Hello I am having problems with a 75G FOWLR tank that was given to me by a family member. The tank has been set up at my house for the better part of 6 months and the nitrates are shot. I used all new water and substrate but used 100 plus pounds of rock that was in the tank when we moved it from his house to mine. The rock wasn't out of the water longer than picking it up and setting them in bins full of tank water. I upgraded from a wet dry to a sump with protein skimmer refugium and I even put a phosban reactor in running biopellets (been in for 5 months). My nyos nitrate kit that is brand new shows the nitrates in between 95 and 165 circle on the chart. The other parameters as far as ph,nitrite, and ammonia go are fine. I have never had one of my tanks this out of whack and it has me going insane and I am at a loss. Any suggestions would help on what I should do next.
Tank advice
- Thread starter Goodridge4392
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Ron Reefman
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Have you done any water changes?
Did they bring nitrate levels down?
Did they bring nitrate levels down?
I was doing 20 gallons a week and it wasn't doing anything to the levels.
Flippers4pups
Fins up since 1993
Some large water changes should help.
Ron Reefman
Lets Go Snorkeling!
Reef Squad
Excellence Award
Reef Tank 365
Article Contributor
Tampa Bay Reef Keepers
MAC of SW Florida
If you can, and have the equipment, consider setting up a small tank (or even just a 5g bucket. Fill it with new saltwater and test for nitrate. Take a rock from the tank, give it a quick rinse or dip in RO/DI water (actually, tap water will do as well) and then put it in the bucket. Start testing for nitrate. At first, I'd test every 8 hours for a day. No nitrate? Test every day for the next 4 to 7 days. No nitrate? Then it's probably not your rocks fault.
Although it only takes one bad or unusual rock to be a problem. I had a friend that struggled with this same situation for a year before discovering his rocks were the problem. New rocks and he never had a nitrate issue again!
Good luck.
Although it only takes one bad or unusual rock to be a problem. I had a friend that struggled with this same situation for a year before discovering his rocks were the problem. New rocks and he never had a nitrate issue again!
Good luck.
