Nitrate Monster

[CHSUB]

What´s longtime success in the hobby in your world?

Beyond 2 years. I have been told that over 90% of hobby participants leave before 2 years. I’m guessing a large percentage is due to the inability to control algae and maintain a pleasant looking aquarium? I’m Sure there are other factors that contributed to drop out.

It’s not a deviation from the hobby fundamental - it may be a deviation from your approach to the hobby.

Will disagree 100%, maintaining a clean aquarium is the most important learned skill. Everything I do from planning to feeding the aquarium centers on maintaining cleanliness. Where I place the aquarium to ensure easy access, building rock, placing powerheads, selecting fish, feeding, etc, etc, all are done to maintain cleanliness. Imo this question is more about what cleanliness means in “my approach”?

IMO - dosing nutrients can be a positive approach

I suppose it can be, however I consider it an expert technique only. The hobbyist that doses nutrients is someone who is searching for perfection, not the newbie reacting to Salifert no3 test results.

Half cube a day (around 2 g including the water) - to eight fish - no dry food?

Tomini Tang
Tailspot Blenny
Sixline Wrasse

Flame Angel
2 P. Clowns
YWG
Royal G.

First 3 imo, require minimum feeding, plenty of in tank food production. I do feed corals daily.
Some fish pics.

 

[CG2000]

Beyond 2 years. I have been told that over 90% of hobby participants leave before 2 years. I’m guessing a large percentage is due to the inability to control algae and maintain a pleasant looking aquarium? I’m Sure there are other factors that contributed to drop out.

Will disagree 100%, maintaining a clean aquarium is the most important learned skill. Everything I do from planning to feeding the aquarium centers on maintaining cleanliness. Where I place the aquarium to ensure easy access, building rock, placing powerheads, selecting fish, feeding, etc, etc, all are done to maintain cleanliness. Imo this question is more about what cleanliness means in “my approach”?

I suppose it can be, however I consider it an expert technique only. The hobbyist that doses nutrients is someone who is searching for perfection, not the newbie reacting to Salifert no3 test results.

Tomini Tang
Tailspot Blenny
Sixline Wrasse

Flame Angel
2 P. Clowns
YWG
Royal G.

First 3 imo, require minimum feeding, plenty of in tank food production. I do feed corals daily.
Some fish pics.

Lovely fish, and corals. I'd be interested to understand what you mean by clean. Minimal algae, clear water, white sand? If so, that's what I want too.

My original question was aimed at understanding where all the N and P is going in my tank since I increased the lighting. The reason I'm interested is because when I had zero N and P for an extended time I ended up with pretty terrible cyano and dinos ... I don't want them back ... I too want a clean tank! And I currently believe increasing them above zero will help prevent that.

So why increase feeding? 1 cube a day seems like an absurd amount compared to what I was doing before, maybe it's overkill, but I'm going to try it for a bit and see what happens.

Why dose N + P? ... if the additional food doesn't lead to more, the answer is because I don't want cyano and dinos back ... because I want a clean looking tank, within reason.

FWIW, I've put the skimmer back on too.

 

[Lasse]

Beyond 2 years. I have been told that over 90% of hobby participants leave before 2 years. I’m guessing a large percentage is due to the inability to control algae and maintain a pleasant looking aquarium? I’m Sure there are other factors that contributed to drop out.

Will disagree 100%, maintaining a clean aquarium is the most important learned skill. Everything I do from planning to feeding the aquarium centers on maintaining cleanliness. Where I place the aquarium to ensure easy access, building rock, placing powerheads, selecting fish, feeding, etc, etc, all are done to maintain cleanliness. Imo this question is more about what cleanliness means in “my approach”?

This tank is 10 years old. 80 G Never been cleaned. no cleaning in sump. no cleaning of sand, no cleaning of the reversed flow remote sand bed - very dry skimming - around one full skimmer cup a month, I clean the skimmer every one to second month. Looks like this (from jan 8 2026 but looks rather similar today ) No regular WC

My NO3 is around 3–5 mg/L and phosphate varies between 0.1 and 0.3 mg/L but has sometimes been above 1 mg/L

Some fish

I 100 % disagree with you about the importance of thoroughly cleaning an aquarium to achieve a good aquarium and healthy fishes for a long time as a general rule.


