nitrates

[urban79]

Well I redid my rock to make them look better. and after that I cant get my nitrates down. there not way bad but they are up there. around the 30s... Plus I keep seeing bubbles on one of my rocks. I have done about 5% water change one day and a 15% water change the next day. and its only my nitrates.. my ammonia is 0 and my nitrites are at 0 too. Plus the Cyano is going wild. I have to keep taking it out with a toothbush.. please help

[caferacermike]

Do you run a good skimmer? What type of water do you use? Tap? That stuff can be high in nitrates, silica, and phosphates. If not using RO/DI consider doing so. If you can't get it at lfs buy it at HEB (a tad more expensive). They say water changes and reduced feeding are the best answer.

[reefer_guy]

Also check to make sure that you are not overfeeding or have overstocked your tank. In addition, check that your salt is not contributing to the nitrate problem. The cyno is also an indication of overfeeding/overstocking and high nutrient content. After checking these get some cheatomorpha and put in the sump.

[GaryP]

As with any excess nutrient problem, its usually a matter of more stuff going into the tank then your system is capable of taking out. Temporary upsets, such as releasing detritus by moving rock can contribute to this. Its sorta like having a fish die in the tank and not being able to get it out. Detritus can be trapped under the rock in a low oxygen area and it just sits there and decays very slowly. When its gets out from the rock, its exposed to more oxygen and is quickly chewed up by the bacteria, resulting in the nitrates. Its sorta like dumping a large amount of food in the tank at one time. The system is overwhelmed and will take some time to catch up to the load.

Cyano is usually the result of high DOC (dissolved organic carbon). It often grows in areas with low flow and low oxygen, like around the base of rock or on te bottom, where detritus accumulates. Siphoning and increasing flow to move the detritus is helpful. Running carbon to lower the DOC is good too, as long as there is enough flow to turn over the water so that the high DOC water is turned over (no stagnant areas) and it gets exposed to the carbon. Often, adding flow just flows the detritus around so that it is deposited somewhere else in a new stagnant area. That's why siphoning and physical filtration is helpful. It gets this material out of the tank (export) and removes it from the system so that the total amount of material that needs to be processed is decreased. This is basically the idea behind bare bottom tanks. The disadvantage of bare bottom tanks is that the ability of the system to process waste is reduced because of the lack of a DSB.

[reefer_guy]

I thought DOC meant Dissolved Organic Compounds? Also I would not treat cyano with chemi-clean or any other medicatiion. It can be fixed by doing water changes (with RO/DI water and a quality salt), increasing flow, and not overfeeding or overstocking. Cyano is a bacteria and needs nutrients (food) to multiply and spread.

[GaryP]

It can mean either, but its the same thing.

There are going to be some pretty big revelations coming out concerning "quality salt" and cyano in the next few days.

I have some sincere doubts about the role, if any, that tap water plays in nuisance algaes. What exactly is it in the water that causes algae to grow? At least for those of us whose source of water is the Edwards aquifer. Don't get me wrong, I think there are some good reasons to use RO water. I just don't think that is one of them. I think that is sorta in the category of an aquarist urban myth.

[reefer_guy]

Tap water is high in nutrients and other minerals that are not needed in a SW tank and contribute to algae and bacterial explosions. All the things needed are in your salt mix.

[BIGBIRD123]

Chem-clean works but only masks the problem. You need to get to the cause. How's that Gary?

Steve

[reefer_guy]

I have also had it kill my good bacteria. That's why I don't use it or any meds in my display.

[betiuminside]

http://www.melevsreef.com/reducing_nitrates.html

[GaryP]

How's that Gary?
I couldn't have said it better myeslf. This is getting scary. More importantly, I might add, Chemi-Clean is only a temporary fix. The cyano will eventually come back. Just an example of the "silver bullet" mentality and marketing that is common in this hobby.