Gatorpa
Well-Known Member
That’s true, they also run higher PO4 than the 0.01-0.03. It’s more about the ratio.
Pretty much every one agrees a ULN system will eventually end up starving corals when the load becomes too high.
I don’t know how to manage my nitrates. Anxious.
- Thread starter Miami Reef
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Pretty much every one agrees a ULN system will eventually end up starving corals when the load becomes too high.
Oregon Grown Reef
Valuable Member
I am going to keep nitrate at 10ppm and phosphate between 0.03-.0.8 with carbon dosing, dosing Brightwell Neophos as needed. This gives me a little bit of a buffer if they swing one way or another. If my corals start taking up more nitrate than I have available after they start growing more and I add more pieces then I'll continue to carbon dose, but I'll add more brightwell as needed. I've never had a problem with keeping nitrate levels up, so I don't have to dose it now, but I have NeoNitro as well just in case. I am a big believer in the corals being fed from the increased number of bacteria and it's honestly what made me choose this method of nutrient reduction over others. You have to keep pH up as well, imo, since it drops due to the increase in bacteria. It has been proven that acropora have increased calcification rates when the pH is closer to NSW levels. Sure, there are some tanks that look great despite having low pH, but you're never going to do any damage by increasing pH as close to 8.3 as possible. This is the method that I'm using currently for the BC Blood Bank growout and I'm sticking to it until I have a reason not to.
I dont
Well zero yes, but I don't agree a uln system will eventually starve corals when the load becomes to high. It will still have ultra low nutrients, zero is something completely different.
Gatorpa
Well-Known Member
Fair enough I should have been more specific in my first post.
Trouble is what is the definition of ULN?
Would you agree that with ULN the risk of them bottoming out is a higher risk than a tank with say 10-20 NO3 and 0.05-0.10 PO4?
mind you this is coming from a former No NO3/PO4 guy…
ULN :ultra low nutrients. According to the bottles of NeoNitro and Neophos ULN, brightwell is recommending 3-5ppm of nitrates and .02-.04ppm phosphate.
I agree there is a risk there sure, but there's a risk in almost anything involved with the reef system if it's done one way or another or to excess, whats the difference with this.
Honestly high nutrients is just a different way to run a system and it works for many , and when the system evolves into that with time even more so, there are many reasons to run high nutrients , and just as many reasons to run ULN for some people, with no more risks than any other methods, when a system is new it's easier to keep nutrients low, substrate makes a huge difference right so if the system has no problem hitting 0's I wouldn't run high nutrients and fight what the system wants to do, as long as your adding it's not depleted one day it wont need adding and it could switch over to needing removal. Tons of ways to do it and at different stages of the system maturity, you will require different things.
So I agree, there are risks involved to running a ULN system
ULN is a tricky term. One system that is ULN may have a huge daily flux of nutrients (AAs, feeding, etc) while another may not; the levels of residual N and P have to be evaluated in context.
OP
OP
Miami Reef
Clam Fanatic
Hey guys.
Still daily carbon dosing. I added my vodka back to my dosing regime (like before).
I’m getting the nitrate decrease I’m looking for. I haven’t lost ANY acro/clam.
My corals are growing. Everything is happy. Carbon dosing is the best thing since sliced bread lol.
Still daily carbon dosing. I added my vodka back to my dosing regime (like before).
I’m getting the nitrate decrease I’m looking for. I haven’t lost ANY acro/clam.
My corals are growing. Everything is happy. Carbon dosing is the best thing since sliced bread lol.
OP
OP
Miami Reef
Clam Fanatic
If anyone wants some numbers, I’m sitting at 8.1ppm (Tested yesterday, September 21st, 2022).
My nitrates were 13.7ppm on September 3rd, 2022.
Here’s the graph (the quick dip was likely testing error, unless nitrates can random dip like that for no reason).
My nitrates were 13.7ppm on September 3rd, 2022.
Here’s the graph (the quick dip was likely testing error, unless nitrates can random dip like that for no reason).
OP
OP
Miami Reef
Clam Fanatic
olonmv
Valuable Member
I’ll link it again. It works by flowing water through a pre-determined sized (based on your total water volume) tube filled with media. Aerobic bacteria eats the oxygen rich nutrients and within the same tube anaerobic bacteria eat the deoxygenated part of the NO3 that is left and nitrogen gas is the biproduct that gets released into atmosphere. Or something like that. There is small carbon dosing and all blooms happen within the device and not in tank. There are several users on the thread that have had great success.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/poor-mans-nutrients-control-donovans-nitrate-destroyer.302685/
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OP
Miami Reef
Clam Fanatic
Yesterday was 6.1ppm for me.
olonmv
Valuable Member
My target is 5 or 6 ppm and then start to adjust dosage and flow on this thing. There have been people who’ve built one that have tuned it to where dosing is not longer needed and they maintain the target they’re looking for and do no water changes. If I can get close to same results, I’m definitely goin with a bigger tank.Yesterday was 6.1ppm for me.
Has anyone ever confirmed these are oxygen deficient? I made a denitrication tower using a massive bubble lamp, long time ago. Did nowt for me but then again I wasn’t carbon dosing it. Dam thing used to clog regularly though but you couldn’t get good cheap dosing pumps like you can today.
olonmv
Valuable Member
If you go through the link, Donovan covers all the things you’ve mentioned. Media size matters when it comes to clogging and carbon dosing is required but in smaller amounts. I shoot in straight cheapy vodka and have just one media type, others use 3-4 different types. Give the thread a read. I did mine a lil different. It’s pressurized. I don’t have a sump, I have a tiny AIO. My nutrients have reduced by over 20ppm in a lil over 2 weeks. And I haven’t changed a drop of water.
Yep, I’m familiar with how they are supposed to work as I was planning on using algae exudates from a turbo charged algae scrubber to be the carbon source, many moons ago. Just not sure the denitrification is taking place as suggested, in anaerobic conditions. It’s just my guess that a small open tank full of bioballs fed with aquarium water and a carbon source would do the same job, without all the faffing about. Obviously, wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been wrong though.
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