[Trigger Man]

I have a 55 gallon tank and the nitrate level is at 40ppm. All other levels Ph Nitrite and alkalinity are good. I have 6 fish and a banded shrimp,fire shrimp and a bubble anemone. What is the best way to get the nitrate level down. I do 10 gallon water changes once a week. I use water from Catalina which I get from the local fish store. Please help

Thank you
New Bee

[leebca]

WELCOME TO REEFLAND

It's unclear as to all the sources of your nitrates. That's a lot of fish and bio load, so that isn't unusual. But, are you using any live rock? Do you have a refugium? Growing any algae?

Nitrates are normal for the end of the waste chain, unless there is export, or a means to denitrify. You are exporting by means of water changes which are pretty high in the percentage range, so I'd wonder where the extra nitrates are coming in from.

What kind of bio-filtration system are you using?

Have you ever tested the Catalina water for nitrates? Are the foods you're adding have any nitrates in them? Any additives that might be sneaking some in? You're making so many/frequent water changes you might not be making any top offs, but, what are you using (if you are using) for replacing evaporated water?

Once we have a better picture of your system, I'm sure you'll get all sorts of suggestions here.

[Trigger Man]

I have 2 canister filters and a protien skimmer. I tested the Catalina water and its ok. What to you mean by top offs? The water I'm using for evaported water is filtered tap water and some times bottled water. I feed them brime shrimp and flake food "Prime reef "

Thanks for the help

[Trigger Man]

I have 2 pieces of live rock and no algae problem. Do not have a refugium.

[leebca]

Top off water = water to replace evaporated water.

You're welcome to the help. I hope the help helps?

I'd worry about using anything other than distilled or RO/DI water for top off water. No need to take a risk of introducing anything peculiar in the tap water (including nitrates).

How many pounds of live rock do you have? Sorry I wasn't more specific. But a 'piece of live rock' could be any size/weight.

Generally, if you like having live rock, you'd want to have about 50 to 100 pounds of it in that size aquarium. This will help to some extent to convert nitrates to nitrogen.

In the canister filters, I assume you have some media? I'm looking for the place where nitrification takes place (where the ammonia wastes are converted to nitrites and then to nitrates).

There are nitrate removers you can add to your canister filters or another filter if you want to go the chemical removal route in addition to your water changes.

Since you have no algae problem with those kinds of nitrates, then something is eating the algae maybe? Do you have tangs or pygmy angelfish, or Rabbitfish or algae eating snails or something? That kind of nitrate level is usually enough to get algae of some kind growing.

If you don't have the above kinds of animals, then have you checked your nitrate test kit? Try a different brand test kit that is current/fresh.

I would recommend not feeding plain brine shrimp. Might I suggest you read this post for some good feeding tips:
Feeding Marine Fish and Fish Nutrition
Check your flake food that it doesn't contain any land animals, land plants, or freshwater ingredients.

[Trigger Man]

I have about 15 pounds of live rock. I guess I should get more.
I have small bio pieces in the filters 2 levels. The filters have 4 levels.
I have one yellow tang and a flame angel and 5 hermit crabs. Also have 3 Shrimp Banded ,fire and cleaner .
Thanks for the info

[leebca]

I was sort of expecting to see 6 fish on your list, from your first post. If that's all the fish and inhabitants you have, that shouldn't be much in the way of waste producers.

You're right about the live rock. You don't have enough live rock to take full advantage of what it can do for you and your nitrate concern.

That's all I can think of at this time. Check your test kit and if you stil show high nitrates, I'd increase the amount of live rock you have (and that has to be done carefully so as to not send the tank through another cycle, if you can); and/or include a nitrate remover into your filters.

[The R/C Man]

Lee,

Do you think the canister filters could be contributing factors? (nitrate factories?) What about a sand bed for nitrification?

The addition of a refugium could benifit the system greatly for nitrate reduction and as a natural food source.

[BubbaWPB]

The canister filter could be adding to the nitrates IF it is not cleaned regularly.

It sounds like more live rock would help. Be careful not to add uncured live rock to your tank - it will cause your tank to cycle, and possibly worsen your nitrogen problems temporarily. If your nitrates get a little higher, you'll be in the lethal zone.

