Poor Man's Nutrients Control - Donovan's Nitrate Destroyer

Donovan Joannes · Dec 20, 2017

Stlouphil said:
Just built this contraption. Four inch pipe both 18” tall. Tied together by a 1/2 inch union. Quarter inch tubing at input and output and a port on top with a push valve for carbon source injection. Input has a push valve to control flow.

I have tons of LR rubble. Aerobic side is larger rubble on top with medium pieces on bottom. They are separated by 1” pvc rings.

The anaerobic side has small rubble on the bottom half and really small on top half. They are separated by 1/2” pvc rings.

I seeded with skimmer gunk and effluent and injected 20ml Vdk. Flow is very small stream. You can see in the photo.

Today is day 1 with nitrates about 15.

I want a removable end cap like that

. Easier to swap media. Hopefully your small rubble is not too small (1" and above), but reading "really small rubble" make me worry. The valve on your carbon source inlet proves that you have pre-plan a method to combat slight clogging issue

. Nice build. At 15ppm, it is low enough for non-sps tank.

Stlouphil · Dec 20, 2017

Thanks. Bottoms are epoxied on. The tops are attached with silicone. “Really small?” Maybe exaggerated. Probably 3/4”. If it seems to be getting plugged, has anyone thought about openening the valve and just flushing it out?”

Donovan Joannes · Dec 20, 2017

Stlouphil said:
Bottoms are epoxied on. The tops are attached with silicone. “Really small?” Maybe exaggerated. Probably 3/4”. If it seems to be getting plugged, has anyone thought about openening the valve and just flushing it out?”

Pump fed reactor should be able to be flushed. I am very tempted to build another one with backflush feature. Hmmm, maybe I should.

crs751 · Dec 21, 2017

My unit has been up for about 2-months. As of my last test runs the Nitrates in the reactor are down to about 5 and the tank is at 10. And that was from a high of 50 before adding the reactor. Very pleased with the results so far.

Donovan Joannes · Dec 21, 2017

crs751 said:
My unit has been up for about 2-months. As of my last test runs the Nitrates in the reactor are down to about 5 and the tank is at 10. And that was from a high of 50 before adding the reactor. Very pleased with the results so far.

Congrats!. What is your total water volume?. A little bit of flow reduction will bring your nitrate lower. I would aim for 5ppm or lower, but for a non-sps tank that level is perfect

. Let's celebrate with a some vodka!. Lime please

crs751 · Dec 21, 2017

My display is 75G with about 10 - 15 G in the sump. I saw faster reduction in Nitrates when I increased the Vodka dose from 5 to 10 ml per day

Donovan Joannes · Dec 21, 2017

crs751 said:
My display is 75G with about 10 - 15 G in the sump. I saw faster reduction in Nitrates when I increased the Vodka dose from 5 to 10 ml per day

Yup, that should do it. You will find a sweet spot (flow and vodka quantity) very soon. What are you keeping?. FTS should be better, don't you think?

crs751 · Dec 21, 2017

Trying to keep SPS. Had a lot of SPS but now I’m rebuilding after a major tank crash several months ago. In recovery mode at the moment

cchomistek · Dec 21, 2017

I was dosing 9.5ml a day in increments 8 times per 24 hours. I still am not at zero on output yet. I gave upped it to 11.5 mls. Donovan does this seem like alot for a day??

Donovan Joannes · Dec 21, 2017

What is your DT & reactor no3 level now?. I won't try stripping no3 too fast, your tank might go into shocked. Don't emphasize on zero no3 for now, just let it drop to whatever level you want and fine tuning your vodka/flow so that you can maintain the exact same level consistently.

crs751 · Dec 21, 2017

Remember nothing good happens fast in a reef tank.

Donovan Joannes · Dec 21, 2017

crs751 said:
Remember nothing good happens fast in a reef tank.

Exactly. It should be fine dropping nitrate from 50 to 5 in a day, but if the reactor can do that in a short time, it will wipe out no3 to zero in few hours. My reactor is capable consuming nitrate in turbo mode, dropping 25ppm to zero in few days (vodka overdosing method) but corals will be mad for a week or two. Oversized reactor is more than capable if the condition is perfect in there.

cchomistek · Dec 21, 2017

My tank is about 25 ppm or a bit more and the output of the reactor is about 10 or slightly higher still. I will test again tomorrow and see if anything has changed. I saw the nitrogen bubbles when I had the longer hose but now with the short one back online I have not seen any and no mucus discharge as of yet. I know I guess I am just getting frustrated with the amount of cyano I am battling. I think I may do a chemiclean treatment in a few weeks if the cyano does not subside.

cchomistek · Dec 21, 2017

I guess I am looking for the zero output to ensure that the reactor is doing its job.

Donovan Joannes · Dec 23, 2017

I know getting zero no3 at outlet is preferred but lower reading is a good indicator of a working reactor. As long as nutrient production is lower than what the reactor is capable of removing on daily basis, your nitrate is guaranteed will be lower eventually.

|FATHOM| · Dec 23, 2017

Thank you for the help on this. I have my reactor up and running. I basically used 4 inch pvc, four 4" caps, and two 4 inch t sections.

I have two questions. In order to achieve 5ml per ten seconds for my 100 gallons total volume I have to have the valve almost closed. I do not get a steady stream at the exit but I get dripping instead of a steady stream. Granted it drips quickly and doesn't allow any air into the reactor. Is this ok?

Second question is two parts. I have extra media. I used large bio balls from Amazon based on another members recommendation on this thread. www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B074MQQCDG/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1 . I mixed those with some bigger cylinders to avoid clogging. I have about a half gallon extra of these bio balls. Should I throw these in my sump or just not use them in my system since I built the reactor

Part two is can I take all the live rock rubble in my sump out or should I leave it in there?

Thank you for all your help with this and everyone else who chimed into this thread. I am on my second day of 5ml mb7 dosing and will start carbon dosing at 5ml in a couple of days. I will start testing in a week and post results.

Donovan Joannes · Dec 24, 2017

Based on experience and info I collect from users around the world, 5%-10% initial flow is just fine (daily turnover of total volume, not per hour). Off course there is no written method running this reactor, we just want to see nitrate reduction at the output. Just make sure you have an adequate flow (not dripping very slowly) to give ample time for bacteria to do its job. It might take a few days to a week or two to start seeing positive result.

You can put that extra media in the sump for sure, but under certain condition it might produce more nitrate instead.

Live rocks is always a good thing to have in a sump as long as it does what it suppose to do (or what you want it to do). Under certain condition, live rocks rubbles will trap organic waste and leftover foods. In this case, you should know what to do with it.

ramona · Dec 25, 2017

Merry Christmas everyone!

I hope one day my tank will look like yours.

Donovan Joannes · Dec 25, 2017

ramona said:
Merry Christmas everyone!

I hope one day my tank will look like yours.

Merry Christmas! Ho Ho Ho!. There is so many way to run a reef tank, you will learn and discover what are the best method for your tank. Be patient, keep stable parameters and don't rush to stock your tank. It took several years for me to have a decent looking tank, and might take another year or two to sharpen my reefing know how. Time will tell