Please Help
- Thread starter Nicolas
- Start date
TBrewerton
Reefing newb
Hey Nicolas,
You will need to supply a heap more info about your setup as well as all your levels (Nitrates etc) for anyone to be able to help you.
Did you do anything to the tank or add anything new before this happened?
You will need to supply a heap more info about your setup as well as all your levels (Nitrates etc) for anyone to be able to help you.
Did you do anything to the tank or add anything new before this happened?
Hi, my nitrates are a little bit high about 50 ppm. My aquarium has been running for one year and 9 months now. My calcium is 450 ppm, mangnesium 1300 ppm, my ph is 8.0, nitrite 0 , kh 9, phosphates 0. This happened to an electricity cut about 45 minutes, but i was at work my mum phoned me. When electricity came on again the syncronization between the refugium and aquarium din'nt went well so the pump of the refugium tank did'nt find enough water to the tank so it was sucking all the time bubbles, about 5 hours when i arrived home and i found this tradgedy .
wontonflip
I failed Kobayashi Maru
Your nitrates are definitely high. Is it a reef or fowlr (fish only)? You should do a lot of water changes either way, and hopefully that will clear up the cloudiness. Might just be an algae bloom. But someone will chime in with your calc and mag levels. Could have kicked up some sand. If so, it will clear up on its own.
yote
In Memoriam
If the fuge was sucked dry and blowing bubbles, then it can take awhile to clear up.
The pumps chop the bubbles into micro-bubbles, which keep going through the pumps making even more micro-bubbles.
It could also be a bacteria bloom. If so, then you'll need to keep a close eye on the parameters and be ready to do major water changes.
The pumps chop the bubbles into micro-bubbles, which keep going through the pumps making even more micro-bubbles.
It could also be a bacteria bloom. If so, then you'll need to keep a close eye on the parameters and be ready to do major water changes.
Bifferwine
I am a girl
I agree. Water changes are your best bet. It is likely a bacterial bloom from when the power went out.
Hi again, thanks for your help, i really do appreciate. I done some water changes and its clearing up now. I do frequent water changes but my nitrates still won't low down. I own a reef tank. My tank is quite loaded with live rock, even in my refugium tank i have a big partition full of live rock. I don't have that great experience, you'll always learn, but i believe that it's not a bacterial bloom. My reef tank is been running for one year and nine months now and i think that bacteria is very strong now. What do you think?
yote
In Memoriam
A bacteria bloom can happen in a tank that's been running for years. It doesn't take much to kick one off either.
Something as simple as power outage can lower the oxygen levels in the tank just enough to cause some bacteria to die off. When that happens, it's just like a fish dying in the tank.The results is a spike in ammonia ( don't have to be enough for a test kit to detect ) that causes a spike in the bacteria population. When that happens, you get the milky white water that's full of free floating bacteria.
Either way. Let us know what you figure out.
Hi friends, my tank now returned to sparkling clear again. After the problem i made a water change and after about an hour it starts to clear up. Thanks for your useful hints that you gave me. Now i want to lower my nitrates down. I do frequent water changes but still my nitrates remain high. In one year and nine months i never touched or siphoned my sand. Do you think that my nitrates are in the sand? Its true that you must not siphon the sand? I have about 4 to 5 inches high of sand bed in my reef tank.
Amba
Ol' Salty
That is a huge sand bed for a display tank. Most likely if you stir up your sand, you are going to release toxins into the water.
Bifferwine
I am a girl
Part of your nitrate problem may be due to the large amount of sand you have. I don't recommend having more than 1 or 2 inches because detritus and crap can get trapped in it, and your CUC won't be able to keep it clean. I would remove some of your sand, little by little -- one cup at a time -- every time you do a water change.
That may not be the cause of your nitrates though. Do you test the new water you are using for water changes for nitrates? Sometimes people are replacing high-nitrate water with more high-nitrate water without realizing it.
That may not be the cause of your nitrates though. Do you test the new water you are using for water changes for nitrates? Sometimes people are replacing high-nitrate water with more high-nitrate water without realizing it.
Northstar24
The Tang Herder
Excess nitrates is due to a nutrient export issue - basically you're putting more in than you are taking out via water changes. The solution is to export more, either through more, larger water changes, bio pellets, macro algae etc OR putting less in, so stocking less (possibly removing fish) or feeding less (or higher quality food)
To really point you in the right direction, we need more info, including stocking list, what you feed, how often you feed it, water change schedule, what you're dosing (and how much) etc
The more details you provide, the more suggestions you'll get from us
To really point you in the right direction, we need more info, including stocking list, what you feed, how often you feed it, water change schedule, what you're dosing (and how much) etc
The more details you provide, the more suggestions you'll get from us
Hi friends, my stocking list of fish i have 1 blue tang, 2 yellow tangs, 4 small clown fish, 5 blue/green chromis, 1 bangai cardinal, 1 copper band butterfly. I do a 10% water change every week, some times 25%. I feed aquatic nature artemia and mysis, 3 blocks at noon and 3 blocks at 6:00pm. I use aquatic nature RO water, testing water before mixing 0 nitrates. I use reef crystals salt. Testing kits i use salifert.
Kelz88
Got Reef?
3 blocks? twice a day! that is way too much! You have quite a few fish but that seems way too much. The fishies may eat it all but they still poop it all out. I would say cut down to maybe a block a day, with daily nori for the tangs.
Ted
Living one day at a time
Ya thats a boat load of food going in... would think you are having huge phosphate loads because of it...
Amba
Ol' Salty
That's a ton of food. I use 1/2 cube daily and I have ~120G water volume.
wontonflip
I failed Kobayashi Maru
Yep....definitely overfeeding. Just the "twice a day" part is already too much. Plus for a 100g tank, your bioload is way past what is healthy. You can have 10 or at most, 11. Start by cutting back on the feeding. They'll be fine ;)
