Reducing nitrates

[Saaqib_Ansari]

Tank currently
550L display, sump 150L total volume 700L approx 185 gallons

60-80kg live rock
Sump: aqua one g220 protein skimmer rated for 800L tanks . Fuge section with chaeto (doesn’t seem to grow anymore) lots of bioblocks+ spheres

Tank inhabitants - Naso tang, yellow tang, blue tang, kole tang, fox face, 2 clowns, mandarin dragonet, royal gramma, 3 chromis, 2 lyretail anthias

Cleanup crew: 1 cleaner shrimp 2 hermit crabs

corals soft corals only palys Kenya trees toadstool mushrooms GSP BTA

my nitrates are 100+ppm my phosphates are 0.1

In all honesty if I keep the tank as it is it’s fine there’s no nuisance algae on the sand the rocks. Glass needs cleaning every week. Fish are happy and healthy and the coral that are there currently are fine.
I would like to have sps I’ve tried in the past but nothing survives.

What would be the best way for me to get my nitrates to a level where I can grow sps ?

 

[Spare time]

What test kit? How often do you do water changes and how much? Do you dose trace elements

 

[Saaqib_Ansari]

What test kit?

Api and salifert both within expiry date

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Tank currently
550L display, sump 150L total volume 700L approx 185 gallons

60-80kg live rock
Sump: aqua one g220 protein skimmer rated for 800L tanks . Fuge section with chaeto (doesn’t seem to grow anymore) lots of bioblocks+ spheres

Tank inhabitants - Naso tang, yellow tang, blue tang, kole tang, fox face, 2 clowns, mandarin dragonet, royal gramma, 3 chromis, 2 lyretail anthias

Cleanup crew: 1 cleaner shrimp 2 hermit crabs

corals soft corals only palys Kenya trees toadstool mushrooms GSP BTA

my nitrates are 100+ppm my phosphates are 0.1

In all honesty if I keep the tank as it is it’s fine there’s no nuisance algae on the sand the rocks. Glass needs cleaning every week. Fish are happy and healthy and the coral that are there currently are fine.
I would like to have sps I’ve tried in the past but nothing survives.

What would be the best way for me to get my nitrates to a level where I can grow sps ?

View attachment 3077225 View attachment 3077226

Best way to reduce nitrates = large water change

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Beautiful tank!

 

[Saaqib_Ansari]

Best way to reduce nitrates = large water change

What would you class as a large water change here around 50%? In one go would that be safe and also would that drop the nitrates instantly?

 

[Saaqib_Ansari]

Beautiful tank!

Appreciate it, but I hate it it’s been 4 years and it just looks like nothing changes in there although I’ve fought every pest problem and nightmare you can think of with this tank. Fish seem to love it though managed to get a clutch of clownfish fry out of there

 

[Snowxcross]

What would you class as a large water change here around 50%? In one go would that be safe and also would that drop the nitrates instantly?

How long has your tank been up? From the photos i dont see any coraline algae, could you post your parameters - Alk, CA, MG ? Any yes, as a quick solution for reducing nitrates, a large water change, probably a few in your case over a period of time would reduce them (50%) but we need to find out why they'd come back and why so high.

 

[gbroadbridge]

Tank currently
550L display, sump 150L total volume 700L approx 185 gallons

60-80kg live rock
Sump: aqua one g220 protein skimmer rated for 800L tanks . Fuge section with chaeto (doesn’t seem to grow anymore) lots of bioblocks+ spheres

Tank inhabitants - Naso tang, yellow tang, blue tang, kole tang, fox face, 2 clowns, mandarin dragonet, royal gramma, 3 chromis, 2 lyretail anthias

Cleanup crew: 1 cleaner shrimp 2 hermit crabs

corals soft corals only palys Kenya trees toadstool mushrooms GSP BTA

my nitrates are 100+ppm my phosphates are 0.1

In all honesty if I keep the tank as it is it’s fine there’s no nuisance algae on the sand the rocks. Glass needs cleaning every week. Fish are happy and healthy and the coral that are there currently are fine.
I would like to have sps I’ve tried in the past but nothing survives.

What would be the best way for me to get my nitrates to a level where I can grow sps ?

View attachment 3077225 View attachment 3077226

A 50% water change will drop Nitrates by 50%.

Probably safer to do 4 x 20% water changes a week apart.

 

[Spare time]

Api and salifert both within expiry date

For both nitrate and phosphate?

 

[Spare time]

You might want to look at dosing iron or something like chaetogro.

 

[Pistondog]

Water change amout is a direct instant dilution of nitrate. 25% would bring it to 75 ppm. You might need to run gac to mitigate any chemical warfare from toadstool or others.

 

[Saaqib_Ansari]

How long has your tank been up? From the photos i dont see any coraline algae, could you post your parameters - Alk, CA, MG ? Any yes, as a quick solution for reducing nitrates, a large water change, probably a few in your case over a period of time would reduce them (50%) but we need to find out why they'd come back and why so high.

Runnings for 4 years there is coralline algae here and there but not much on the rocks grows on the pumps and glass more.
Alk 8.5 calcium 450 magnesium 1360 ph 8.0

I’m assuming maybe they’re high due to over feedings. I feed twice a day 2 punch’s of flakes morning and evening

pics of the algae unless that’s cyno or something else?

 

[Saaqib_Ansari]

For both nitrate and phosphate?

Phosphate just have the salifert test kit and that’s within date

 

[Saaqib_Ansari]

You might want to look at dosing iron or something like chaetogro.

When I initially put the chaeto in it grew an insane amount and filled my entire sump I removed most of it after a year and it just doesn’t seem to grow anymore thinking the nitrates are too high now or something?

 

[Snowxcross]

Runnings for 4 years there is coralline algae here and there but not much on the rocks grows on the pumps and glass more.
Alk 8.5 calcium 450 magnesium 1360 ph 8.0

I’m assuming maybe they’re high due to over feedings. I feed twice a day 2 punch’s of flakes morning and evening

pics of the algae unless that’s cyno or something else?

Ah cool, ya i couldnt see it, but yep it's there. Parameters seem fine, ya start with a few large water changes. I dont think your feeding is the problem, although pellets and flakes do contribute to nitrates. Have you tried frozen misis or any other frozen foods?

 

[Saaqib_Ansari]

Ah cool, ya i couldnt see it, but yep it's there. Parameters seem fine, ya start with a few large water changes. I dont think your feeding is the problem, although pellets and flakes do contribute to nitrates. Have you tried frozen misis or any other frozen foods?

I give 2 cubes of mysis maybe once every week for evening feeds instead flakes.
I’ve also changed the position of one of my gyres so it runs vertically behind the rockwork incase there’s any build up there but not sure what else I can do it’s been over 100ppm for more than a year

 

[Snowxcross]

I give 2 cubes of mysis maybe once every week for evening feeds instead flakes.
I’ve also changed the position of one of my gyres so it runs vertically behind the rockwork incase there’s any build up there but not sure what else I can do it’s been over 100ppm for more than a year

Do you do any water changes normally?

 

[Saaqib_Ansari]

Do you do any water changes normally?

Yes I do 70 litres which is 10% every 2 weeks

 

[PeterEde]

start Carbon dosing, increase bio media, more water changes. Wet skim