high nitrates

[tlkng1]

The fact that you have done water changes and the reading hasn't lowered tells me it probably isn't the tank...it just can't happen that nearly a 100% change in water in a short period of time doesn't bring the level down to much lower levels...it is the simple idea of dilution.

You said you got the kit at the same time as the tank. I would still take a tube to the LFS and have them test it..see what they come up with.

You had indicated a couple of posts back that the inhabitants seem to be OK..is that still the case? Nitrates that high for this long would have done a lot of damage.

 

[needmorecowbell]

Try taking a water sample to the lfs and see if it matches yours. Your kit may be a little old and isnt giving accurate readings. Make sure you get the liquid test from them and ask to see it if they already let you.

 

[craig_will2513]

but when i test the new water i get from the shop it is reading ok. when i get water from the shop should the nitrate be at 0 as i tested some today and it was mabey at 5

 

[needmorecowbell]

I'm talking about taking water FROM your tank and asking them to test it for you. It will show if it's just your kit or not

 

[huma-huma]

I may be picky but shouldn't the premixed water from your shop be 0 on trates? You should prob take a step back and slowly analyze the problem. I just can't see that you could have trates at 160+ and not see any ill effects on the fish...they should be dropping off like crazy. (Don't mean that in a negative way) im not doubting your testing abilities by any means but are you sure you have the right bottles as well? I know its easy to mix up and not notice, I've done it lol.

 

[koconnor1963]

I use Red Sea NO3PO4X. It takes a few weeks to kick in but this works. It reduces nitrates and phosphates. Scope the net about it

 

[craig_will2513]

its ok huma huma but i test the shop water and its not at 0 so i know and when i test my water is shoots up to 160+ so i know the test isnt faulty. i have a mandarin strawbery baslet sulphur goby and valentini puffer a cleaner shrimp a sand sifting star and some hermits also i have a leather toadstool and some xenia and they are all fine no sign at all of stress. apart from xenia that has closed right up for the last few dats now. i was thinking that maybe they were so high. my nitrates i mean was because for a while i dint do any water changes as i was doing test wrong and it indicated all my levels were fine so when i did it right they were so massive that even with all the changes iv done it still isnt anywhere near the scale of the test. but surley with nitrates that high my tank life would have been killed right...also is there anyone out there that knows what could be causing the high nitrates.. any help will do as iam all out

 

[kurtyboh]

Do you happen to use crushed coral?

Otherwise its overfeeding that leads to excessive trates...

Did you ever double the water for the test and see what happened

 

[huma-huma]

still i dont see how its possible to be that far over 160 and not see sheer massive aounts of death in the tank... 80 can cause stress. im gonna have to go with repeatitive pwc's until it comes down, only way to clear it out really (short of chems that is)

 

[Jlsardina]

How old is your tank? I've read that thins have died because of the nitrates (possibly). Did you cycle the tank? Also- did you cycle the live rock if it came dry? Also- you said you changed to live sand from crushed coral- did you rinse the sand? Are you stirring up the sand when you do water changes?

The only way to get rid of trates is with water changes. With such a small tank why don't you try doing a 1-2 gallon water change a day?

 

[rdnelson99]

Not sure if this may have been covered and I missed it but here goes. I read a post a while back where someone had similar problems. They called API and the tech told her that if AT ANY TIME she neglected to shake bottle 2 for the 30 seconds it was now worthless. If you used it at some point with out shaking it, the mix ratio in that bottle is no longer accurate and will give you bad readings. If I were you, I would invest in a new Nitrate test kit. May even go to a different brand and see what the results show.

 

[kurtyboh]

yeah saliferts have amazing reviews, People love them. my fav has been jbl but impossible to find outside of europe even for shipping its weird.

 

[tlkng1]

The puffer is especially sensitive to bad water parameters so I would say your nitrates are not as high as the test is indicating. Just for peace of mind and to eliminate the possibility, I would still take a tube of your tank water over to your LFS and have them test it.

Another test...take some of the tank water and place it in a bucket. Test. Now dilute it with either distilled or plain RO water and test again. We don't care about the salinity as you aren't going to add this water back to the tank.

When I say dilute, take about a 1/2 gallon or so of tankwater, place it in a 5-gallon bucket and test; then, dilute it with about 2-3 gallons of distilled water or pure RO water (no salt)..you want a very definitive dilution. Mix it in well and test again. If you use a half gallon of water at say 160 (Nitrates) and dilute it with 3 gallons of pure water, that is equivalent to, if my math is correct, an 85% water change and your nitrate reading should then be around 40.

This is what I am looking at...using the pure water (either distilled or RO) will answer the question if there are nitrates in your replacement water. It will also allow you to determine if dilution is actually working.

 

[craig_will2513]

well iv taken some to the shop today and he says its fine so after all the worry and money i spent on salt and water not to mention the mess i made. all for nothing lol. but thank you every one ever so much for your help..rdnelson99 iam not argueing at all but i cant see how not shaking the bottle will ruin the test for ever as long as i shake it now

 

[Jlsardina]

well iv taken some to the shop today and he says its fine so after all the worry and money i spent on salt and water not to mention the mess i made. all for nothing lol. but thank you every one ever so much for your help..rdnelson99 iam not argueing at all but i cant see how not shaking the bottle will ruin the test for ever as long as i shake it now

Take a bottle and add oil and vinegar to it. If you shake it every time you use it- you will always have an equal amount of oil and vinegar left. Now say three or four times you don't shake the bottle. You will the have less vinegar than oil because the vinegar remains at the top (and comes out first!) of the bottle when not shaken and the oil at the bottom. Now say once again you start to shake the bottle- you have less amount of vinegar than you do oil. Therefore you no longer have the 50% mixture. Now it maybe a 35-40% to 60% mixture. The taste wouldn't be the same. Just like oil an vinegar- the tests have a "recipe" that is used for accurate tests. Once that recipe is not accurate, the taste (or test in this example) wouldn't be the same- and thus less accurate

 

[kurtyboh]

Take a bottle and add oil and vinegar to it. If you shake it every time you use it- you will always have an equal amount of oil and vinegar left. Now say three or four times you don't shake the bottle. You will the have less vinegar than oil because the vinegar remains at the top (and comes out first!) of the bottle when not shaken and the oil at the bottom. Now say once again you start to shake the bottle- you have less amount of vinegar than you do oil. Therefore you no longer have the 50% mixture. Now it maybe a 35-40% to 60% mixture. The taste wouldn't be the same. Just like oil an vinegar- the tests have a "recipe" that is used for accurate tests. Once that recipe is not accurate, the taste (or test in this example) wouldn't be the same- and thus less accurate

very well said, and easily understandable!!!

 

[Jlsardina]

very well said, and easily understandable!!!

Lol. Thanks. Was the easiest way I could think of to explain it

 

[craig_will2513]

Jlsardina thanks that genius. very well put

 

[Jlsardina]

Jlsardina thanks that genius. very well put

Not a problem. Glad it made sense

 

[rdnelson99]

Surest way to make a man understand something. Put in terms of food. LOL Or.....well better not go there.