Nitrates vs Feeding : How do you balance it? or do you?

[Belgian Anthias]

@Belgian Anthias Can you explain this "AAM" process you so often reference without linking us to another article? Thanks.

Active aquarium management, also active algae management. Clearing the water of nutrients by installing a stable growth rate able to support the system. This is done by using a refuge and active feeding. for example a growth rate of 1ppm No3-N daily is installed by active balanced feeding. if the system accumulates nutrients the feeding is adjusted. This way growth is able to clear the water of nutrients at all times. Growth can be anything, heterotrophic, autotrophic, as long it can be harvested. I do prefer to use producers, macro-algae, because a lot of information is available. This way one is able to start up a marine system and condition the system to the desired nutrient export rate before the first consumer is added.

 

[ReefGeezer]

Active aquarium management, also active algae management. Clearing the water of nutrients by installing a stable growth rate able to support the system. This is done by using a refuge and active feeding. for example a growth rate of 1ppm No3-N daily is installed by active balanced feeding. if the system accumulates nutrients the feeding is adjusted. This way growth is able to clear the water of nutrients at all times. Growth can be anything, heterotrophic, autotrophic, as long it can be harvested. I do prefer to use producers, macro-algae, because a lot of information is available. This way one is able to start up a marine system and condition the system to the desired nutrient export rate before the first consumer is added.

Oh... I'd just call that basic husbandry. This is really what the hobby is... balancing nutrient producers and users of all forms of nutrients to produce the outcome we desire. Where we disagree is including things like skimmers in the "users" category. I think they are a valuable addition where growth can't keep up with production. That is the condition found of most immature systems. Unfortunately, in these systems relying on biomass growth is not as effective. I won't disagree when you state that the growth of that biomass can be limited by the skimmer. But... early on, the biomass that grows in answer to excess nutrients is often that which we don't want. I'm ok with limiting that growth.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Nothing new . No answers.

Your claim is not correct! A skimmer does not lower the concentration of nitrate and phosphate which may otherwise build up in an aquarium. Please explain how the presence of organic waste, normally used for ammonia reduction, can be the precursor of nitrate accumulation. My opinion, it is the opposite, exporting organic waste may be the precursor of nitrate accumulation. I do not see the logic of your claim. It is against the logic of how nature keeps the balance between consumers, reducers and producers.


Of coarse a skimmer does lower " some portion" of the total content of nutrients once present in the feed , but it will do it very selective, making it impossible for new growth to remove all inorganic N and P once part of feed, creating a nutrient inbalance , limiting balanced growth needed to clear the water of all inorganic nutirents, once part of feed. The created inbalance is shown by slow accumulation of inorganic nutrients, normally used up by growth. it is not only about N and P, but mainly about " some portion" of essential nutrients once part of feed a skimmer does effectively removes but are needed for growth able to clear the water.

Once the device was named "protein skimmer" but after it has been shown not much protein is there to be removed we changed the name in skimmer.( logic as nitrogen is part of protein of feed and most is released as ammonia after consumption.)
if 85% of nitrogen present in the feed is released as ammonia, how much nitrogen is left over part of organic waste released by the consumers. To brake it down, to reminerelize it, ammonia must be used because the waste does not contain the nitrogen needed for growth. This process is one of the 3 pilars supporting the carrying capacity of the system. A skimmer removing " some portion" of that organic waste but not ammonia is responsible for ammonia accumulation , turning the system more autotrophic ( nitrification) for to maintain its carrying capacity needed. Most organic waste will be reminerelized, released of its carbon, and reused for new growth of which "some partion" is removed by a skimmer. The main problem for managing the systems nutrient balance is " some portion" is removed, some unknown portion of some essential nutrients.

Do you have ANY example of a tank where someone added a skimmer and saw nitrate rise significantly?