FED UP WITH NITRATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[klubvibez]

I am a perfectionist. I can't handle anything being wrong. The following are the conditions of my tank:

Temperature: 81 degrees
Ammonia: inbetween 0 and .25
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate!: 30PPM


No matter how many water changes i do, i cant get the damn Nitrate to go lower. I want the level to be zero. I heard about some ion exchange resin or something like that, which removes nitrate? Surely with all this technology, heart bypass surgery, man on the moon, there must be SOME way to completely eradicate my Nitrate levels. Does anyone know any method? ANYTHING AT ALL? even if its an unproven home-made remedy, i am willing to try it.

My tank is a 40 Gallon saltwater tank with:

50 Pounds of Live Rock
2 inches of live sand
10 Fish + 2 Anemones + 1 Arrow Crab + Sea Star + Cucumber + Various Janitorial inverts( snails mini crabs)

Two 65 watt 50/50 power compacts (with actynics)---> Coralife (thanx darin)

I have two powerheads, and a 150 gallon rated Wet/Dry filter with the blue bio ball thingies. I also have a Canister filter. Overall, when you add everything together, the flow of water is roughly 450 Gallons per Hour. Pardon me if im being too detailed, its just im trying to think of all the questions you all normally ask

Is there anything that can be done to make my water 100% perfect? I know nitrate isn't that toxic to fish, but im planning on adding corals, so if any of you have ANY tips/advice/scolding/constructive criticism, lemme have it!


Sincerely-
The Paranoid Aquarist

 

[steve-s]

My tank is a 40 Gallon saltwater tank with:

10 Fish

That's your main problem. Reduce the fish population.

Cheers
Steve

 

[klubvibez]

the fish are small. The largest one is a Valentini Puffer. The rest of them are all the size of two guitar picks placed next to eachother. (Baby clownfish)

 

[XXFirefighter]

number of fish maybe...

Can try adding a clam or 2 and some mangrove plants !

 

[tiredfish]

what kind of water do you use...i use tap and my levels are out the roof...but iowa's water quality sux...i tested the water before i mix it and put it in there and its at 30 to start with....seachem makes stuff called de-nitrate i think...not for sure how it works .. you mix it into your substrate i think. good luck

 

[phases99]

a refugium with at least 1/3 volume of the main tank with DSB and macroalgae would make a big difference.

 

[Thumper]

Refuge or remove a couple fish.

 

[quarryshark]

Even if the fish were all 1" (doubt if they are), you would still be overstocked. The optimal amount of fish for a SW system is 2" of adult size fish per 10 gallons. Assuming that your fish average 2", then you have more than double the bioload for that tank size.
That is certainly at the heart of your problem and it will only get worse as the fish grow. All the water movement in the world will not make up for an overloaded tank.
A sump/refugium would help(for now), but for long term health, it would be of benefit to thin down the population a bit.
JMO

 

[RMPD109]

In addition to reducing the bioload you may want to work on the wet dry filter. The bio balls are known for creating high nitrates. You can remove them and add LR rubble. Just remember that LR rubble needs to be completely underwater at all times.

 

[JamesR]

I second what RMPD109 said, the bio ball will cause nitrates to go up. If you are serious about this, remove the bioballs (a little at a time) and use LR rubble, then build a small refugium, that will really help. It doesn't have to be big, mine is small and does the trick. Nothing fancy needs to be in there, just get some chaeto macroalgae and the nitrates will decrease.

here is some info on my fuge....

Here goes....
Measurements for my fuge container are 12L x 9W x 12H. I don't know how many gallons it is. Not many, but it appears enough to keep nitrates at 0 (love to have a bit bigger one, but not enough space).

Below are some pics. I basically run a small powerhead in my sump with some tubing over it, it pumps water into the fuge via a small hole in the top of the lid. the water is returned into the sump by gravity. I drilled 2 holes and added 2 bulkheads on the side of the fuge to return the water. One is placed a bit higher than the other and works as a backup in case the lower one clogs up. The flow is minimal in the fuge, but it appears to be just enough. Let me know if you have any questions.

HTH,
Jim

 

[Thumper]

Sweet little refugium.

 

[JamesR]

Thanks! I've learned a lot since I set it up, but it really does the job.

I also found a baby starfish in there tonight. Its about the size of a large pinhead. VERY COOL!!!! Funny thing is, i don't have any in my tank, so it must have come from the LR (i think) in the fuge. I did have a sand sifter in the main, but took it out a month ago.

Jim

 

[steve-s]

the fish are small. The largest one is a Valentini Puffer. The rest of them are all the size of two guitar picks placed next to eachother. (Baby clownfish)

Please list the fish and quantity of each species. I'm assuming a guitar pick is about 1"?

Cheers
Steve

 

[lando]

Honestly, I would be more concerned with an ammonia reading of .25 then a nitrate reading of 30. As mentioned, you have too many fish in your tank. The bioload that is produced by the overstocking is exceeding the biofiltration capabilities of the tank. You may not think you are overstocked, but your water parameters say that you are.

 

[seaham358]

Toss the bioballs over the course of 2 -3 weeks so the bacteria on the LR can grow more. Add a fuge, I have them on both my tanks and they help out a lot. My 55 fowlr is overstocked and with out the fuge I would be doing WC every week, I now can do them every month or 2. 30 is not too bad they say 40+ and you can start to cause stress on the critters.

 

[greatgman]

also try some more frequent water changes
using ro di water
maybee a uv serilizer could help

 

[klubvibez]

i went out and bought a 60 gallon tank. i cant "lower" my fish population i love all my fisih. considering everything you know from reading these posts, will the 60 gallon tank be big enough to lower the nitrates.

 

[phases99]

A larger tank alone should lower your nitrate levels through dillution. You will need to follow some of the additional recommendations on this post to keep them that way.

 

[adw77380]

Have you tried chemi-pure or anything like that? I use this resin because my fish slection keep me from having a real cleaning crew.