It's just my opinion but it is based on my own experiences and the personal experiences of other reefers I know personally and that is that flake does far more harm than good.
There are applications where there is no other choice and I understand that.
I feel that the key to successful reefkeeping is balance. Nothing is added to my tanks without having a specific goal in mind which is to aid in creating an enclosed ecosystem.
With that being said, I also do everything as naturally as humanly possible. It is my opinion that natural foods will be more likely to be broken down by natural filtration. Just like with human food, the more processing a food undergoes, the farther from it's natural, healthier state it gets and the less nutritious it becomes.
When you say that 97% of your flake gets eaten at a feeding, that leaves 3% each day that your system has to deal with. That is alot!
I feel with great conviction that this is the source of your nitrates and that over time, they will become harder and harder to keep to a managable level. I would totally scrap the flake for a period of three months and keep an eye on your levels. I think you would be surprised!
Your tank is relatively new and so it's not at a point of being super stable yet, but consistantly having nitrates at this phase does show that there is something out of balance.
A few years back when we got pounded by 4 hurricanes just weeks apart, I resorted to using flake because refrigeration was an issue as was getting supplies. My tanks were horrible. My skimmers were pulling gunk like I have never seen and my corals and fish were all suffering. It was the only time I have ever noticed my tanks emitting a "smell".
This is my opinion and you can tell me where to go.
