My nitrate dosing experience

[chris jones 105]

What is your current level at? The bottle has dosing instructions on it. I’d only suggest raising them slowly.

Current level is 0 far as I know.Thanks for the info...

 

[bigdrew]

My nitrates keep falling back to zero after about 8 hours. Could it be that the Cyanobacteria is sucking it up? I've read that if just keep dosing nitrates that eventually the cyano will go away. I would stop dosing but I don't want to starve my corals. catch 22. What is more important, making sure the acros have nitrates or keeping a clean looking tank?

Maybe I should cut the amount I am dosing by half and see if I strike a balance?

@Trevor40 did you ever find an answer to your question? I may be facing a similar situation...Nitrates are 0. I took the feed more and add some fish approach. I have cyano crawling through my sump now. Display tank has only small amounts. I think the answer to your question might be the answer to mine....

 

[Trevor40]

@Trevor40 did you ever find an answer to your question? I may be facing a similar situation...Nitrates are 0. I took the feed more and add some fish approach. I have cyano crawling through my sump now. Display tank has only small amounts. I think the answer to your question might be the answer to mine....

Bigdrew, how old is your tank? What ended up happening for me is that I had dinoflagellates and cyano that was sucking up the nutrients. Because the tank was so new what it really needed was me to not add corals yet and wait for the tank to start growing lots of coraline algae to replace the nasty phase. After some research on what was happening for me this is what I did.
1. I raised PO4 to above .1
2. Made my homeade fish food with lots of reefroids and BRS verision of it(can't think of the name). This is what I belive raised the Nitrates.
3. Added a UV sterilizer.

Now my tank nitrates are around 2 and the corals do not look pale at all. My PO4 was recenlty brought back to .05 range and the corals are looking better. I do not dose anything other than feed LRS Reef Frenzy. I really hate the first year of a tanks life. Now my tank is about 1.5 years old and seems to be much more stable. I hope that helps.

 

[bigdrew]

@Trevor40 my tank is really new (just setup in late January/early February) so perhaps I am just working through it still. I have 0 coraline algae yet. I have a few corals and 4 fish, with the fish added in an effort to increase the nutrient level. However, if cyano is consuming the nutrients, then this definitely appears to be my current phase. Thanks for the help!

 

[Rjmul]

Has anyone that is dosing nitrates now ever try adding more fish to there system as a solution? And if so, how would you compare the 2 ideas?

I've been adding fish for a year. Didn't work

 

[Graffiti Spot]

Would love to hear how rossco’s tanks running now and if dosing is still continued?

I have found nitrate dosing to be easier to control than a bunch of new fish. Less detritus is the main plus ime. Plus balancing with carbon dosing to lower phosphate is a huge advantage to anyone that’s willing to put in the effort of dosing long term and is much less destructive than experimenting with po4 removers if you haven’t used them. Although once the system balances to the dose adding fish is always helpful especially if they put in work around the tank.

 

[mohdfatahzainon]

My corals have always looked nice and grown very well, but the colors were always way more pale than I liked. I have always had undetectable nitrates (Salifert) and undetectable phosphates (Hanna) because of my light fish load and light feeding regimen. Finally, my curiosity got the best of me and I decided to try Nitrate dosing. For me the results have been nothing less than spectacular.


My Purple Monster was always the Lavender Monster, Red Robin the Pink Robin - you get the picture. My friends loved the pastel colors but I longed for the deep rich colors I have seen in other tanks.


I am using potassium nitrate sourced as Spectracide Stump remover. To make my stock solution, I knew I wanted to keep day to day measuring to a minimum, so I calculated the amount needed to make a small daily dose.


*Keep in mind these calculations are for my tank, the numbers would need to be adjusted for other volumes. *


My tank is a 210 gallon, I estimated that after rock displacement and adding the sump volume back in, there is around 200 gallons of water. 1 part per million equals 1 mg per liter, therefore in my tank where 200 gallons is approximately 750 liters it would take 750mg of nitrate to make 1 part per million. Each 10 grams of potassium nitrate contains 6.14 grams of nitrate, therefore 81.43 grams of potassium nitrate contains 50 grams of nitrate. Dissolving 81.43 grams of potassium nitrate (containing 50 grams of nitrate) in enough RO/DI water to make 400ml of final volume makes a solution of 50,000mg per 400ml or 125mg/ml. I used my digital reloading scale to get the accurate weight measurement.


I dose 3ml per day to add 0.5ppm, or 375mg of nitrate to my system. I am keeping my nitrate levels between 0.75 and 1ppm.


The day after I started dosing, I had green algae everywhere. I would blow it off with a turkey baster, it came off in sheets, the next day it would be back. It grew on the sand, on the glass near the sand, on every exposed piece of rock, over the top of some of the less aggressive zoas - everywhere except on the SPS and LPS corals themselves. . I assumed that the small amount of phosphate was being consumed and that it would soon pass. After a couple weeks, the maintenance of the nuisance algae was getting better, and now after almost 3 months, there really is none to speak of, and I just noticed the other day when I went to check my chaeto, that it is really struggling and hasn't grown a bit since I last checked it. It might even be a little smaller.

I wish I had taken some before pictures, but here are a few top down pictures after dosing for 2 & 1/2 months.

Hi rossco . Bumping an old thread. Just wondering if u still dose kno3, or throughout the years it had changed. Just starting to dose and would like to know if your still maintaining it, do u still keep the 0.5ppm daily dose ?

 

[rossco]

I am still dosing nitrate and phosphate, but only after testing first. I test once a week and dose accordingly. Once the corals catch up, so to speak, their consumption levels off and for me, daily dosing became unnecessary. I also have a few more fish now.
I try to keep nitrate at 5-10 ppm, and phosphate .05- 1.0 ppm. I still use KNO3 but not stump remover anymore, using Potassium Nitrate from Loudwolf now.

 

[mohdfatahzainon]

I am still dosing nitrate and phosphate, but only after testing first. I test once a week and dose accordingly. Once the corals catch up, so to speak, their consumption levels off and for me, daily dosing became unnecessary. I also have a few more fish now.
I try to keep nitrate at 5-10 ppm, and phosphate .05- 1.0 ppm. I still use KNO3 but not stump remover anymore, using Potassium Nitrate from Loudwolf now.

Noted and thanks for the reply. Ive been dosing daily at around 1.5ppm no3, and 0.015ppm po4(seems low now seeing yours at 0.5-1), since then. I would say my corals looks happier, maybe too early to say on colourwise, but it does look better