Nitrates won't go down! Over 150

[Doctor Faust]

It's the black sand. Get rid of it.

The black sand seemed like the coolest and newest idea. And for some reason I thought in terms of contrast and seahorses, rather than blend in and seahorses. As a result my horses have darker shades and my tank looks gloomier overall, as it's not really a reef tank with all the reef colors.

I'm thinking, take the rocks and fish into an aquarium sized container, vacuum out the sand, add new dry sand, and put the stuff back in. Right? Unless I have to leave the sand in there without rocks for a long time, then I'd like to avoid that if there's another possibility...?

 

[MissyTwitch]

What do you mean "intermittent sock filter"? Any algae scrubber suggestions?

I do add phytoplankton from time to time. And I hear you on the SPS..I have gotten rid of it, as I'd rather provide lower lighting for the horses.

Intermittent sock filters: when you wash/clean your sand, blow detris of your rocks connect the sock filters once a week during that time. It’s ok to be a little dirty. The Algae scrubber will control the nitrates/phosphates [not zero, no need for zero], to collect bigger particulates and detris the sock filters can help make your tank look cleaner. Plus by pulling out the detris you are removing things that could potentially leak nitrates/phosphates in tank. If you leave the sock filters on all the time you run the risk of the sock filters themselves leaking nitrates/phosphates. Hence intermittent. You could spend a few hundred and buy an algae scrubber or you can build your own for less than $100. Plenty of tutorials in the forums and on you tube .

 

[ccombs]

Well, there it is haha. I have never seen anything like it, and sustainable or not, it does look very cool to have so many types of species in there.

Not condoning, but accepting haha. Best of luck on the nitrates.

 

[mattzang]

Thank you, with a bit of guidance that's the intent!

What black thing? The black angler is at the bottom middle of the rock, couldn't see anything furhter up. Unless you mean the nozzle..

nah the thing above the angler sitting on the rocks, you have a bunch of frags sitting on it. some sort of cylinder?

 

[Auto-pilot]

nah the thing above the angler sitting on the rocks, you have a bunch of frags sitting on it. some sort of cylinder?

Its a submarine!

 

[Auto-pilot]

We good? lol

Hey I watched your video and agree with what a lot of people are telling you! Saltwater aquariums are super cool and it can be easy to get ahead of ourselves and get stuff without knowing how to take care of what we have. My only word of advice is slow down and do your research before you buy anything. I'm surprised all of your livestock isn't dead from what you've shared so far. I think that you should lessen your bio load on your tank and consider getting a bigger one if you want more fish. Those seahorses can die really fast if you don't meet their needs. I don't think its a bad idea to feed fish to other fish, but you might want to get your predators in a tank where they can eat less expensive fish. I acclimate guppies and mollies to salt water and have fed those to some predator fish and have been happy with that. To get your nutrients under control if you don't have one, invest in a protein skimmer and slowly start dosing carbon as well as doing water changes. Changing water as a way of nutrient exportation can get expensive really fast. Maybe you can get some Macro algae somewhere to help with your nutrient exportation. you can push the boundaries of your water size once you have a good way to export the waste in your tank and everyhing is under control. After you get things under control I'm sure you can start experimenting on what your tank/ tanks can really handle but until then you need to downsize your fish population. My first tank was a 45 gallon with a 10 gallon sump and I think I had only 6 fish in it and it was hard to maintain good water parameters.

 

[Doctor Faust]

nah the thing above the angler sitting on the rocks, you have a bunch of frags sitting on it. some sort of cylinder?

I built everything around that haha. It came from a 29 gal BiOrb sphere tank, which I miss sorely I just drilled holes to hold them frags.

 

[Doctor Faust]

Intermittent sock filters: when you wash/clean your sand, blow detris of your rocks connect the sock filters once a week during that time. It’s ok to be a little dirty. The Algae scrubber will control the nitrates/phosphates [not zero, no need for zero], to collect bigger particulates and detris the sock filters can help make your tank look cleaner. Plus by pulling out the detris you are removing things that could potentially leak nitrates/phosphates in tank. If you leave the sock filters on all the time you run the risk of the sock filters themselves leaking nitrates/phosphates. Hence intermittent. You could spend a few hundred and buy an algae scrubber or you can build your own for less than $100. Plenty of tutorials in the forums and on you tube .

