No nitrates, low phosphates..... next step?

link81 · Oct 5, 2019

No skimmer,
very infrequent water changes.
Only running cheato for nutrient export.
Kessel H380 in fuge chamber.
Feeding 3x a day. twice with pellets and once with LRS frozen. (I feed the frozen at night so I can watch)
Currently dosing Phosphates.

Want to bring up no3 a little bit. Don't want to feed more often. I think my only step is to reduce photoperiod on the fuge correct? It's currently at 6 hours. maybe I just need more fish....

Joedubyk · Oct 5, 2019

more fish, better for corals, too!

Tuan’s Reef · Oct 5, 2019

I wiped out my nitrate with nopox. I am using this now to supplement nitrate

Addicted2Coral · Oct 5, 2019

Farm chaeto more, or do what I do, dose as well. I'm a fan of the ME Coral nitrate, but the neo posted above is supposed to be great as well. I like close to zero po4 and some readable nitrates. Minimal algae and happy colorful coral is the result of this balance.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 5, 2019

link81 said:
No skimmer,
very infrequent water changes.
Only running cheato for nutrient export.
Kessel H380 in fuge chamber.
Feeding 3x a day. twice with pellets and once with LRS frozen. (I feed the frozen at night so I can watch)
Currently dosing Phosphates.

Want to bring up no3 a little bit. Don't want to feed more often. I think my only step is to reduce photoperiod on the fuge correct? It's currently at 6 hours. maybe I just need more fish....

I'd personally use sodium or potassium nitrate of known purity rather that a more expensive hobby product of unknown purity, but dosing as folks above do is a fine way to go.

dieselkeeper · Oct 5, 2019

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
I'd personally use sodium or potassium nitrate of known purity rather that a more expensive hobby product of unknown purity, but dosing as folks above do is a fine way to go.

There are so many potassium nitrate products out there, do you recommend one.

link81 · Oct 5, 2019

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
I'd personally use sodium or potassium nitrate of known purity rather that a more expensive hobby product of unknown purity, but dosing as folks above do is a fine way to go.

I'd rather not dose more if I can avoid it. already dosing TSP, seems like I should be able to increase NO3 without dosing right?
How short of a photoperiod can I use for the algae? Can I go all the way down to an hour? or should I try to keep it above 4 hours or so?

If I had to dose, I'd most likely buy powder and mix up my own like I do with the PO4

X-37B · Oct 5, 2019

Are you having issues? If not I would not change anything just monitor and log it.
What are current numbers?

link81 · Oct 5, 2019

nitrates and phosphates?
0 no3 and .08 PO4
salifert and Hanna

not really having issues, just trying to have a detectable level thats all. maybe I'm overthinking it. (as usual)

Nicholas Dushynsky · Oct 5, 2019

If you are feeding that much and not getting a reading I would just take the fuge offline altogether, or is being too efficient.

Idoc · Oct 5, 2019

link81 said:
I'd rather not dose more if I can avoid it. already dosing TSP, seems like I should be able to increase NO3 without dosing right?
How short of a photoperiod can I use for the algae? Can I go all the way down to an hour? or should I try to keep it above 4 hours or so?

If I had to dose, I'd most likely buy powder and mix up my own like I do with the PO4

I was in your similar situation with no nitrates, but i also had no phosphates. Ultimately this had lead to a year long battle with dinos.

When i started dosing nitrates, the system ate it up quickly just like toy ate experiencing. But then after a couple of weeks of daily dosing, my system finally hit an "equilibrium", for no better term. Then all of a sudden the system started maintaining the nitrates and i rarely have to dose now! Same with the phosphates.

I'd recommend giving it a try for a few weeks... these dinos are no laughing matter! I used Loudwolf Sodium Nitrate as my nitrate source.

X-37B · Oct 5, 2019

Probaly are. My nitrate runs barely detectable, 2 if im lucky. Phosphate .02 if lucky. Everything in tank is growing.
I feed 3-4 times a day. Tank is a 120 thats 3 1/2 months old. I get a light green algae film on glass so I know I have both.
I have 6 blue green chromis
1 cherub angel
1 neon dottyback
1 pajama cardinal
1 clown
1 lawnmover blenny
1 fire shrimp
1 cleaner shrimp
3 peppermint shrimp
Varios snails
2 large brittle stars
4 emerald crabs

dieselkeeper · Oct 5, 2019

I have a 90 gal that is over 18 months old. Nitrates at 0 ppm on red sea low range kit. Phosphates at 0.02. There is 6 fish, mostly softies. Always fed frozen, LRS, PE mysis shrimp twice a week and pellets once a day. Been using old school method of raising nitrates using bioballs for over a year. No refugium, only a skimmer. I can't get nitrates up for nothing. Now looking to dose.

JonoB · Oct 5, 2019

I have the same issue on a 60g cube. I run a refugium, mostly to help with pods for a mandarin (not sure if this really helps, but I feel like it does). My phosphates run a little higher, or have been, so it's also helped with that. However, I can't get my nitrates up no matter how much I feed. I have some NeoNitro, haven't started dosing yet but I think I'm going to give it a shot.

For those of you that do dose it, do you start off testing and dosing daily, every other day, once a week?

link81 · Oct 5, 2019

JonoB said:
For those of you that do dose it, do you start off testing and dosing daily, every other day, once a week?

thats one of the reasons I run a fuge also, so hopefully I can get everything balanced while keeping it up.

when I started dosing po4, I tested daily for the first couple weeks then every couple days, then weekly.
I still test every week to 10 days or so, just to make sure its OK.
I also dose kalk, and the testing regimen was very similar.