Aerate your tank well and you won't need a buffer.
Premix the powder before you add it to the tank.
Premix the powder before you add it to the tank.
Nitrate
- Thread starter kwandrsn
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Right on. PH should not be that low. Hmm.
dcfluegel
Active Member
wow - thank you for this info - we have been fighting the nitrate fight as well... granted, part of the battle absolutely has to do with us rushing things with too much bioload too quickly, but we had also added a fuge with chaeto and mangroves as well as a biopellet reactor and while our nitrate numbers had come down, they were still showing in the 40 range with the API test kit... thank you!
OP
OP
kwandrsn
Valuable Member
Ok a little concerned here. my kh had went down from 9 to 8 and my calcium was staying 380 my ph was 8.0 but after the hour ride to lfs they said it was 7.8. lfs sold me marine buffer powder and advanced calcium powder by seachem. I dosed the advanced calcium yesterday for the first time with a beginner dose according to directions. Today my kh has jumped to 12 and my calcium is 420. Is this fast of a jump ok? Should I not dose anymore just check once a week and dose? When before or after my weekly water change or in between them?
I had been using reef code a and went thru a whole bottle with no luck. One dose of this and wow.
This is the third day I've dosed marine buffer and my ph is still 8.0 just keep dosing daily till it comes up?
Lfs also checked my magnesium and it was 1250 and they said that was fine
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I had been using reef code a and went thru a whole bottle with no luck. One dose of this and wow.
This is the third day I've dosed marine buffer and my ph is still 8.0 just keep dosing daily till it comes up?
Lfs also checked my magnesium and it was 1250 and they said that was fine
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beaslbob
2500 Club Member
don't get too excited. the difference is that api (and severl other kits) are calibrated for the total nitrate ion. but some other kits (fasttest for one) are calibrated to only reflect the nitrogem part fo the nitrate ion (nitrate-nitrogen). So if you api says 40ppm that is actually 40ppm nitrates (total) and ~10ppm nitrate-nitrogen.
howaboutme
Active Member
Yes but when anyone asks you what your nitrate (NO3) is, the number people look for is NO3, not NO3-N. So therefore, a 40ppm on an API test is in fact 40ppm and not divided by 4.4. I'm asking a question, not stating a fact. This is confusing to me as well. I know API, Salifert and Seacham (amongst others, I'm sure) test for NO3 while Red Sea Pro tests NO3-N w/ a conversion that, I guess, many don't use or are too confused to use.
There should be a standard. The people using Red Sea may be getting the lower number when in fact it's higher...???
OP
OP
kwandrsn
Valuable Member
Well a update my nitrates went from 20 to 0 in a week after adding a sump with chaeto. And I haven't done a water change in about 2 weeks and its still a 0. Still a little confused but happy about the change but I have some corals not happy about it which sucks
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Softy Corals will get used to it. They've been in high Trate water for a bit, and will get ticked off with less.
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