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Question/concern on my nitrates. I have always had high nitrates in my tank. They range from 20-80, even when I was went fallow due to MV (just feeding a sun coral). I feel good when they stay at 20! Did a 8% water change yesterday and they were at 80 right after and 80 this morning. I'd like to have them around 5-10.
I cut the sponges in the aio sump (in back) into thirds and change and rinse with most water changes. Will see if I still have ceramic rings in the media chamber and if so, will pull them. I use carbon and purigen all the time with phos guard when needed. Also added matrix and de-nitrate a month or so ago.
The thing is, my corals are all thriving, even an acro shows great PE. My newest acro hasn't quite opened as much as the older one. The leathers are super happy, Duncan adding new heads really fast, gsp spreading, zoas all open, turbinaria and micromussas happy, mushrooms splitting, clove more than 4x's bigger, etc. Only ones not doing well are about 3 or 4 that haven't done well since I bought them, even in QT, which is why I moved them to the DT to try to save them but they are on the way out (war coral, goniastrea, leptastrea, chalice & a symphillia that has not done well from day 1 from a previous batch of corals.). Other new ones bought at same time are doing really well .
Wondering if I should do carbon dosing to get the nitrates down. And if I do, can I only do it until things are steady then stop? I am a heavy feeder, esp. as I feed a 30+ head of sun corals, and target food to my 2 mandarins and also feed or try to feed the micromusas and some other corals. I don't have a lot of fish and may need more cuc. Tank info below.
Red Sea Max C250 (approx 60 gal water after rock and sand)
2 chromis, 2 mandarins, 1 scooter blenny
2 Darwin clowns, 1 barber shop goby will be moved from QT to DT on Friday
Tank just over 11 months old
4-5 narsarius
2 bumble bees
Trochus--too many to count as they breed like rabbits
3-4 hermits
1 rbta that is on it's way out. Still alive so not the problem though I may remove the rock it's on and put it into my coral QT
CA 420
Mg 1260 (subject for another post as I cannot get this up)
Alk 8.3
PO4 .02
NO3 80 usually between 20-40 with occasional spikes to 80
Feeding:
fish 2x's a day
corals every 2-3 days a mix of various dry powders
Suns every other day or so, along with corals that appreciate meaty foods
Adding phytoplankton every day for nutrient control and pods
Once I get more livestock back in, the excess food will probably be less but that will take several months to achieve.
So, in the meantime, should I dose, and if so, what is the best (sugar, vinegar, vodka)? I'd lean toward vinegar as there is less chance of cyano from what I've read. I'd prefer to stay natural but that might not be an option at least for the short term
Or as everything is thriving and growing, should I just do water changes and let it remain at the 20-40 range and wait to see if more fish/cuc will take care of it further. I'm not aiming for 0. I want between 5-10 no3 and up to .1 po4
I cut the sponges in the aio sump (in back) into thirds and change and rinse with most water changes. Will see if I still have ceramic rings in the media chamber and if so, will pull them. I use carbon and purigen all the time with phos guard when needed. Also added matrix and de-nitrate a month or so ago.
The thing is, my corals are all thriving, even an acro shows great PE. My newest acro hasn't quite opened as much as the older one. The leathers are super happy, Duncan adding new heads really fast, gsp spreading, zoas all open, turbinaria and micromussas happy, mushrooms splitting, clove more than 4x's bigger, etc. Only ones not doing well are about 3 or 4 that haven't done well since I bought them, even in QT, which is why I moved them to the DT to try to save them but they are on the way out (war coral, goniastrea, leptastrea, chalice & a symphillia that has not done well from day 1 from a previous batch of corals.). Other new ones bought at same time are doing really well .
Wondering if I should do carbon dosing to get the nitrates down. And if I do, can I only do it until things are steady then stop? I am a heavy feeder, esp. as I feed a 30+ head of sun corals, and target food to my 2 mandarins and also feed or try to feed the micromusas and some other corals. I don't have a lot of fish and may need more cuc. Tank info below.
Red Sea Max C250 (approx 60 gal water after rock and sand)
2 chromis, 2 mandarins, 1 scooter blenny
2 Darwin clowns, 1 barber shop goby will be moved from QT to DT on Friday
Tank just over 11 months old
4-5 narsarius
2 bumble bees
Trochus--too many to count as they breed like rabbits
3-4 hermits
1 rbta that is on it's way out. Still alive so not the problem though I may remove the rock it's on and put it into my coral QT
CA 420
Mg 1260 (subject for another post as I cannot get this up)
Alk 8.3
PO4 .02
NO3 80 usually between 20-40 with occasional spikes to 80
Feeding:
fish 2x's a day
corals every 2-3 days a mix of various dry powders
Suns every other day or so, along with corals that appreciate meaty foods
Adding phytoplankton every day for nutrient control and pods
Once I get more livestock back in, the excess food will probably be less but that will take several months to achieve.
So, in the meantime, should I dose, and if so, what is the best (sugar, vinegar, vodka)? I'd lean toward vinegar as there is less chance of cyano from what I've read. I'd prefer to stay natural but that might not be an option at least for the short term
Or as everything is thriving and growing, should I just do water changes and let it remain at the 20-40 range and wait to see if more fish/cuc will take care of it further. I'm not aiming for 0. I want between 5-10 no3 and up to .1 po4