Nitrate Problems!

[tidalwave2132]

Ok i wanna start putting coral in my tank its a 30 gallon with good amount of live rock t5 ho lighting and i have two clowns, sally crab, and 8 red leg hermits and some nassuris snails, but before i go buy some i tested my tank and my nitrate level is high everything else ph 8.1 ammonia 0 and nitrite 0. i just did a 15 gallon water change cuz the nitrate was so high. two things i think might be the problem ive had a bunch of hair algar die and it might have boosted the nitrate and also i couldnt get to the fish store awhile back so i did a water change with tap water.

 

[hlcroghan]

Originally Posted by tidalwave2132
http:///forum/post/2996978
Ok i wanna start putting coral in my tank its a 30 gallon with good amount of live rock t5 ho lighting and i have two clowns, sally crab, and 8 red leg hermits and some nassuris snails, but before i go buy some i tested my tank and my nitrate level is high everything else ph 8.1 ammonia 0 and nitrite 0. i just did a 15 gallon water change cuz the nitrate was so high. two things i think might be the problem ive had a bunch of hair algar die and it might have boosted the nitrate and also i couldnt get to the fish store awhile back so i did a water change with tap water.
when you say high...what do you mean?? like 10 or 100??

 

[tidalwave2132]

i dont know the exact number because i took some test water to my lfs and they tested it and they use a test where it changed color and it turned dark pink so a high amount of nitrate

 

[lil.guppy]

tap water shouldnt do that, but the algae dieing off sure can. How old is your tank? After my ammonia spike after cycling I had high nitrates for a week I think then it dropped within a couple hours.
Make sure you add coral slow in case something goes wrong you dont kill a bunch of stuff off

 

[burpuffer]

How often and how much do you feed??

 

[tidalwave2132]

my tank is about 9 months old and i feed twice a day usually flakes and sometimes frozen brine shrimp but if its the shrimp its only once a day

 

[burpuffer]

How often do you do a water change??

 

[tidalwave2132]

every 2 weeks i do a water change and i got two powerheads and a aqua clear hang on filter rated for a 50 gallon tank

 

[ibew41]

you only need to feed 1 time a day do you have cc

 

[tidalwave2132]

cc?

 

[ibew41]

crushed coral on the bottom of your tank or do you have sand

 

[burpuffer]

I would do a 2-3 gallon water change every week and only feed once a day.

 

[tidalwave2132]

i have the fiji sand, so i buy ro water with salt mixed in it already how long can it sit because if i do 3 gallons a week im going to buy another 5 gallon jug so i have two that way i dont have to make trips every week to the fish store

 

[burpuffer]

You could do 2.5 gallons a week that way you only have one jug?? And make sure you stir around the sand when doing a water change. Alot of times nitrates will be traped in the sand so its good to stir it around occassionaly.

 

[tidalwave2132]

ok ill stir the sand but will it hurt for a 5 gallon jug with salt already pre mixed to sit for around a week? cuz i can get another 5 gallon jug for free ill snag one from my work oh and the jugs have a screw on top so nothing can get into them

 

[ibew41]

how much live rock do you have in your tank and how deep is your sand bed

 

[tidalwave2132]

sand bed is a solid 3 inches deep maybe lil more, and i at least have 25lbs of live rock

 

[ibew41]

agree do weekly water changes and feed only once a day