0 Nitrates?

[AfroCichlid]

You can create an anaerobic environment in your filter pads. After a period of rinsing the same pads in tank water they will become dense and partially clogged. This can produce anaerobic bacteria and is something I do on all my tanks. In my 75 Tang with sump and gazillion bio-balls I run one HOB filter that I allow to clog. My nitrates run at zero or barely measurable despite a decent bio-load. On my 46 bow I run 2 HOBs and allow one to clog. I have a bit more nitrate ( up to 15 ppm ), but this is with larger SA cichlids and 15 Tiger Barbs. Planted 20 measures 0 at all times. I add nitrate to that one. All tanks run DSBs. I still change water once a week. Allows time for filter maintenance as well as in- tank cleaning and substrate vacuum. Keep on your routine if it works for you.

 

[KevG]

I paid 120$ for my master test kit and it is worth every penny.
I do trust my stores results though aswell as I often test my tank and then bring a sample in to compare and they always match very closely.

 

[cichlidcichlid]

Recently in my planted tank I have seen bubbles come from the substrate when the lights are on is this the process that you were speaking of? The bubble are not coming from the plants but from the bottom of the tank.

I will need to post pics when I get the chance because it is definitely weird.

 

[AfroCichlid]

What type of substrate do you use? I have a peat base with sand top and get bubbles now and then, but never the dreaded Gas Bubbles of Ammonia Death. That being said peat is organic and will need to be replaced over time or it will decay causing various problems. I don't stir the sand in my other tanks but have never seen bubbles. Compaction can occur over time when the substrate is too fine and prevents oxygen flow. This situation can lead to a hydrogen sulfide buildup, which would be toxic to your fish. You should be able to smell this in the rotten egg sense.

 

[cichlidcichlid]

Actually I think it is coming from the algae growing in the front part of the tank. It likes to grow an inch below the flourite attaching to the glass.

 

[Razzo]

If this is true, I am very jealous of you. I just cant get my nitrates below 50ppm! I do 25% water changes 1-2 times a week, and my tank is probably less than 50% full, with what I believe is enough filtration. It's my 55 and I just can't understand why my nitrates won't go down! They've been hovering around 50ppm forever and no matter what I can't get them down at all! The annoying thing is that everything in my tank is covered in diatoms, and I have to scrub the glass every 2 weeks because of the diatoms. It is very annoying, and I can't understand why my nitrates don't drop at all. I own a liquid test kit, and my tap water's nitrate level is 10ppm. I'm betting that if you have gotten a mixed sample from different LFS, then I bet that It's true. I would get your own liquid test kit though. What do you use as filtration? I've had my tank for 3 years and never gotten the nitrates below 50ppm, how do you do it?

Kenyi,

Hyjack alert - sorry

I may be able to help with this,... the diatoms and inability to get nitrates lower than 50 ppm seem to suggest that you may need to change your mainteance procedures. There is a high probability that there is waste that you may not be removing. Try the following for a couple months and let me know if this helps:

1) Do a good thourough vacuuming once a week and if you have large rock formations in your tank you may need to pull them before vacumming. Waste tends to deposit in spots you can't reach and accumulate. Once you get the nitrate problem under control, you should not have to remove boulders every week (maybe once per month).

2) Weekly filter mainteance. Rinse the sponge out OR change the filter floss more often. Without a prefilter (pictured below) waste could be trapped in your biomatrix. I use prefilters so that I do not have to change my biomedia.

3) Also, I syphon out my filter to get any waste.

With this aggressive routine, my nitrates range from 5ppm to 10ppm and my altolamps breed like crazy.

Here's some pictures of my AquaClear HOB filters with a JEHMCO prefilter kit. I love them expecially when power feeding altolamp fry. The JEHMCO kit will adapt to almost any intake (except Marineland products).


55 gallon fry tank

10 gallon fry tank

55 gallon altolamp tank

265 gallon Kapampa frontosa tank

125 gallon tang community

 

[cichlidcichlid]

Thats a really nice tank you have there. I actually gravel vac and remove all off the waste in the gravel every week. I wonder if my nitrates are so low because of the fact that I don't have an accumulation of waste building up. Is this a possibility?

By the way what did you use for a substrate in that 265 gallon tank? It looks really good.

 

[J double R]

You can create an anaerobic environment in your filter pads. After a period of rinsing the same pads in tank water they will become dense and partially clogged. This can produce anaerobic bacteria and is something I do on all my tanks. In my 75 Tang with sump and gazillion bio-balls I run one HOB filter that I allow to clog. My nitrates run at zero or barely measurable despite a decent bio-load. On my 46 bow I run 2 HOBs and allow one to clog. I have a bit more nitrate ( up to 15 ppm ), but this is with larger SA cichlids and 15 Tiger Barbs. Planted 20 measures 0 at all times. I add nitrate to that one. All tanks run DSBs. I still change water once a week. Allows time for filter maintenance as well as in- tank cleaning and substrate vacuum. Keep on your routine if it works for you.

How do you know this "filter method" is the cause of the nitrate removal, and not the DSB? Have you performed experiments on non-DSB tanks?

Also.. it should be noted that a nitrate level of 0 can be just as detrimental as a high nitrate level. Unstable and nonexistent nitrates (and in the case where they are added to a planted tank and still measures 0, i'm sure it has a pretty high rate of fluctuation) you're just ASKING for algae problems.

 

[cichlidcichlid]

I do not have any algae in the tank though.

 

[AfroCichlid]

How do you know this "filter method" is the cause of the nitrate removal, and not the DSB? Have you performed experiments on non-DSB tanks?

Also.. it should be noted that a nitrate level of 0 can be just as detrimental as a high nitrate level. Unstable and nonexistent nitrates (and in the case where they are added to a planted tank and still measures 0, i'm sure it has a pretty high rate of fluctuation) you're just ASKING for algae problems.

No, I'm paraphrasing Peter Hiscock Encyclopedia of Aquarium Plants. Specifically:

" If a filter with a relatively high flow rate is regularly cleaned and maintained, it will provide plenty of oxygen for the denitrifying bacteria within it. If the filter has a slower rate of becomes clogged, anaerobic conditions will appear in the filter and denitrifying bacteria will not be able to survive. In an anaerobic environment, different forms of bacteria will emerge that source oxygen from compounds such as nitrates. In this instance, the bacteria use up nitrates and release nitrogen gas, which escapes at the water surface.
" If a filter is properly maintained it is possible to sustain colonies of both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria that together will reduce ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels in the aquarium.
" Although nitrates are used by plants as a source of nutrients, they require only about 1-2 mg/l in nature; high levels ( above 3mg/l ) can be damaging to some plants. Fish can normally tolerate much higher levels of nitrates, so anaerobic filtration has minimal benefits to fish but can be an important method of nitrate removal in planted aquariums. "

... and to answer your question: I don't know if the anaerobic conditions in my tank are from the filter or the DSB... I started both around the same time. My guess would be that they work in conjunction. I should clarify that when I say 0- barely measurable I mean at or under 5ppm. Tested the 75 tonight ( water change day tomorrow ), nitrates measure > 10ppm