I hear you, that does make sense. All of everything the socks catch, stays in constant contact with the same water, whereas if waste wasn't centralized like that, maybe some inverts would have consumed some of it, reducing nitrates a bit more. But I think it may take away a lot from the cosmetic cleanliness.

I currently have a 225 micron felt in the first sock compartment, and a cup with 2 chemipure blues in there. I replace the sock at least weekly and I rinse the chemipures.

Question, please. Now, if I'm going to do the "extra work" of putting in and taking out the socks, wouldn't it be better if instead of taking it out, I could just change them? It will be costlier and harder to wash all these socks, but wouldn't you say that would leave the water at least cosmetically cleaner? Also, wouldn't that be outweighed by the fact that with the socks we create a favorable environment for bad bacteria and other pathogens? Or is that what you're really saying here?

And this one to others as well: Do any of the known pathogens causing the diseases we unfortunately see in our tanks somehow do better with an environment of excess waste and decaying material centralized socks and live rocks, or do they strictly survive ON fish and other living things?

 

[Doctor Faust]

Hey I watched your video and agree with what a lot of people are telling you! Saltwater aquariums are super cool and it can be easy to get ahead of ourselves and get stuff without knowing how to take care of what we have. My only word of advice is slow down and do your research before you buy anything. I'm surprised all of your livestock isn't dead from what you've shared so far. I think that you should lessen your bio load on your tank and consider getting a bigger one if you want more fish. Those seahorses can die really fast if you don't meet their needs. I don't think its a bad idea to feed fish to other fish, but you might want to get your predators in a tank where they can eat less expensive fish. I acclimate guppies and mollies to salt water and have fed those to some predator fish and have been happy with that. To get your nutrients under control if you don't have one, invest in a protein skimmer and slowly start dosing carbon as well as doing water changes. Changing water as a way of nutrient exportation can get expensive really fast. Maybe you can get some Macro algae somewhere to help with your nutrient exportation. you can push the boundaries of your water size once you have a good way to export the waste in your tank and everyhing is under control. After you get things under control I'm sure you can start experimenting on what your tank/ tanks can really handle but until then you need to downsize your fish population. My first tank was a 45 gallon with a 10 gallon sump and I think I had only 6 fish in it and it was hard to maintain good water parameters.

I do dose carbon and other trace elements, do water changes at least weekly, and have a protein skimmer. I guess that's why I've been able to keep up thus far.

I'm having trouble cultivating macroalgae, and that's what's pushed me more towards finding an adequate algae scrubber or nitrate reactor of sorts. I've tried chaeto, gracilaria, dragon's breath in the sump, but it has withered away unceremoniously. Always the microalgae has won in my tank for some reason that I can't find a friggin answer to! I thought the light is inadequate on the sump, which it is, and that the better light on the display makes microalgae grow there. So I put macro in the display, and it withered while micro bloomed in the sump. High nitrates is what I read, and that's catch 22.

 

[Auto-pilot]

I do dose carbon and other trace elements, do water changes at least weekly, and have a protein skimmer. I guess that's why I've been able to keep up thus far.

I'm having trouble cultivating macroalgae, and that's what's pushed me more towards finding an adequate algae scrubber or nitrate reactor of sorts. I've tried chaeto, gracilaria, dragon's breath in the sump, but it has withered away unceremoniously. Always the microalgae has won in my tank for some reason that I can't find a friggin answer to! I thought the light is inadequate on the sump, which it is, and that the better light on the display makes microalgae grow there. So I put macro in the display, and it withered while micro bloomed in the sump. High nitrates is what I read, and that's catch 22.

Maybe your tank is low on iron. from what I understand is that if its a plant and green it uses iron. If all of your other algae is using it and depleting it there might not be enough to grow your algae in the sump. I dose iron because I grow too much algae and if I don't it dies. The day I discovered it was low on iron it blew my mind, no growth dosed some iron and BOOM twice as big in 2 days.