And be careful, just because live rock has been cured, doesn't mean that it is cured at the time you get it - for example, if you get mail ordered "cured" live rock, by the time you get it shipped, it will be "uncured". If you have a trusted LFS where you know the rock has been cured for at least a month, and you bring it home immersed in water, you can be relatively certain it is safely cured to add to your tank.

[leebca]

R/C,
We've sort of gotten into the frame of mind that nitrates are bad. The fact is, nitrates is what we rightly expect from a healthy biological filter doing its job. It was really only a decade or so ago when we alternatives to water changes to handle nitrates.

I agree with many speakers I've listened to at various conferences and conventions. Of course they're nitrate factories. That's their job!

Any area of nitrification activity will produce nitrates. The job of the mechanical filter is to handle particulates, but the media sold (e.g. Eheim media) you put in their canister filters is often meant to be a part of the bio filter. Such a canister has the dual purpose of mechanical and biological filter. Like an undergravel filter; a trickle filter; etc., the outcome is nitrates.

Like Bubba mentions, any source of accumulated detritus is a package of active bacteria. They can be cleaned out from the system, wherever they are. Even though, if there isn't enough live rock, or refugium (like you mention) to provide alternate ways of removing nitrates, then the aquarist is stuck having to rely on water changes. That is, you can remove the detritus but nitrification will still continue on in it's other places.

But with the high quantity of water changes that Trigger Man is performing, I'd suspect that nitrates are either abnormally being produced or abnormally finding their way into his system. Still, it would help to reduce the nitrates through more live rock, a refugium, chemical filtration, etc.

Back in the 60's (B4 LR, skimmers, etc.) when I had my first marine aquarium, we did water changes without any live rock and were able to keep our nitrates at a fairly 'normal' range for those kinds of systems. Trigger Man's system is exceeding that and he should be concerned. I'm glad he posted.

[Trigger Man]

I am going to change 10 gallons a week and clean my canister filters today. I clean my canister filters once a month. Should I clean them more? What is the best water to add then slat level is high? Bottle water or filter water from the tap?

Once again thanks for the help

[leebca]

T M,

I'd suggest cleaning the canister filter when it needs to be cleaned. I can't see it nor guess that frequency. You will be the best judge of that. The thing is, it needs cleaning when you see the filters inside turn brown or look like there's stuck organics on it. You might do an experiment. Instead of your last fine filter, you can cut a piece of Poly Filter to fit there and put it in. Check the Poly Filter every 5 days. When it turns brown is the frequency you should be cleaning the canister filter.

Unless you've got easy access to RO/DI water, or at least DI water, then for small additions, I would use distilled water. If you need large volumes of water to compensate for evaporation, I'd suggest you invest in a small RO/DI unit.

[r0bin]

I was wondering what type of nitrate lowering filter media I could use in my canister filter as mention above by leebca?

[leebca]

Seachem makes a product they call De*Nitrate. Another: Magnavore Pura Nitralock. You can search for more.

There are media which foster anaerobic bacterial growth. These bacteria are responsible for denitrification. One such is a Kent product they call Nitrate Sponge.

[Trigger Man]

So distilled water is better to use then bottled drinking water like arrowhead natural spring water.

[leebca]

Yes. Human drinking water is water to which, or which has, added salts to make it taste better. Since you want to replace the water that has evaporated and not change the salt content of your aquarium, you don't want to add any water that contains salts -- like human drinking water. You want distilled water or water that has no salts in it.

[Trigger Man]

Can I poor the distilled water wright into tank?

[leebca]

In general, yes. But if it is a large quantity, best to space it out as small additions. OR, if you have the equipment, it can be dripped in.

[Trigger Man]

Can I put in 1 gallon in at once?

[leebca]

You have a 55g aquarium, right?

That gallon may be a bit much to dump in on the aquarium. If you have sump, I'd say that would be okay to pour it into the sump slowly. Is that what you have to add daily? I'd make smaller, more frequent additions so as you don't create a sudden area of the wrong chemistries, but give the added water time to mix in without distrubing chemistries very much.