do mangroves lower nitrates?

[am3gross]

or was i told wrong?

 

[volcom69]

They sure do and they do great in a refuge to.

 

[bonebrake]

Yes, they consume nitrates.

 

[pyro]

They are very similar in their effect to macro algae's and the such.
Not too sure of their pros/cons in comparison to macros though.

 

[jahfeetyun]

Mangroves are not great for exporting nitrate; chaetamorpha works much better. Try searching -- because there are many threads and experiments between these two macros. Also, mangroves are higher maintenance. The leaves of a mangrove will leave behind salt build up which contains all the exported chemicals, and eventually drops back into your aquaria. Therefore, you must clean or wipe the leaves frequently. It is also important to catch the leaves when they fall into your water as well. If it were to decay, it will pollute your tank. I am not an expert, I am just sharing what I have read and learned from other reefers.

 

[mythrenody]

What Jayfeetyun said is right,I've done some research on them when l was looking at macro algeas.

 

[nimo1969]

so just use live sand and live rock and full of chaetamorpha ?? Or can we just put alot of chaetam in the sump without and ls.lr
nimoi1969

 

[bang guy]

From experiments I've performed I have concluded that Mangroves add more nitrogen than they remove.
They are attractive but Nitrate actually climbs when using Mangroves. They are counterproductive to nutrient export.

 

[mlandrigan]

Do you know why the nitrates increased with the mangroves?

 

[maxalmon]

Originally Posted by nimo1969
so just use live sand and live rock and full of chaetamorpha ?? Or can we just put alot of chaetam in the sump without and ls.lr nimoi1969
Yes, a refugium is not that complicated. If you want a basic fuge, just add a 18w 6500k light above the sump and throw in some chaeto.

 

[bang guy]

Originally Posted by mlandrigan
Do you know why the nitrates increased with the mangroves?
No, I can only guess. It certainly surprised me though.

 

[bonebrake]

I have read that if you don't prune the dead leaves that drop off then they decay in the water end up reintroducing the nitrates they absorb.