Managing Nitrates

[Ace]

Good Morning,

I'm looking for some help managing nitrates. Currently my readings are between 20-30 according to red sea kits. I do about 25% water changes every four weeks. I really do not want to increase the frequency of these changes. I've thought of adding abio pellet reactor but I am running out of room in the first stage of the sump. I do already have a reactor running GFO. I've also read about carbon dosing. Any advice?
120g
30g Sump/refugium
Ecotech Radions 15w Pro
Tunze DOC 9410
PhosBan Reactor 550 running gfo
Mag 9.5
2x Koralia pumps 1500
jebao rw8 wavemaker

Salinity:1.025
PH:8.1
Nitrate: 30
Phosphate: .01ppm
Magnesium: 1450
Calcium: 450
DKH:9.8

Stock:
2 Ocelaris Clowns
2 Clarki Clows
Hippo Tang
Sailfin Tang

Mixed Coral

 

[Raffle King]

The best way to cut them is water changes i do them every 10 days and nitrates are zero

 

[Mark...]

Are you heavy feeding? Based on your stock list, I would say no, but if you are, an algae scrubber might help.

 

[Hockeynut]

The best way to cut them is water changes i do them every 10 days and nitrates are zero

I agree try to do 10% a week instead it should bring them down


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mrehfeld]

And a good cleaning of sumps, skimmers and the like

 

[horseplay]

If you have the room then I would run refugium growing macro. Otherwise look into carbon dosing.

 

[redfishbluefish]

If you have the room then I would run refugium growing macro. Otherwise look into carbon dosing.

+1 on running a refugium and increasing water change schedule.

 

[Edwardw771]

http://natureef.com/products/denitrifiers/ this is so far the best thing I ever purchased for my reefs. Had it two months and no more water changes. corals have not looked this good in years.

 

[downbeach]

The easiest thing to try, without having to add any equipment, would be to use some form of carbon source, i.e. vodka or vinegar. Here and here are good articles if you haven't already seen them. What are you using to measure your PO4? If it's as low as your post indicates, you may want to take the GFO off line while you try this method, since it may be limiting the amount of PO4 needed for this to work. I have successfully used both vodka and vinegar, but ultimately went to a BP reactor, since the daily dosing, and frequent testing needed for the liquid form became a nuisance.

 

[greg 45]

There are a few ways of doing this , there is the natureef method which takes a little time and effort to keep running or a sulfur reactor. There are articles of both on the sight.
Hope his helps.

 

[cmantis]

I carbon dose with nopox.