 

[Berickson24]

I couldnt grow macro algae to save my life whilst I was carbon dosing and using a phosphate removing pad. Had made a pretty sump 'fuge to hold it and everything. I had to just let nature do its course, remove the carbon dosing and pad, deal with the unideal water and stop trying to stop nature from fixing itself. Let whatever algae that wanted to (GHA for me) take hold and then keep cleaning the display. Eventually I was able to let the GHA grow pretty massive and then began replacing with chaeto and calpura. Only got the calpura to take hold but victory nonetheless lol. In the video I can see you've got all kinds of things growing, probably not what you want in the display. Do you have it growing anywhere else that isn't visible?

 

[MissyTwitch]

No, what I was saying for the sock filter was for the fact that you have sea horses and gorgonians. I personally run an SPS tank and they thrive better in an environment that is slightly dirty low nutrient system. I’d avoid using the filter socks more than once a week. Their only purpose should be to clean out detris. Using only an algae scrubber/refugium with macro you protect your zooplankton and microbiome in your tank. Now if your worried about having a squeeky clean system => algae scrubber/no sand high flow tank/ozone/UV light and dose for everything.

 

[Hemmdog]

Did anyone else die laughing when they heard flight of the valkyries on his first “proof” video, hahahahha that was so bad butt lol

 

[Hemmdog]

Double post

 

[mattzang]

Did anyone else die laughing when they heard flight of the valkyries on his first “proof” video, hahahahha that was so bad *** lol

yeah that was a ballin touch by the doctor

 

[mattzang]

I do dose carbon and other trace elements, do water changes at least weekly, and have a protein skimmer. I guess that's why I've been able to keep up thus far.

I'm having trouble cultivating macroalgae, and that's what's pushed me more towards finding an adequate algae scrubber or nitrate reactor of sorts. I've tried chaeto, gracilaria, dragon's breath in the sump, but it has withered away unceremoniously. Always the microalgae has won in my tank for some reason that I can't find a friggin answer to! I thought the light is inadequate on the sump, which it is, and that the better light on the display makes microalgae grow there. So I put macro in the display, and it withered while micro bloomed in the sump. High nitrates is what I read, and that's catch 22.

I think you need @Hemmdog to hook you up with one of his 1,000 par refugium lights considering the bioload and green hair algae you're rockin in there!

 

[Doctor Faust]

I think you need @Hemmdog to hook you up with one of his 1,000 par refugium lights considering the bioload and green hair algae you're rockin in there!

Lol re the soundtrack. I had that video uploaded a couple months ago. Worked perfect, as you two've noticed lol

What is this 1000 par refugium light? @Hemmdog

 

[Hemmdog]

Lol re the soundtrack. I had that video uploaded a couple months ago. Worked perfect, as you two've noticed lol

What is this 1000 par refugium light? @Hemmdog

lol Nice. Oh nothing, just a diy led thing I did to my biocube for a display light. But it’s to bright and the wrong spectrum. It’s junk lol, he was kidding lol. The wiring may or may not catch my house on fire if I use it again lol.

 

[Doctor Faust]

I couldnt grow macro algae to save my life whilst I was carbon dosing and using a phosphate removing pad. Had made a pretty sump 'fuge to hold it and everything. I had to just let nature do its course, remove the carbon dosing and pad, deal with the unideal water and stop trying to stop nature from fixing itself. Let whatever algae that wanted to (GHA for me) take hold and then keep cleaning the display. Eventually I was able to let the GHA grow pretty massive and then began replacing with chaeto and calpura. Only got the calpura to take hold but victory nonetheless lol. In the video I can see you've got all kinds of things growing, probably not what you want in the display. Do you have it growing anywhere else that isn't visible?

Actually, those pictures are a few weeks old. After that hair algae took over (the hair algae was the ONLY algae growing in my mantis tank), and now the hair algae is only in the fuge, as I leave those lights on for much longer than the display. I've also put some 4-500g/h pump in there too.

Up till now, I'm doing same way lol. Keep cleaning and keep cleaning, and then one day boom, it's gone just like it bloomed.

 

[Derek Asbury]

If you have high nitrates and you have phosphate buy some NoPox it will lower them both but be care full and read the instructions good before doseing start with half what it says to use and work your way up increase o2 any way you can by airateing your water point power heads closer to surface of water I used it in my tank and my nitrates got to 0 between that and my refugium