I would say that you underfeed your fish.

The reason I'm interested is because when I had zero N and P for an extended time I ended up with pretty terrible cyano and dinos ... I don't want them back ... I too want a clean tank! And I currently believe increasing them above zero will help prevent that.

Experience from many aquarists supports you in this.

Sincerely Lasse

 

[CHSUB]

This tank is 10 years old. 80 G Never been cleaned. no cleaning in sump. no cleaning of sand, no cleaning

This is your advice to a new hobbyist? Set up tank and just let it go? Definitely not my personal method.

This is generally what I see when new hobbyists either dose nutrients or encourage other organisms besides dinos.

 

[CHSUB]

Lovely fish, and corals. I'd be interested to understand what you mean by clean. Minimal algae, clear water, white sand? If so, that's what I want too.

My original question was aimed at understanding where all the N and P is going in my tank since I increased the lighting. The reason I'm interested is because when I had zero N and P for an extended time I ended up with pretty terrible cyano and dinos ... I don't want them back ... I too want a clean tank! And I currently believe increasing them above zero will help prevent that. IT WILL NOT IMO. YOU MAY NEED MORE TIME AND CORAL COVERAGE FROM GROWTH OR ADDING MORE.

So why increase feeding? 1 cube a day seems like an absurd amount compared to what I was doing before, maybe it's overkill, but I'm going to try it for a bit and see what happens. YOUR ORIGINAL INCREASE SEEMS GOOD.

Why dose N + P? ... if the additional food doesn't lead to more, the answer is because I don't want cyano and dinos back ... because I want a clean looking tank, within reason. DO NOT TRUST HOBBY TESTING, CONTINUE CLEANING AND MAINTENANCE INCLUDING BLOWING WITH A TURKEY BASTER AND WC.

FWIW, I've put the skimmer back on too. GOOD!

Yes, clean to me is a simple concept. Zero nuisance algae, crystal clear water, white sand are good examples. Many quote Rich Ross high nutrient tank, however listen to his talks. He is meticulous about removing nuisance algae at first appearance and cleaning his aquarium. He uses a mechanical filter to remove and vacuum algae and detritus.

Only you can really tell how fish are doing, everyone else is just guessing. If they look full and are not aggressive towards each other, they likely are adequately feed. My Sixline wrasse never eats when I feed and it very fat because he is living off worms and food it the tank.

I might increase feeding a little, but would not dose n or p.

Everything I’m reading you are doing looks good imo, more time might only be the missing piece!

Would like to see some pictures of your tank to better understand it.

 

[Lasse]

This is your advice to a new hobbyist? Set up tank and just let it go? Definitely not my personal method.

This is generally what I see when new hobbyists either dose nutrients or encourage other organisms besides dinos.

Not your method - yes but you claimed it was the only method - I disagree

This is my advises to start a tank the easy way without any problems with whatever

15 Steps to Starting a Saltwater Aquarium: The Lasse Method

The Lasse Method for starting a saltwater aquarium.

www.reef2reef.com

Sincerely Lasse

 

[CHSUB]

Not your method - yes but you claimed it was the only method - I disagree

Maybe a misunderstanding, I would never say there is an “only” method. Many, many different ways to succeed and success has different meanings to different hobbyists.

 

[Lasse]

So why increase feeding? 1 cube a day seems like an absurd amount compared to what I was doing before, maybe it's overkill, but I'm going to try it for a bit and see what happens.

When you increase your feeding and dosing the same time - you must be aware of your PO4 readings. One of the pathways PO4 take in the beginning is into the sand and the rockwork. There is an equilibrium point between concentrations in the rocks and water column and its exclusive for every different aquarium - IMO. As soon as your Hanna ULR PO4 checker just indicate an concentration above 0.00 - stop your dosing for some time and see if your feeding is enough in order to hold the value you want. Especially if you have started with dry stones or curated living stones. The NO3 seems not have the same behaviour in a new aquarium but in a mature - you can lose a lot through denitrification.

