Nitrates Outta Control!!!!

[mikeyb]

my nitrates have recently starting going slowly up and up, starting at 0, then later i tested it at 20, then later again NOW AT 40!!!

:help: ....what is the deal here guys:notsure: i did about a fifteen to twenty percent water change and all it did was stop the steady incline of my nitrates....they havent dropped; just stabilized. HELP ME PLEASE, ALL WAS GREAT AND WONDERFUL IN MY SALTWATER WORLD UNTIL THE TERRIBLE NITRATE CAME ALONG

 

[greatfullreefer]

Basic questions like Tank size? how long has it been set up? what kind and how many fish? what type of filtration? do you have sump/fuge? is it a reef tank, FO or FOWLR? how often do you feed? yadda yadda yadda

 

[sw65galma]

think of it this way..
Nitrate is the end result of Amonia and Nitrite.
It's like someone digging a hole and piling the dirt next to it.
And your trying to get rid of the pile, but it keeps building up.
You gotta stop the people digging! in this case amonia and nitrite.
Cut back on your feeding a little. Clean filters (not all at the same time)
Do more water changes...

 

[mikeyb]

its a 36g fowlr, 2mo running, w/ an emperor angel, 4 damsels, 1 green brittle star, 1 cleaner shrimp, 1 coral banded shrimp, 1 sea cucumber, 2 sea urchins, 4 turbo snails, and about 25 blue legged hermit crabs

 

[ericholcek]

Sounds to me like your tank just fully cycled!!!! Do you some water changes every week and cut back on feedings. Also live rock and a DSB will have bacteria in them that break down nitrate so think about adding some to your tank if you dont already. Good Luck....

 

[mikeyb]

hey thanks for all the help guys!!!!!

 

[blitz99]

too stocked???

 

[coastie55g]

thats what it sounds to me. a little overstocked..

 

[new2u]

O.K im a noob too but I've always wanted a Emporor angel and I have a 55 and after about 2 minutes of research I found out that you need at least somthing in the 100 gallon range for an emporor and u had him in WAY to small of a tank

 

[lion_crazz]

I agree about the tank size. Along with that, you probably don't have enough live rock and sand in there to break down the nitrates, plus, angels need an established tank to live happily. Your tank has only been set-up 2 months. Angels definitely would live better and happier if the tank was set-up for 6 to 12 months, at least.