Nitrates Plummeting, what are the options?

[Roggio]

I never thought this would be me but despite my huge fish load my nitrates keep dropping into the 1-3 range. I'd like to keep them above five. Right now I have a lot of LPS and giant clams that I'm assuming are absorbing a ton of the nitrates. I plan on adding a lot of SPS (what my tank is set up for) when I get bubble algae under control. To do that I plan on using Vibrant; another additive that will drop my nitrates. @UWC

I'd like to avoid using stump remover or any unnatural methods. I have a large refugium but I'm assuming the mostly pulls out Po4.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

Keep seeing this pop up. New to reefing but coming from freshwater planted tanks I'm wondering if you can just dose kno3? Dry ferts are really inexpensive

 

[Michael Llabona]

Easiest way to increase nitrates is to feed a tad more. Or if you use filter socks or poly filters you can leave them in a little longer as long as they don't get clogged.

 

[nereefpat]

To raise nitrates, you can either feed more or dose nitrate. You can find food grade sodium nitrate pretty easily online.

Those corals all look very healthy, however, so I probably wouldn't mess with it. What are your phosphate levels, btw? You mentioned a fuge (chaeto or scrubber, I assume). You could also reduce the lighting time or intensity on that.

 

[Sallstrom]

We've used KNO3(bought from a planted tank/freshwater tank shop(PMDD)) the last 8 years with good results.

An other way to slow things down might be to take of the skimmer cup, and let the skimmate go back to the tank but still get the aeration. Not sure how much NO3 that goes out with the skimmer, but at least you leave more particles in the water to the corals to feed on if the nutrients are low. Yes, and this is only if the skimmer is in the sump

Hope you find a way that works for you. And I would also recommend a rabbitfish or some Mitrax crabs for the Valonia algae instead of a chemical/medicine

/ David

 

[Roggio]

To raise nitrates, you can either feed more or dose nitrate. You can find food grade sodium nitrate pretty easily online.

Those corals all look very healthy, however, so I probably wouldn't mess with it. What are your phosphate levels, btw? You mentioned a fuge (chaeto or scrubber, I assume). You could also reduce the lighting time or intensity on that.

They look healthy in the pic but thats after I dose Zeofood, aminos, and feed them. I can tell when the nitrates get low because they barely come out and look sickly. I'm going to lower the light cycle on the fuge for sure. I'll dose Vibrant and update this thread with my results. I wonder what happens if I mix it with Zeozym?

My Po4 levels are .03 to .06. It looks like bubble algae can grow on very little Po4. If the Vibrant doesn't work I'll try the Reef Flux but that's $85 dollars worth on my system.

We've used KNO3(bought from a planted tank/freshwater tank shop(PMDD)) the last 8 years with good results.

An other way to slow things down might be to take of the skimmer cup, and let the skimmate go back to the tank but still get the aeration. Not sure how much NO3 that goes out with the skimmer, but at least you leave more particles in the water to the corals to feed on if the nutrients are low. Yes, and this is only if the skimmer is in the sump

Hope you find a way that works for you. And I would also recommend a rabbitfish or some Mitrax crabs for the Valonia algae instead of a chemical/medicine

/ David

I can't use crabs because I have two huge Zebra Moray Eels. They literally come out of the water to chase the crabs on my rocks.

I'd like to try a foxface but I hear they can eat coral. I have to be careful, any fish I put in my system are near impossible to catch.

 

[Tft12]

Just a quick note: you mentioned that you think your refugium is mostly pulling out phosphate. Generally, things like refugia (usually growing macro algae) are pretty good at dropping nitrate, but not so good at dropping phosphate. Typically, biological approaches are going to export large quantities of N while exporting only small quantities of P.

 

[Tft12]

That shot of your tank looks great, by the way.

 

[Roggio]

Just a quick note: you mentioned that you think your refugium is mostly pulling out phosphate. Generally, things like refugia (usually growing macro algae) are pretty good at dropping nitrate, but not so good at dropping phosphate. Typically, biological approaches are going to export large quantities of N while exporting only small quantities of P.

Hmm, I never realized that. It makes sense because Vibrant claims people's macro dies due to the nitrate depletion. I guess I just always thought it pulled phosphate because it's a plant.

That shot of your tank looks great, by the way.

Thank you! now that they've banned imports I'm working extra hard to keep them alive and healthy.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Easiest way to increase nitrates is to feed a tad more. Or if you use filter socks or poly filters you can leave them in a little longer as long as they don't get clogged.

This is one way. Another is get a can of flake food and ad a good pinch of that daily in-between regular feedings. As flake and pellet foods break down to nutrient much faster than fresh/frozen do, this will also help boost the nitrates up.

If you run macro algae in your sump, reduce the total amount you keep in there to cut it's ability to absorb nitrates.

 

[RobertP]

I started feeding more flakes and pellets as well. Also removed my filter socks which I believe did the most. I put them back in if I think the water needs a little polishing but generally the fuge does it's job. In fact my skimmer pulls almost nothing out of the water anymore and still cannot get nitrates above 4.

 

[Tft12]

I over feed my fish to a pretty ridiculous extent and I can’t get my nitrate to increase though my phosphate soars at levels that people generally think are awful. For me, the only way to get readable nitrate is to directly add a nitrogen source rather than trying to add or retain extra food/crud in the tank...I don’t know that anyone really needs to dose/maintain particular detectable levels of nitrate though...but that’s probably a whole separate debate on its own.