Vinegar dosing... Need help!

[merlberg]

In my last post one of you guys mentioned carbon dosing (thanks for tht) which I never heard of so I started to look it up and I'd like to dose vinegar for my high nitrate problem.

I pretty much understand the way it works. I was going to use the chart below.

My water amount is roughly 160 gal. so going by the chart i'd start dosing off with maybe 5.0 ml. But i would dose twice per day 2.5ml in the am, then in the afternoon for the 1st week only just to take things slow. But the following weeks coming I'd do the regular dosage in the mornings only

1. Do you guys think 5.0 ml is ok to start with?

2. In the following weeks coming how much extra do i add? Am i suppose to double the dosage up every week

3. When i do my weekly w/c do i double up or put the regular dosage for that day after the w/c?

My tank is 120 and sump is 55 but not filled up all the way.

I am also using these bio pellets in my reactor.

 

[4FordFamily]

1) yes that's what I did in my 125
2) double I believe but I defer to the chart
3) after W/C

Good luck!

 

[raultsu]

are you dosing vinegar and using the pellets? i think that might cause you problems. if only doing vinegar increase dosage by 4ml every week

 

[merlberg]

are you dosing vinegar and using the pellets? i think that might cause you problems. if only doing vinegar increase dosage by 4ml every week

Yes I just started the pellets last week. You think me using both mayb be a problem?! Why

 

[raultsu]

just increase your doses slowly. I personally would not use 2 carbon sources too much of an overdose risk.

 

[FLAdaboy]

I add vinegar to my tipoff water at 40ml per gallon. Works nicely.

 

[FLAdaboy]

Topoff

 

[CodyRVA]

just increase your doses slowly. I personally would not use 2 carbon sources too much of an overdose risk.

Agreed. They serve the same purpose, just two different means of accomplishing the same goal. Might be ok at first as the pellets take time to activate, but i'd still just go with one or the other. I wouldn't switch back and forth either, too much guess work.

 

[jeremy.gosnell]

Personally I don't think you're going to see any major results with vinegar dosing. Vinegar is soluble carbon, meaning that it may cause a temporary bloom in anaerobic bacteria. Yes, that bloom may assimilate some nitrate, but it will be gone before it has a chance to do much. Soluble carbon lowers ph, and really is primarily useful for seeding a reactor with anaerobic bacteria. Bio-pellets, IME, are one of the least effective ways of managing nitrates. They also lead to cyanobacteria outbreaks if not properly exhausted into a protein skimmer. I would suggest a sulfur based nitrate reactor if you have consistently high nitrates.

 

[twilliard]

Personally I don't think you're going to see any major results with vinegar dosing. Vinegar is soluble carbon, meaning that it may cause a temporary bloom in anaerobic bacteria. Yes, that bloom may assimilate some nitrate, but it will be gone before it has a chance to do much. Soluble carbon lowers ph, and really is primarily useful for seeding a reactor with anaerobic bacteria. Bio-pellets, IME, are one of the least effective ways of managing nitrates. They also lead to cyanobacteria outbreaks if not properly exhausted into a protein skimmer. I would suggest a sulfur based nitrate reactor if you have consistently high nitrates.

Vinegar dosing is best done with a doser to alleviate the issue of ph drops and bacterial blooms
(IV pumps rule!)

 

[merlberg]

Agreed. They serve the same purpose, just two different means of accomplishing the same goal. Might be ok at first as the pellets take time to activate, but i'd still just go with one or the other. I wouldn't switch back and forth either, too much guess work.

Well now that both you guys are saying the same thing maybe ill just keep up with my w/c and do bigger ones and let the bio pellets break in since i just startes them last week. Ill give it 2 months to see if any changes and if not ill do a switch instead of doing both. Thanks for the advice because I guess I looked at it the more things to help lower the nitrate the better but tht might not be the case. So Ill hold off for now!

 

[merlberg]

just increase your doses slowly. I personally would not use 2 carbon sources too much of an overdose risk.

Thanks for the advice... Since i started the pellets last week for now ill do bigger w/c and wait til the pellets kick in and take it frm there instead of doing both.

 

[4FordFamily]

I might add that carbon dosing was the first time I got a dinoflagellate outbreak that has lingered for over a year

 

[raultsu]

I might add that carbon dosing was the first time I got a dinoflagellate outbreak that has lingered for over a year

what where you dosing? vinegar, vodka?

 

[twilliard]

I might add that carbon dosing was the first time I got a dinoflagellate outbreak that has lingered for over a year

A solution to that is on the way my friend!
I am testing as we type
"The side effects of vinegar dosing"

 

[4FordFamily]

what where you dosing? vinegar, vodka?

I Believe vinegar but I've dosed both so I can't remember for certain

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I add vinegar to my tipoff water at 40ml per gallon. Works nicely.

My only concern with that is if the top off water sits long, bacteria may grow in it and consume the acetic acid before it gets to the tank.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Personally I don't think you're going to see any major results with vinegar dosing. Vinegar is soluble carbon, meaning that it may cause a temporary bloom in anaerobic bacteria. Yes, that bloom may assimilate some nitrate, but it will be gone before it has a chance to do much. Soluble carbon lowers ph, and really is primarily useful for seeding a reactor with anaerobic bacteria. Bio-pellets, IME, are one of the least effective ways of managing nitrates. They also lead to cyanobacteria outbreaks if not properly exhausted into a protein skimmer. I would suggest a sulfur based nitrate reactor if you have consistently high nitrates.

I disagree. The acetate in vinegar drives both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria and those bacteria take up nutrients, especially nitrate. I dosed it for a number of years and liked it just fine. It also is consumed by corals and higher organisms.

 

[twilliard]

My only concern with that is if the top off water sits long, bacteria may grow in it and consume the acetic acid before it gets to the tank.

Oh shoot I never thought of this
Would you no longer be able to smell the vinegar if the acetic acid was depleated?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

you might still smell it even if 90% was gone. I'd just watch for white cloudiness in the water or a filmy coating on the sides of the container.

Ro/DI is not ideal for bacteria, but some things may grow once vinegar is added.