I hope that the Cubes in the US is the same as in Europe - our is like the ones from Ocean Nutrition - around 4 gr (0.14 ounce)

Maybe a misunderstanding, I would never say there is an “only” method. Many, many different ways to succeed and success has different meanings to different hobbyists.

Exactly - there is many way to to skin a cat - - but I do not think its a misunderstanding - I re-read your post #13 , #19 , #21 and #24 in order to check my understanding of the English language (I´m not a native speaker or writer) but I do not get another understanding than that you see your own approach as the road to paradise. But I can be wrong - it has happen before.

But never the less - let us agree that we disagree and stop this table tennis match.

Sincerely Lasse

 

[CHSUB]

I do not get another understanding than that you see your own approach as the road to paradise

Yes that however is correct, I do see my approach as “the road to paradise”, but as stated there are many routes that go there. I would assume you believe the same, otherwise why give advice to other hobbyist?

 

[Lasse]

I would assume you believe the same, otherwise why give advice to other hobbyist?

I do not know that - I try to see the facts when someone ask fot advises. In this case a 22 G tank that have run for 10 months and have had problems with a dino/cyano outbreak earlier. Six small fishes (fry) and a very low feeding rate of frozen food. Stable after the dino/cyano outbreak but no growth. as I understand it also with measurable amounts of both NO3 and PO4.

In order to have better growth - the light intensity was raised. Result - better growth including algae but a increased amount of snails took care of that. The problem was that the nutrients in the water column was zeroed (using Hanna checkers which are IMO the best viable tools we can use for the moment if you do not buy expensive autotesters) In order to avoid a new dino/cyano roller coaster - it was dosed with NO3 and PO4 in a low rate. There wa a lot of comments about overstock, feeding and so on. IMO - six very small fishes in a 22 G is not IMO overstocked and they was clearly not any overfeed either. I try to explain my point of view with no direct advises more that there was room for an increased feed ratio. I believe more in showing facts, background and so on and let the person in charge make its own decisions based on various facts, inputs and the knowledge of its own aquarium compared with showing the direction with the whole hand.

With this I will leave this ping-pong discussion

@CG2000 - IMO - you can continue to dose. I agree with your standpoint to avoid a new dino/cyano roller coaster with measurable NO3 and PO4

For the NO3 concentration either with NO3 directly or as someone suggested with ammonia bicarbonate. For the PO4 - with caution - as soon as your checker show anything - stop it and wait a few days to see what happens. Raise the feed

Sincerely Lasse

 

[CG2000]

Lasse, thank you for your advice, it has been very helpful

 

[CG2000]

Quick update here ....

Sadly the Algae Blenny got chopped up in the powerhead somehow and I've donated the Lemon Damsel, so the tank is feeling less hectic. I'm down to 4 fish.

I'm feeding about 3/4 of a cube per day, and Phosphate and Nitrate levels are staying relatively stable, a at 0.01 to 0.04 and 2 to 5 respectively.

The last of the dinos have cleared up too, seems like the tank's reached some kind of equilibrium ... fingers crossed it stays that way.

 

[CHSUB]

Quick update here ....

Sadly the Algae Blenny got chopped up in the powerhead somehow and I've donated the Lemon Damsel, so the tank is feeling less hectic. I'm down to 4 fish.

I'm feeding about 3/4 of a cube per day, and Phosphate and Nitrate levels are staying relatively stable, a at 0.01 to 0.04 and 2 to 5 respectively.

The last of the dinos have cleared up too, seems like the tank's reached some kind of equilibrium ... fingers crossed it stays that way.

Bummer about the Blenny. Sounds good otherwise. You might consider a Tailspot Blenny someday. Mine seems to do an excellent job cleaning the rock.

Nutrients seem reasonable. Lower or slightly higher is fine imo, if you maintain consistency with maintenance and feeding. Once you get a routine with both, tanks generally do well. Then changes happen very slowly. Took more than a year and a half before I needed to use GFO to reduce po4 and only used a 1/4 dose once in over 2 years now.