emmett0122
Reef enthusiast
why cant i get me nitrates to drop in my tank? i have changed 36 gals. of water in the past 10 days and my nitrates are not dropping.
nitrates
- Thread starter emmett0122
- Start date
chichimom79
reef junkie
Do you have any areas where detritus accumulates that you may be overlooking?
Northstar24
The Tang Herder
Nutrient export: you're adding more to the tank than your water changes are removing
emmett0122
Reef enthusiast
no i have blasted the rocks with a turkey baster vac the heck out of the sub straight cleaned the over flow and i just cant get them under 5ppm im really starting to get p/o im at lose here
emmett0122
Reef enthusiast
not sure what you mean northstar
emmett0122
Reef enthusiast
im not over feeding i watch that very close
kbuser92
Breeder
Your test could be reading wrong or bad. Tavke it to younr LFS and have them test your water and go from there.
emmett0122
Reef enthusiast
what are good test kits
kbuser92
Breeder
Salifert is what I think most here use. There's also PinPoint nonitors and Hannah checkers.
BL1
.............
Stop vaccuuming your sand, that will release all kinds of crap into your water.
emmett0122
Reef enthusiast
i dont just have sand i have small shells mixed in with the sand and is why i do vac every water change
kbuser92
Breeder
There's your problem. Any shells, crushed coral, gravel, etc...will catch and hold detritus until it's slowly released, resulting in high NO^3. Same thing with bioballs and any floss media cartridges, which is why they are discouraged. Socks do the same thing but are much easier maintained every 2-3 days (and cheaper) than replacing sponges or cartridges.
Moral of the story: switch to regular aragonite. Remove small sections daily until you are leftwith just sand. A few scattered shells or coral skeletons won't hurt if you like the aesthetics; it's more natural in most cases anyways.
Moral of the story: switch to regular aragonite. Remove small sections daily until you are leftwith just sand. A few scattered shells or coral skeletons won't hurt if you like the aesthetics; it's more natural in most cases anyways.
emmett0122
Reef enthusiast
i could see your point if i never vac it till now but every water change i have ever done it has been vac everytime
wontonflip
I failed Kobayashi Maru
+1 kbuser....I'd put my money on the substrate. Could also be a bad test kit (I once bought a brand new dropper kit....wouldn't test below 20ppm....did a side-by-side with an LFS kit, and mine was off. The new one I bought was spot on.
And just to be sure, are you using tap or rodi/distilled?
And just to be sure, are you using tap or rodi/distilled?
kbuser92
Breeder
Even if you always vaccuum, there's still gunk. Think of a freshwater tank with gravel and how gross they get. That's happening in your tank, but you have more detritivores in there to consume and break down the waste, but they're not able to keep up. I think if ypu wanted to leave the substrate, you can try adding 6-10 nass snails, a conch of some sort, and/or a sand sifting star.
ErinCahir
Sausage Wrangler
A brand new 55 gallon tank cannot provide a sand sifting star with enough food.
Switch to sand and get some nass snails.
Switch to sand and get some nass snails.
Civicdemon
Go Big Or Go Home !
Everyone has ben saying it since you started posting, Switch to sand and you should be good. You might get a quick small cycle but in the long run it will be worth it.
Civicdemon
Go Big Or Go Home !
Oh and FYI Nitrates at 5ppm is not really that bad at all, I seen some people at around 10 and still doing good.
kbuser92
Breeder
The tank's 10 months old, Isn't it?
