Help, not trying to run ultra low nutrients...

[nbd13]

Hi everyone,

So, I have a 150 SPS display tank, been up and running now for 4 months. Build thread here:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/n...triton-method-reef.561173/page-2#post-6125075

I am having a battle with Dino's currently, the SPS look great though, their color and growth is pretty decent.

My PO4 on Hanna ultra low meter is 0.01-0.03 and my Nitrate is unmeasurable! When I used to have SPS tanks 12-20 years ago, I always had higher nutrient levels and it worked for me. I think I may have an imbalance going on here? I feed 2-3 times a day heavily. I have 7 fish currently with 4 more coming out of QT this week. I do have an oversized skimmer, but always have since I love fish as much as SPS.

My chaeto in my fuge will not grow...too low of nutrients? I tried dosing some iodine. I have an ICP test I'm going to send off soon. I thought the Dino's may be consuming some of the nutrients, but I still can't believe I have 0 nitrate and PO4 at 0.01-0.03!

Any advice here? I do not really want to get into dosing to get nitrate up...but that might be my only choice?

Thoughts?

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Is your skimmer your only method of export? Besides the chaeto.

 

[jda]

Chaeto might be growth-limited by iron. It uses it up quickly and if you are not a religious water change, then you need to supplement it.

If your SPS look great and are growing well, then just leave it alone. I fear that you can do more damage chasing numbers even if you are fighting dinos... they are pretty common in tanks less than a year old, and especially those started with any kind of dry or dead rock. This might just be a rite-of-passage thing. Sure, you can probably find something to kill them, but do you want to risk the SPS?

 

[vpoiu1263]

Sometimes dino will show up at ULN
And you can try raise your Nitrate.
My tank was dino every where after tank was set up , and when I raise NO3. They are gone.
Perhaps because of there are not enough food for the nice system bacteria. And the dino bacteria start to win the battle and pop out.

 

[DesertReefT4r]

Remove the chaeto and turn off the fuge lighting. I had the same issue no no3 and low 0.02-0.04 po4, fed heavy, added fish and dosed no3. I removed my fuge and no3 came up overnight. My ICP test also had 0 ppm of iron in my water most like due to the cheato.

 

[tehmadreefer]

Feed a bit more, use coral food at night when corals actively feed and turn off your skimmer when your lights go off. I was no3 starved and put my skimmer on my lighting schedule.

 

[SeaDweller]

You only have 7 fish in a 150, how much are you “over feeding”? Could you get more fish? Or do as the others suggest, just take the fuge offline or dial back the skimmer, or just turn it off/skim really dry.

 

[jda]

I would keep the skimmer running and just tune it to not pull as much. The gas exchange is very valuable for driving off co2 and also binding heavy metals to organics (to later be skimmed).

Again, this is a new tank, patience is going to work better in the long term than doing anything too fast. If you must do something, then go slow.

 

[nbd13]

Is your skimmer your only method of export? Besides the chaeto.

Yes skimmer and chaeto.

 

[nbd13]

Chaeto might be growth-limited by iron. It uses it up quickly and if you are not a religious water change, then you need to supplement it.

If your SPS look great and are growing well, then just leave it alone. I fear that you can do more damage chasing numbers even if you are fighting dinos... they are pretty common in tanks less than a year old, and especially those started with any kind of dry or dead rock. This might just be a rite-of-passage thing. Sure, you can probably find something to kill them, but do you want to risk the SPS?

Thanks for the input. Weren’t you on RC years ago? Think I remember you from there 12-15 years ago.

I’m not worried about chasing numbers at all and know it’s a newer tank. I just know with low numbers something small can send it into a tailspin.

 

[nbd13]

You only have 7 fish in a 150, how much are you “over feeding”? Could you get more fish? Or do as the others suggest, just take the fuge offline or dial back the skimmer, or just turn it off/skim really dry.

My chaeto isn’t really growing at all now. When I started the tank it grew like a weed, but now nothing.

I can’t turn my skimmer on and off as the water level in the sump would fluctuate causing my auto top off to go crazy.

