Does rock affect Nitrates?

[flower]

I have a 90g tank, over the years I have given away corals with a little rock, and I have stolen rock from this tank toput in the SH tank. My nitrates are climbing instead of dropping (vodka dosing)...could the lose of rock do that? I think it does, and I am asking to double check.
I have not removed much...maybe 20 lbs over the years. 10 to the SH tank.

 

[al&burke]

Hey Flower, I guess any changes in the balance of the tank could cause changes in the nitrates, but that significant. You said you can't put a light above your fuge - what about beside it. I really honestly think you should try to get cheato in that fuge. On my system right now I am running cheato in the fuge and an algae turf scrubber, which has hair algae growing on it, my nitrites and nitrates have been almost zero, very slight if any pink color with the seachem test kits,

 

[flower]

I can't get light on the side because of algae...the light builds algae right where it shines and drowns out the fuge..chaeto just breaks up into little tiny bits and goes all over the place making a mess and clogging the return pump..

 

[monsinour]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Al&Burke http:///forum/thread/385658/does-rock-affect-nitrates#post_3383025
Hey Flower, I guess any changes in the balance of the tank could cause changes in the nitrates, but that significant. You said you can't put a light above your fuge - what about beside it. I really honestly think you should try to get cheato in that fuge. On my system right now I am running cheato in the fuge and an algae turf scrubber, which has hair algae growing on it, my nitrites and nitrates have been almost zero, very slight if any pink color with the seachem test kits,
I believe I said this before as well as in the build thread. I agree that some form of macro needs to be placed into the fuge to help with nitrates. Have you seeded the fuge yet?

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Monsinour http:///forum/thread/385658/does-rock-affect-nitrates#post_3383147
I believe I said this before as well as in the build thread. I agree that some form of macro needs to be placed into the fuge to help with nitrates. Have you seeded the fuge yet?
I did seeded the fuge and the critters are happy. I ordered a Lee's mesh breeder, hang on the tank type. I will put some macro in there and keep it safe from the tangs in the DT. I only have a 1 inch clearance over the top of the fuge.

 

[btldreef]

Just moving rocks around/ removing one can make nitrates rise depending on how dirty the rock was. Short term, your tank may need to readjust, but that's a small amount of removal for that size tank, so it should not matter too much. How much of a change did you see?
If I remember, up until you redid this tank, you always had a nitrate problem, right?

 

[btldreef]

As for light on your fuge, look into the Marineland LED fixtures. I have one over my 14G, and while they stink for corals, they do work for macro algae and are very slim. The freshwater models are not that expensive either. I have the 18-24" model, it cost me $50.

 

[bang guy]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Flower http:///forum/thread/385658/does-rock-affect-nitrates#post_3383020
I have a 90g tank, over the years I have given away corals with a little rock, and I have stolen rock from this tank toput in the SH tank. My nitrates are climbing instead of dropping (vodka dosing)...could the lose of rock do that? I think it does, and I am asking to double check.
I have not removed much...maybe 20 lbs over the years. 10 to the SH tank.
Healthy live rock will convert quite a bit of Nitrate to Nitrogen gas.

 

[kiefers]

Hi .... I was at Meijers today and I saw a clip on LED light fixture for tanks. I thought about getting someday for my 5 gallon. This LED is designed to fit in tight spaces. Just a thought.
Also.... did you say this tank is some years old? (sorry, been reading threads for awhile and some how they all mesh together.) When was the last time you vaccumed the substrate. Can't remember if you have sand or agronite? Old tank syndrome and deep sand bed? just trying to help ya.....

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/385658/does-rock-affect-nitrates#post_3383158
As for light on your fuge, look into the Marineland LED fixtures. I have one over my 14G, and while they stink for corals, they do work for macro algae and are very slim. The freshwater models are not that expensive either. I have the 18-24" model, it cost me $50.
That would work. I don't know a single thing about LEDs except I use blue ones for moonlights...I will check it out, thanks
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kiefers http:///forum/thread/385658/does-rock-affect-nitrates#post_3383300
Hi .... I was at Meijers today and I saw a clip on LED light fixture for tanks. I thought about getting someday for my 5 gallon. This LED is designed to fit in tight spaces. Just a thought.
Also.... did you say this tank is some years old? (sorry, been reading threads for awhile and some how they all mesh together.) When was the last time you vaccumed the substrate. Can't remember if you have sand or agronite? Old tank syndrome and deep sand bed? just trying to help ya.....
Thanks you, everyone putting in their .02 is what makes this place so awesome.
I have never vacuumed the substrate, I have aragonite sand and plenty of CUC to stir it up. It's pretty early into the dosing thing, so I hope it does what it should as I continue. I found it strange that it went up instead of down. I really don't understand how my nitrates can be that high and not affect my inverts or corals. I have lived in fear of my trates going abouve 40 and killing everything but the fish.
I have some change water all ready and I will do that too. I never clean the dead out of the tank (too much rock to move), I leave it for the CUC. Maybe there was an ammonia spike and the nitrates have just gone up. I checked for ammonia and didn't get any reading but it isn't like I test it everyday either, I could have missed it. Fish behave a certain way when ammonia is the problem, and they have not acted anything but hungry. Nitrates have not continued to rise, so whatever made it climb has stopped. I will continue to dose and do a nice 30g water change.

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bang Guy http:///forum/thread/385658/does-rock-affect-nitrates#post_3383160
Healthy live rock will convert quite a bit of Nitrate to Nitrogen gas.
Over the years I have given away corals attached to rock, and I used a little from my 90g and put it into the SH tank. I hate the thoughts of getting more rock because I know what critters are in mine. I have no joy in considering a new bobbit worm, some fresh aptasia, red worms or nudi munchers....Oh the nightmare of new live rock. My computer crashed and this is the only FTS I have of the 90g right now. The rock right out in front are no longer in there but was placed the horses tank, do you think I need to get more rock or do you think I have enough?

 

[bang guy]

The sand I see there should be providing ALL of the Nitrate removal you need. Perhaps a recharge of the sandbed is needed. Do you see lots of critter tracks against the glass where the sand shows? If so then there's something else going on that I'm not seeing.
On the live rock side, I don't think you need more as long as your sand bed is healthy. If you want to add more rock for aesthetic reasons then set up a quaranteen tank for the new rock to give yourself a chance to remove unwanted critters.

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bang Guy http:///forum/thread/385658/does-rock-affect-nitrates#post_3383369
The sand I see there should be providing ALL of the Nitrate removal you need. Perhaps a recharge of the sandbed is needed. Do you see lots of critter tracks against the glass where the sand shows? If so then there's something else going on that I'm not seeing.
On the live rock side, I don't think you need more as long as your sand bed is healthy. If you want to add more rock for aesthetic reasons then set up a quaranteen tank for the new rock to give yourself a chance to remove unwanted critters.
That picture is a few years old, I put some of that sand in the refugium. and added some new live sand to the main tank. I purchased some refugium mud to add to the fuge, it arrived today. I will have to shut all the valves and allow the mud to settle before I allow it back on line...I hope that helps, I also got the Brightwells MB7 and dosed the tank with that this morning.

 

[bang guy]

Just for reference, here's an example of what I believe to be a healthy looking sandbed.

 

[florida joe]

How much are you dosing and how are you removing the biomass produced by the dosing
What are your nitrate readings over the last month?