Sudden Nitrate Spike

[Rechelle Fleck]

I performed a 20% water change last week and my nitrates were almost at 0. However, they are suddenly at 20 and I have no idea why. All my other parameters are in order including 0 ammonia and 0 nitrates. I run carbon and pruigen and my water is very clear. My BTA seems a little stressed out about it (not extending tentacles), but everyone else seems fine. Before my water change, I did lose 2 large hermits due to a shell war (I have since added more shells), so I am wondering if something died under my LR as all fish are accounted for, but I do not have an exact count of my snails and hermits. I don't want to remove my LR to see if I can find the culprit if it is in fact a dead invert. Should I start vinegar dosing to help the nitrate levels or just perform another water change? I am afraid if I do another water change it's going to spike again if something is decaying somewhere in the tank.

 

[rock_lobster]

20 nitrates is actually a good range it shouldnt bother anything. If the coral look stressed then something else is going on paramater swings, maybe there was an ammonia spike preceding the nitrate. How mature and what volume is the tank? Are you running chaeto?

 

[WVNed]

20 will harm nothing. So do nothing except watch the trend and see where it goes. Water changes are the easiest and safest way to reduce it. Make sure you aren't putting nitrate in your tank with your source water. Outside of that possibility a water change will never make nitrates go up. you might be overfeeding. Try cutting that back

Mine did what yours did but continued on to 80 and beyond so I started nopox but you arent there yet. I got mine back down to 20.

 

[dwest]

I performed a 20% water change last week and my nitrates were almost at 0. However, they are suddenly at 20 and I have no idea why. All my other parameters are in order including 0 ammonia and 0 nitrates. I run carbon and pruigen and my water is very clear. My BTA seems a little stressed out about it (not extending tentacles), but everyone else seems fine. Before my water change, I did lose 2 large hermits due to a shell war (I have since added more shells), so I am wondering if something died under my LR as all fish are accounted for, but I do not have an exact count of my snails and hermits. I don't want to remove my LR to see if I can find the culprit if it is in fact a dead invert. Should I start vinegar dosing to help the nitrate levels or just perform another water change? I am afraid if I do another water change it's going to spike again if something is decaying somewhere in the tank.

20 is ok, don’t worry about it. The spike was in itself very strange. Are you using 0 TDS rodi water? Also, my experience with nitrate test kits are they are not very reproducible, but again that’s a big swing. I would not vinegar dose, but keep doing your normal wc routine.

 

[Rechelle Fleck]

20 will harm nothing. So do nothing except watch the trend and see where it goes. Water changes are the easiest and safest way to reduce it. Make sure you aren't putting nitrate in your tank with your source water. Outside of that possibility a water change will never make nitrates go up. you might be overfeeding. Try cutting that back

Mine did what yours did but continued on to 80 and beyond so I started nopox but you arent there yet. I got mine back down to 20.

I use only RODI water I get from my LFS (with a SG of 1.025) and my tank is only 30 gallons so any little problem is going to cause an easier parameter swing in my nano reef. I'll just keep monitoring it.

 

[Rechelle Fleck]

20 nitrates is actually a good range it shouldnt bother anything. If the coral look stressed then something else is going on paramater swings, maybe there was an ammonia spike preceding the nitrate. How mature and what volume is the tank? Are you running chaeto?

My tank is a little over a year old and only 30 gallons so any little change (perhaps the dead hermits) produces bigger swings in my nano reef. I am looking for a light for the overflow so I can run some chaeto to see if that helps as well. My goal/dream is to get a 120 - maybe Santa will be good to me this year.

 

[WVNed]

Test the water you are buying. Stores have been known to push their filters beyond the useful life. Just something that pops up on R2R every once in a while. I make my own.