Vodka Treatment For Freshwater
- Thread starter danimal_dan
- Start date
Well, if you start Googling vodka dosing freshwater you see others have asked too. But there is no useful info about it online, as far as I can tell. If it worked, I imagine it would be popular and you would be able to find info online....so it makes me think it doesn't work in FW, which doesn't use sumps or overflows or anything like that, not usually. However the concept is similar to overdosing Flourish Excel, seems to me.
It isn't about sumps, it's about whether there are species of bacteria in FW that will use nitrate as a food source in a process similar to those that do so in SW. As I said very easy to find out, just dose a container with water containing a known level of nitrate and keep track of any change. Some things to consider if you try are that in SW carbon dosing depletes alkalinity and O2 levels. The O2 usage is so bad that it isn't recommended to dose unless you have a good protein skimmer. I would think you would need to heavily aerate while dosing.
The concept is about the same in freshwater vs. saltwater. There's one product out there that has been exploiting this for a while, but I can't remember the name. You add these little packets of liquid and it supposedly reduces algae, but it does it by adding a carbon source. What's it called again? I can't remember the name to save my life...
Prodibio also works in freshwater, etc.
Prodibio also works in freshwater, etc.
I've done a vodka dosing thinking about all the freshwater tanks in my house, but my wife would kill me (no, really) if she saw me with a bottle near her babies.
it was the cheap stuff lolpsssst Zigman..I totally understand:laugh:
but I would suggest using the cheap vodka on the tank save the good stuff for yourself
Fish running into the glass... little fish picking fights with fish way bigger than themselves... snails falling off the decor and rolling around on the ground losing their lunch...[/QUOT
:y220e::rofl:god that was great to read
Strangely as it sounds this actually is based upon solid science. The balance of nutrients is very important in allowing bacteria to grow. The removal of the nitrates and phosphates using this method is from sequestering into live bacteria.
If you want to learn more about this process look up "Carbon:Nitrogen Ratio". It is very important in determining nutrient availability when composting manure for your garden.
Here's a short synopsis. Bacteria need carbon and nitrogen to produce complex molecules to grow. In a fully mature cell the C:N ratio is generally 10-12:1. This means that for every nitrogen atom sequestered from the environment the bacteria need 10-12 carbon atoms. Vodka is mostly just ethanol with a little bit of water. Each ethanol molecule contains 2 carbon atoms and can be used by bacteria. In the marine environment from a quick search I found that the average C:N ratio availability is 6-8:1. Since bacteria have a ratio of 10-12:1, this leaves a lot of N free to the environment. By adding in more C in the form of ethanol more bacteria can grow, as carbon is not limited.
In the freshwater aquariums they sell flourish excel for plants. According to the website this is a mixture of 5 chain organic molecules. (Strangely enough fructose is a 5 chain organic molecule...hmmm....). Dosing Carbon theoretically should allow for longer periods between water changes in an unplanted tank.
I do not know what the reasoning behind using Vodka is. I would think any simple easily digested carbon chain could achieve the same result. Sucrose (baking sugar) possibly could be used.
If you want to learn more about this process look up "Carbon:Nitrogen Ratio". It is very important in determining nutrient availability when composting manure for your garden.
Here's a short synopsis. Bacteria need carbon and nitrogen to produce complex molecules to grow. In a fully mature cell the C:N ratio is generally 10-12:1. This means that for every nitrogen atom sequestered from the environment the bacteria need 10-12 carbon atoms. Vodka is mostly just ethanol with a little bit of water. Each ethanol molecule contains 2 carbon atoms and can be used by bacteria. In the marine environment from a quick search I found that the average C:N ratio availability is 6-8:1. Since bacteria have a ratio of 10-12:1, this leaves a lot of N free to the environment. By adding in more C in the form of ethanol more bacteria can grow, as carbon is not limited.
In the freshwater aquariums they sell flourish excel for plants. According to the website this is a mixture of 5 chain organic molecules. (Strangely enough fructose is a 5 chain organic molecule...hmmm....). Dosing Carbon theoretically should allow for longer periods between water changes in an unplanted tank.
I do not know what the reasoning behind using Vodka is. I would think any simple easily digested carbon chain could achieve the same result. Sucrose (baking sugar) possibly could be used.
