Vodka To Remove Nitrate

[Rscomia]

I thought each week you add a one off of 0.5ml then double your dosage,have you not seen any difference in the stuff the skimmer takes out?

Yes my skimmer is getting some nasty stuff out

 

[MikeYQM]

If done right bioload 'doesn't matter' to the size of your incremental dose because you gradually step up the dose until your nitrates start to drop, then once @ an acceptable range for nitrates, you cut your dose down into a maintenance dose.

The increments you step up are so small, it's a function of water volume. After a few weeks, when you've reached your max dose, it really is a function of bioload, but there is no way to calculate what that dose will be based on bioload.

So yes, bioload determines you maint dose, but you have to get there by slowly increasing your dose based on water volume & time.

 

[FTMMWS]

Here is a great write up ...
Mine is very basic and so simple to build and maintain
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f20/algae-scrubber-basics-163817.html

Would like to know more about the scrubber

Vodka,vinegar,sugar or anything else just seems like a risky thing to me when there are other safer and easier ways to lower trates...Would hate to see a tank crash ...I personally have had great success with a scrubber,,just seems like with dosing ,the risks far out weigh the reward,and you don't need a super skimmer ,,heck i don't have one at all,,never did

 

[Tomchong22]

IMO I think vodka dosing should only be used by experts And on sps dominated tanks, where having zero nitrates and phosphates is a must. There is no need to do it with fowlr or mixed reef tanks. If you do a search most people only dose vodka with tanks that are mature sps tanks with very few fish. A better alternative it to add a turf scrubber and a phosphate reactor, along with a fuge with macro algae and a dsb.

 

[LordErrorprone]

IMO there is a need to have best water for your fish. Bioload makes a difference to how much vodka you end up putting in, that one fish huma-huma used as an example is only going to produce a small amount of nitrates so you will only need a small amount of vodka.

 

[Rscomia]

Correct me if im wrong but the number of fish you have wouldn't exactly determine how high your nitrates would be if this were true you wouldn't have any in your cycle period

 

[MikeYQM]

Number of fish contributes to bioload and when taken with your ability to remove organics (LR, filtration etc) are an indicator of what your nitrate levels would be. Fish are only one part of the equation.

I have a high bioload - fully stocked 30 gal mixed reef. Fish & LPS well fed, but through filtration my nitrates stay at 5ppm or less.

 

[Fishkeeper92]

I stumbled upon this and have one question. Has anyones fish gotten drunk? I have a feeling it would entertaining to see that..

 

[MikeYQM]

Ahh, no.

 

[Rscomia]

I stumbled upon this and have one question. Has anyones fish gotten drunk? I have a feeling it would entertaining to see that..

Its less than a shot dilluted with 100 plus gallons of water I think that would be impossible

 

[LordErrorprone]

Today is day 5 and I realized that I've been dosing for a 25 gal, so I increased by .1 ml for a current total of .3 ml per day.

 

[MikeYQM]

Better to undershoot than overshoot

 

[Kshupe]

This brings new meaning to the phrase "drunk as a fish"

 

[D-vanhorn90]

I recently ran across an article saying you can use Vodka to remove nitrate from saltwater tanks and enhance the color of coral, upon further research I started to try it. Has anyone here ever tried it?

I actually read in in discovery news via facebook. Says the same thing you do.

 

[eatsomepopcorn]

Vodka is a good food for denitrate filters, but dont add vodka to your tank, your just poisioning the fish.

 

[FTMMWS]

Vodka is a good food for denitrate filters, but dont add vodka to your tank, your just poisioning the fish.

,,and wasting vodka ...sorry,,had to say it

 

[MikeYQM]

Vodka is a good food for denitrate filters, but dont add vodka to your tank, your just poisioning the fish.

No, you can add vodka to your tank if you follow an appropriate protocol. You will not poison anything in the tank.

 

[LordErrorprone]

Its been awhile since I last posted, that's because nothing has happened. I have gotten to 1.5 ml per day and not seen any change in nitrate, I'm going to increase to 1.8 ml tomorrow.

 

[MikeYQM]

It can takes a while to build up bacteria levels to an effective amount. Don't rush the step up process & you'll get there.

 

[David S]

Vodka works well.But you must also have a skimmer.I only dose 2 ml a day but it is dropping the trates in mine,