I can dial it back and skim dry.

I have 4 fish coming out of QT Wednesday. So that will be more nutrients too. I feed pellets 2x per day. Usually a tablespoon or so (autofeeder) and then frozen food probably a total of 3ish cubes a day.

 

[nbd13]

I would keep the skimmer running and just tune it to not pull as much. The gas exchange is very valuable for driving off co2 and also binding heavy metals to organics (to later be skimmed).

Again, this is a new tank, patience is going to work better in the long term than doing anything too fast. If you must do something, then go slow.

I’m good with patience, just would like the nutrients up a touch so I have a little buffer room. My all is around 7.7-8 with the triton method.

 

[SeaDweller]

My chaeto isn’t really growing at all now. When I started the tank it grew like a weed, but now nothing.

I can’t turn my skimmer on and off as the water level in the sump would fluctuate causing my auto top off to go crazy.

I can dial it back and skim dry.

I have 4 fish coming out of QT Wednesday. So that will be more nutrients too. I feed pellets 2x per day. Usually a tablespoon or so (autofeeder) and then frozen food probably a total of 3ish cubes a day.

That sounds good, tbh. A whole tbsp of pellets? And that much frozen? Sounds solid to me, so I’d try skimming dry then.

 

[nbd13]

So...Diatoms aren't going away. Saw Bubba used Hydrogen Peroxide so I've been using 1ml per 10 gallons and dosing that for the last 3 days, with no improvement....

Seriously thinking about ditching the Chaeto as I'm wondering if that's the "issue"? It's not growing and maybe using some trace elements that my SPS would like to use instead? Color is ok, but could be better.

I'm using the triton core method now, wondering what would happen if I ditch the chaeto...would the "core" triton method lead to toxic levels of certain trace elements because the "core" method is based on having a fuge? Or could I get by with using the half bottles of all the core triton bottles until they are gone and then switch to "other" triton dosing?

I also dialed my skimmer down to skim more dry. I added 4 more fish today, so hopefully with the extra feeding and waste nutrients will begin to rise! Still can't believe I have PO4 at 0.01 and Nitrate at 0!

Thoughts?

 

[jda]

You have more than .01 and near zero nitrate that is available, or there would be no diatoms. Nobody has truly zero nitrate unless you are heavily dosing organic carbon. What is left over in the water for a test kit to pick up is not a true indication of what is in the tank... look at algae, diatoms, cyano, etc to see what the tank really is doing.

It sounds like you are itching to change something. If so, ditch Triton and just do a few 15-20% water changes.

Nearly nobody gets anything better than OK color out of a 4 month old SPS tank. It just takes time.

 

[nbd13]

You have more than .01 and near zero nitrate that is available, or there would be no diatoms. Nobody has truly zero nitrate unless you are heavily dosing organic carbon. What is left over in the water for a test kit to pick up is not a true indication of what is in the tank... look at algae, diatoms, cyano, etc to see what the tank really is doing.

It sounds like you are itching to change something. If so, ditch Triton and just do a few 15-20% water changes.

Nearly nobody gets anything better than OK color out of a 4 month old SPS tank. It just takes time.

Thanks. Yeah I totally get that there are more nutrients in the tank than the test kits show.

Wondering if chaeto is doing anything since it’s not really growing. Just taking up trace elements?

Seems like the diatoms are getting worse not better to me...I can be patient for sure, but don’t like to see it get worse.

Really would just like to kick these diatoms.

 

[jda]

New tanks don't really need chaeto either. Probably no harm in getting rid of it... keep the fuge, because you will likely want it back some day.

 

[nbd13]

New tanks don't really need chaeto either. Probably no harm in getting rid of it... keep the fuge, because you will likely want it back some day.

Yeah it used to grow like a weed, but the last month has just sat there stagnant.

Not sure taking it out will do much for the diatoms though.

 

[jda]

It likely needs iron. Change some water.

 

[nbd13]

It likely needs iron. Change some water.

Yeah, don’t you think iron should be in the triton “core” elements? Or likely not enough?