I've Tried,But I Can Not Get It Down!!

[full of questions]

I'll start by saying i have a 55 gallon,that is home to a small purple tang,a small powder blue
tang,(i know these guys will need a bigger home
and it's coming asap)there's a yellow tail and a domino damsel,a blue spot jawfish,a green britle
and red serepent star fish.Everyone play's nice
together,and eats good.Ok now my problem.
Nitrite's 0
Ammonia 0
Ph 8.1
Calcium 460
NITRATE'S 80
I have had high Nitrate's for about a month,i have done weekly water changes of 20 gallons
i have cc as substrate,with aragonite on top
of,my lfs said to vacum the bed and ad another
2 inches of aragonite,this is not working eighter. Any ideas?

 

[dirtybilge]

Also don't vacum your sand bed its adds O2 to it and you don't want any oxygen in your sand bed!

 

[full of questions]

I use well water,this was a concern but it test
just fine.I feed a verity of foods,every other
day,and i know some probulay falls to the bottom
but not very much,i promise. I just added
the 2 inches of aragonite 3 day's ago.

 

[mr . salty]

#1,Stop using well water.Well water can and usually does contain minerals and bacteria that can be causing your problems.This is very important that you find a new sorce for your water.#2,Sand on top of CC is just about useless.You really should try removing the CC,and replace it with LIVE SAND...If this is not an option,add live sand to your exsisting sand.After a month or so the sand bed should kick in and your nitrates will start to drop.In the meantime keep up with the water changes(NO WELL WATER)...#3,You really should get rid of one or both of those tangs.They don't belong in a tank that small.Even though they seem to be getting along now,one small argument can kill them both.Or they can start causing stress in your other fish causing BIG trouble...

 

[sandy]

Yes, I give my Lovebird Evian Mineral Water (good for da bird - bad for da fish). I noticed that Nitrate level is listed on the ngredients / contents. Thought to self "Not fish water". lol.

 

[full of questions]

If not WELL WATER,than what do you recomend,if
putting live sand right on top of my bottom,how
deep of a bottom is to deep,mine is curently
at about 4 inches.I said that i know that the
tangs need a bigger home,it's just that they
were free to me,sorry if wrong but i couldn't
say NO.

 

[chadillac]

There is no reason to get rid of your tangs they will be fine in there for quite a while it will be a few years before they out grow that tank,(Depending on how big they are now) we have a couple in both our 55's that have been in there for a few years now they will be getting a new home soon but that was all part of our plan, to upgrade to bigger tanks evntually

 

[novice150]

Just my .02. But you don't want to use well water for lots of reasons. The main one being that there are chemicals in that water that you have probably not tested for. A marine biologist explained it to me. It comes down to the minerals that are in the water, brought in one way or the other from the soil in your area. If I were you I'd either purchase an RO unit, or start using RO water from your lfs. This water should be used both for replenishment and water changes.

 

[byrself]

my advice, buy an ro-di filter. for the amount of water you use, it would be well worth it. <img src="graemlins//silly.gif" border="0" alt="[silly]" />

 

[full of questions]

I would like to say,that i really respect all of
your opions.But i'am very concerned about this
problem,but what i don't understand about using
my well water is,why does the water in my fresh
water tang test alright.Does salt water produce
more Nitrate"s than freshwater does,or is there
a simple explanation?

 

[novice150]

Well, Im no expert on this subject but I'll do my best. Saltwater tanks are much more sensitive to impurities, and chemicals in your water than fresh water are. You may have things in your well water that are giving you grief. Like silicates, phosphates, possibly copper. Im reluctant to answer whether or not SW tanks produce more nitrates or not. They are in general more sensitive to them though.
Maybe by me replying and bumping this to the top, someone with more experience will clarify.

 

[david s]

Listin to MR SALTY he rocks for info and is a shark so he knows what he is doin

 

[briansreeftank19660426]

go with no well water . i have well water had same problem for 2 months..also imo too many fish in there for a new tank,....CC will trap garbage down there which will pump out nitrates. will be 3 months b4 dsb starts to kick in full gear.. my took about that..take that CC out...

 

[brooklyn johnny]

I would definately get rid of the cc. With a bed of 4 inches that includes cc food particles and waste will enter into the substrate. For a sand bed to function properly this is important. If waste enters the bed, especially with cc at a depth of 4 inches, this could cause your nitrates to go up. Read up on the theory behind sandbeds, and remove it and start from scratch. Also, ro/di units are well worth it. Look into these as I am sure that even beyond this problem you will run into others where you will be wondering again if your well water is the culprit. I can recommend a small book called Live Sand Secrets I believe by Bob Goemen.

 

[full of questions]

OK, get rid of the cc,is their a easy way to do this with out removing everything.Not trying to
take short cuts,just trying to save a little
work if at all possible.