

ok by normal I mean 1.025

here goes

Calcium 460

Magnesium 1750

Alkalinity 14

Nitrates 25

Phosphates 0.25-0.50

salinity 1.025

Your ALK seems a bit high to me. I keep mine around 10.

 

[ScottR]

They may not be accurate but they're usually consistent; a difference of 2ppt isn't going to harm things unless you're already at the far ends of acceptable levels.



Yes, for low range results, you look through the side and divide the results by 10 (e.g. 50ppm color would be 5ppm nitrates on the low range).

Actually, the salt starts to encrust on the arm over time. You can nudge it and it’ll move up. Nudge it again and it’ll move down. A refractometer that is calibrated correctly will test more accurately every time.

 

[madweazl]

Actually, the salt starts to encrust on the arm over time. You can nudge it and it’ll move up. Nudge it again and it’ll move down. A refractometer that is calibrated correctly will test more accurately every time.

Do people not rinse them out? I used the swing arm style and true hydrometers for almost 20 years before I finally broke down and bought a refractometer a few years back.

 

[W1ngz]

Your ALK seems a bit high to me. I keep mine around 10.

The Alk is high, the mag proportionally so also. Slowly moving towards specific parameter targets is the next step, after getting control of things and no longer making daily massive water changes. I suspect some of it will naturally drift downward over a week of leaving things go and close monitoring, which is where I'm hoping to go with all of this.

 

[ScottR]

Do people not rinse them out? I used the swing arm style and true hydrometers for almost 20 years before I finally broke down and bought a refractometer a few years back.

I used to use them 20 years ago when I had fish only tanks. It worked then. Thought I could use them when I started reefing. Much to my surprise, they weren’t accurate.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

Have you tested the water fresh from the lfs?

 

[reefer2000]

Have you tested the water fresh from the lfs?

not really i never check their water
because i just dont find that to be any helpfull

 

[Mark Novack]

On a tank that size I'd do a very large water change. 10% changes will reduce nitrates well after 26 changes if there is not more production. 10% is great to enhance good quality water and refresh KH. Mathematically, to reduce elements, 10% is almost worthless. Even 20% changes will not have much effect. It becomes a tough call. I'll be doing a 75% change next month, 600 liters. I want to see my nitrates on the chart for once. They don't make colors for my levels. I'll try and remember this thread to share the results, good or bad.

 

[tupes]

Something I havent seen answered yet is what salt mix are you using?

 

[W1ngz]

Something I havent seen answered yet is what salt mix are you using?

Sounds like a no-name bulk salt. There's a half answer in this post. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/nitrates-over-0-5-1-0-please-help.612387/page-2#post-6162161

I assume that most of the big brand name salts aren't marketed or available there.

 

[tupes]

And the reason I'm asking

I was using Red Sea Coral Pro and my Ca and Alk and mag were way off the chart like where yours are.

I swapped to fritz and no more issuess

 

[Bayareareefer18]

not really i never check their water
because i just dont find that to be any helpfull

Misunderstand. I thought you were buying their water but looks like you are buying their salt

 

[reefer2000]

Sounds like a no-name bulk salt. There's a half answer in this post. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/nitrates-over-0-5-1-0-please-help.612387/page-2#post-6162161

I assume that most of the big brand name salts aren't marketed or available there.

Ok it is night time and i am curently seeing that my hammer is losing skin and there is brown stuff coming from the sides of the coral still all shriveled up should i worry

 

[W1ngz]

If it’s night time then are you sure it’s not just retracted? Clear pics would help. In the light, tomorrow when the lights have been on for an hour or two.

It’s possible it’s a disease. It may become necessary to move that coral into a quarantine system.

 

[KTTX]

The best thing to do is find the source and fix it.

When doing water changes, clean sand bed too. I like to blow off my rocks right before I siphon water out.

I dealt with this with water changes and less feeding for a while.

 

[reefer2000]

If it’s night time then are you sure it’s not just retracted? Clear pics would help. In the light, tomorrow when the lights have been on for an hour or two.

It’s possible it’s a disease. It may become necessary to move that coral into a quarantine system.

lost one of my hammers brown jelly took over it douse not look good the other hammer

 

[Stigigemla]

Earlier I used to buy a noname salt. It was good in potassium but the calcium value was shifting a bit. The real problem was the magnesium that varied from 1100 to over 1800.
It ended after I did test every 66 pound sack and mixed 2 or 3 different sacks to get proper values. After mixing 2 sacks of 24 was left with extreme high magnesium.
And I was fed up of testing. Now I try to only sell salts with safer and more constant values like Tropic Marine, Microbe lift and Instant Ocean.

 

[reefer2000]

Earlier I used to buy a noname salt. It was good in potassium but the calcium value was shifting a bit. The real problem was the magnesium that varied from 1100 to over 1800.
It ended after I did test every 66 pound sack and mixed 2 or 3 different sacks to get proper values. After mixing 2 sacks of 24 was left with extreme high magnesium.
And I was fed up of testing. Now I try to only sell salts with safer and more constant values like Tropic Marine, Microbe lift and Instant Ocean.

the country that i live in there is no salt that they say its a brand name they are al sera sea salt or some stupid chinease brand

 

[reefer2000]

If it’s night time then are you sure it’s not just retracted? Clear pics would help. In the light, tomorrow when the lights have been on for an hour or two.

It’s possible it’s a disease. It may become necessary to move that coral into a quarantine system.

i did like you said about testing in 12 hours so these are my test results now

alk 12

magnesium over 1500

nitrate 25

phosphate 0.25

calcium 420

salinity 1.025