Tanks dying. Please help icp is in

[Thingsibuild]

Yes. I'm talking about nitrate because I don't want to let them fall to zero again. While doing all the water changes I'm about to start doing
I had a battle with dino the first couple months i had the tank from zero n03/n04

 

[MnFish1]

Yes. I'm talking about nitrate because I don't want to let them fall to zero again. While doing all the water changes I'm about to start doing
I had a battle with dino the first couple months i had the tank from zero n03/n04

My point was - that given some of the values from the table that @Lasse used La for example - is 100 times higher than the maximum set point for Trident. If you are planning to use 10 gallon water changes - pretending you have a 100 gallon tank - in one day you will reduce whatever chemical by 10%. you will still have many many times the recommended amounts of these potential (key word) toxins in your tank. So - perhaps it would make more sense to do several large water changes - adding a bit of nitrate if you're that concerned. By the way - the water changes work the same for nitrate - if you do a 10 gallon water change on a 100 gallon tank the nitrate will drop from 3 to 2.7 - that will not cause a Dino outbreak (if you're still feeding, etc). If you did 2 50 percent water changes on 2 separate days - you would reduce your nitrate from 3 to 1.5 to 0.75. Certainly not to 0.

Good luck with getting things back in line.

 

[Lasse]

BTW - Do not use potassium nitrate to dose nitrate. Unless your goal is to raise potassium levels and your'e testing for it, there is a strong possibility of overdosing potassium (obviously, depending on how much you're dosing), and too much potassium is known to adversely affect SPS. Instead, use sodium nitrate (so-called "Chile saltpeter" because there's large deposits in Chile), as it is extremely unlikely that you can significantly overdose sodium.

Sodium nitrate is a food additive, and is readily available on Amazon.

It is an important remark but here in Sweden it is more common to use potassium nitrate. Especially if you use zeolites or a refugium. After around 12 ICP tests I have seen that I always lose pottasium (no zeolites but refugium) in spite of the fact that I use KNO3. But - if I did not have had the ICP tests - I would probably alter between the two NO3 sources. I have done a overdosing of potassium in my old aquarium (not with help of KNO3 but through using an additive) - when I send a test - it read 600 ppm K. However - my corals did never look better but my fish died.

Sincerely Lasse

 

[MabuyaQ]

You mentioned a refractometer; it would be worth checking it against a LFS's reading to make sure it's accurate. If you've a digital refractometer, you're probably OK, but the "look through it" types can be fairly difficult to get accurate readings from.

No need to do this with an ICP testing report available. In this case all values are ppm so add them together (in case they are not convert them to the same measurement value first) , devide the total by 1000 and you get the ppt value your refractometer should read (including decimals).

 

[Thingsibuild]

My point was - that given some of the values from the table that @Lasse used La for example - is 100 times higher than the maximum set point for Trident. If you are planning to use 10 gallon water changes - pretending you have a 100 gallon tank - in one day you will reduce whatever chemical by 10%. you will still have many many times the recommended amounts of these potential (key word) toxins in your tank. So - perhaps it would make more sense to do several large water changes - adding a bit of nitrate if you're that concerned. By the way - the water changes work the same for nitrate - if you do a 10 gallon water change on a 100 gallon tank the nitrate will drop from 3 to 2.7 - that will not cause a Dino outbreak (if you're still feeding, etc). If you did 2 50 percent water changes on 2 separate days - you would reduce your nitrate from 3 to 1.5 to 0.75. Certainly not to 0.

Good luck with getting things back in line.

I see what your saying. I'll probably start with 30% change and do 10% day till it's more than 100% changed. Then do another icp test.
I just dont want to move to fast. At this point it may not to bad to go fast I still have 20 or so coral holding on.

 

[Dkeller_nc]

It is an important remark but here in Sweden it is more common to use potassium nitrate. Especially if you use zeolites or a refugium. After around 12 ICP tests I have seen that I always lose pottasium (no zeolites but refugium) in spite of the fact that I use KNO3. But - if I did not have had the ICP tests - I would probably alter between the two NO3 sources. I have done a overdosing of potassium in my old aquarium (not with help of KNO3 but through using an additive) - when I send a test - it read 600 ppm K. However - my corals did never look better but my fish died.

Sincerely Lasse

Good point. There for a while zeovit Korallen-Zucht system was fairly popular, but it seems to have been eclipsed by the Triton method with refugiums. At any rate, though, sodium nitrate is fairly risk-free unless one's trying to elevate potassium and is testing for it.

 

[MnFish1]

I see what your saying. I'll probably start with 30% change and do 10% day till it's more than 100% changed. Then do another icp test.
I just dont want to move to fast. At this point it may not to bad to go fast I still have 20 or so coral holding on.

calculate how long it will take until 100% is changed - it will be weeks - especially given the amounts your talking about (assuming your results are correct - I tend to agree with @Lasse that they are not correct

 

[Tjakes680]

What fish are in tank and have you checked for hitch hikers all paramiters seem good so chk for something pysicaly happing and as someone else stated when softies die and release toxin it can start a dominoe effect Sometimes it can be something simple but I would deff check for hitchhiker s

 

[Tjakes680]

Check for stray voltage

 

[Thingsibuild]

Checked for stray voltages.
Rtn ,stn ,polyp bailout on acan and hammers, zoa just stop opening.
Then others just stopped growing.
I checked for pest at night many times nothing.
It's got to be something in the water

 

[Oldsalt]

That's all the chloride from the NaCl, CaCl2, MgCl2, SrCl2, KCl, etc., that make up the salt mix. Totally normal.

Beat me to it.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Nothing way off. What salt mix are you using??

I wonder if current salt mix is sufficient or depleting too quickly? temperature plays a factor with elements and are you add trace major and minor elements regularly?

 

[iramack]

I highly recommend running some POLYFILTER & CHEMIPURE BLUE in your sump.
The poly-filter is great at removing contaminants such as heavy metals etc. Chemipure Blue will polish the water as well.
Just my two cents. I run those continuously in my system, and have had no issues with doing that.

 

[Thingsibuild]

I'm in the middle changing out all the water.
I was going take super slow but with every thing not looking good, I'm doing 25% a day.
Good thing is my parameters are close to my salt mix. (Hw reef)
I got some sodium nitrate to keep my n03 up.
I understand I've only done 50% so far but the Corrals do seem a little happier I don't know if it's just a placebo effect on my eyes. Lol
I really appreciate everyone helping me out with this and I'm just going to see how the water changes affect everything and send out another ICP test

 

[MnFish1]

Just so you remember - if you change 25% one day - the concentration will drop by 25%
if you do 25% on the second day - the concentration will have dropped by 25% of 75%
etc etc
if you do 4 25 % changes you will not have changed 100% of the water - and some of the metals in your ICP (if you believe them) are still going to be high after 4 25% water changes.... PS - Im not sure those metals are the problem - but just saying

 

[Thingsibuild]

Changing 25% a day while keeping my parameters consistent. I'll do this till I've changed 200%. Its last ditch effort.
Everything seems okay. Then I'll give it two weeks have it tested again.

 

[Thingsibuild]

Acan have stopped dropping heads.
All LPS look happy and open.
Zoas are opening back up.
I think I'm over the worst of it.
I'm at 200% water change after today.
Im sure it was bad ro/di filter mixed with rusted magnet.
Icp again in a couple weeks.

 

[Thingsibuild]

Thanks again for all the help from all of you.

 

[MnFish1]

Thanks again for all the help from all of you.

Great - glad it seems to be coming around