Is my UG filter causing my nitrates to be too high?

[Thilligoss73]

I have a question for some of the more experienced fish keepers out there. I have some experience with tanks, but mostly from when I was younger...20 years ago. Back then, I always used an undergravel filter. It was considered kind of a staple....it was standard. I've gotten back into fish keeping, and I guess I'm kind of still in that mindset of doing now what I used to do then, and have put an undergravel filter (powered by air-bubble lift tubes) in my 60 gallon. I also have two hang-on the back filters. This time around, I'm taking it abit more seriously than I did when I was 16, and have bought the water test kits, do water changes every other week, vacuum the gravel regularly, etc. I just did a water change, and tested my water right after. Everything was in order....PH-6.8 ammonia-0ppm nitrite 0ppm......but my nitrate was off the scale at 160ppm or higher! (160 ppm is the highest the scale would measure)I don't know how this can be that all my other numbers were in the good range, and my nitrates are through the roof! I've had several people suggest to me that it could be due to huge amounts of waste trapped under the plates of the UG filter, and theres nothing I can do about it but tear it down and take it out. Is this true? Am I going to have to tear down the whole tank and start over? Are there any other ways to get those nitrates down? I've had other people suggest that I can reduce them easliy by adding live plants to the tank, but I think that may add a whole level of tank keeping that I'm not prepared for!

 

[Ian086]

I have a question for some of the more experienced fish keepers out there. I have some experience with tanks, but mostly from when I was younger...20 years ago. Back then, I always used an undergravel filter. It was considered kind of a staple....it was standard. I've gotten back into fish keeping, and I guess I'm kind of still in that mindset of doing now what I used to do then, and have put an undergravel filter (powered by air-bubble lift tubes) in my 60 gallon. I also have two hang-on the back filters. This time around, I'm taking it abit more seriously than I did when I was 16, and have bought the water test kits, do water changes every other week, vacuum the gravel regularly, etc. I just did a water change, and tested my water right after. Everything was in order....PH-6.8 ammonia-0ppm nitrite 0ppm......but my nitrate was off the scale at 160ppm or higher! (160 ppm is the highest the scale would measure)I don't know how this can be that all my other numbers were in the good range, and my nitrates are through the roof! I've had several people suggest to me that it could be due to huge amounts of waste trapped under the plates of the UG filter, and theres nothing I can do about it but tear it down and take it out. Is this true? Am I going to have to tear down the whole tank and start over? Are there any other ways to get those nitrates down? I've had other people suggest that I can reduce them easliy by adding live plants to the tank, but I think that may add a whole level of tank keeping that I'm not prepared for!

Hi Thilligoss, sorry to say, imo the advice you were given, was correct. I'm sure you know already, the reason for your high nitrates is because everything is getting trapped in the gravel and underneath. I know you are getting some out with a vac but most is still left. I would seriously consider getting a nice canister to go with the hobs you have. You could remove more nitrates by doing a weekly 50% water change...
I know it seems daunting, but you won't regret it. It's not that bad once you get started!!!. I recently stripped down my friends 25g, who had an underground. WOW, you wouldn't believe what all that gravel hides. We couldn't see through the tank after we moved some of the gravel....

 

[blert]

If you don't want to dig out the UGF then you could try attaching power heads to it instead of running it with air. The greater flow will get some of the crud out for you but you still have many water changes to perform to remove that stuff and the nitrate. Good luck to you.

 

[jlk]

I would suggest 50% wcs daily until you bring your nitrates under control. If you are unable to bring them under control, my suggestion would be to remove the UGF and add another big hob or canister. You may be in for a very unpleasant surprise when you remove it.

Speaking from UGF experience, I found them to be a nightmare even with running it with two big powerheads plus a big hob filter. Water quality deteriorated at an unreal rate and before I removed it, I was doing 75% wcs daily just to keep things under control. I even used a shop vac hooked to the uptake tubes every few days to suck out the debris under the plates. My water was black with mold and fungus and debris when I finally gave up and pulled them. Maybe they would work with a small tank (under 20g) that was very lightly stocked but not a good idea on big tanks or with messy fish. Just my opinion anyway!