Poor Man's Nutrients Control - Donovan's Nitrate Destroyer

[Dukereefnz]

One was check valve.. plastic would work to stop water going up the dosing tube.
The dosing pump was quite a bit of pressure but low volume. So they should be able to pump though the valve fine.... I'll order a couple to try them.

 

[ravi197699]

since there is carbon dosing (vodka/ vinegar) does this reactor help with phosphate reduction as well?

 

[twentyleagues]

since there is carbon dosing (vodka/ vinegar) does this reactor help with phosphate reduction as well?

Carbon dosing is not real effective at phosphate removal. It will remove a little and can continue to remove a little with adequate amounts of nitrate but not a lot. GFO or lanthium chloride are much more effective at phosphate removal.

 

[ravi197699]

Carbon dosing is not real effective at phosphate removal. It will remove a little and can continue to remove a little with adequate amounts of nitrate but not a lot. GFO or lanthium chloride are much more effective at phosphate removal.

Thank you for your input, I am planning on carbon dosing, not sure which route I will take, dose directly to the sump or build Nitrate reactor,

 

[Tritie]

I took it out. My last icp testshowed a substantial drop. Knock on wood...

 

[2una]

This way has worked well for me for a couple of years and no headache of checking drips/flow etc .
Uses zeolites - it runs 24/7 on the smaller pump & the bigger pump is set to run twice for a zeolite shake up.
Once its working i just tuned the amount of zeolite to have in it.
Don't dose any carbon.
Europe item tho. https://www.knepo.de/ZFS-110-400-W.html

https://www.shop-meeresaquaristik.d...0-Liter-ZFS-110-400-W::17501.html?language=en

Fauna Marin also sell it named as a Zeomatic but much more expensive.
https://www.faunamarincorals.de/en/ZeoMatic-2/18305-VH

Edit: For US i guess the 110V version of those pumps would be needed rather than what it sells with.

 

[Lasse]

This way has worked well for me for a couple of years and no headache of checking drips/flow etc .
Uses zeolites - it runs 24/7 on the smaller pump & the bigger pump is set to run twice for a zeolite shake up.
Once its working i just tuned the amount of zeolite to have in it.
Don't dose any carbon.
Europe item tho. https://www.knepo.de/ZFS-110-400-W.html

https://www.shop-meeresaquaristik.d...0-Liter-ZFS-110-400-W::17501.html?language=en

Fauna Marin also sell it named as a Zeomatic but much more expensive.
https://www.faunamarincorals.de/en/ZeoMatic-2/18305-VH

Edit: For US i guess the 110V version of those pumps would be needed rather than what it sells with.

But this is perfect for nitrification but does it really denitrify too ? Denitrify = process NO3 to N2

Sincerely Lasse

 

[2una]

But this is perfect for nitrification but does it really denitrify too ? Denitrify = process NO3 to N2

Sincerely Lasse

Hi Lasse,
Altho there is no visible presence of bacteria/mulm i'm assuming that is what is happening.
If NO3 is getting too low remove some real estate(zeolites) & vica versa if not doing enough.
I'm light bioload now in a 600L/160gal & using that unit with 500g of zeolite.

 

[Bgmrc]

Just built mine last week...seeding is complete and just started it yesterday...

 

[GARRIGA]

Recall the coil denitrators of the 80s or 90s as well as AquariPure both relying on a slow drip with latter utilizing several coarse layers of media to first exhaust DO via nitrification then process bound oxygen via nitrates plus a food source. Guessing that food source was carbon.

With the advent of carbon dosing this now seems obsolete and for those swaying carbon dosing doesn't solve phosphate I'll have to disagree because I ran a decomposition test for 2 and half plus years which started on the basis of utilizing natural denitrification which at first worked until it didn't and then dosed carbon to solve nitrates and phosphates. Kept my nitrates under 20 and could bottom it out at will. Phosphates remained under 0.25 ppm. I know to some that's high but was using API because precision wasn't the goal. Proving I could elevate levels then drop them was the focus. Those API colors were closer to 0 than 0.25 ppm and final push easily solved with lanthanum chloride.

Isn't this an unnecessary complication which can be solved by dosing were a Fuge/ATS not practical?

 

[GARRIGA]

Here’s the AquariPure internal format. Coarser media acted as nitrification to strip DO then finer media solved nitrates plus food dosed which if it was carbon then perhaps negated the need to do any of this being we can dose directly into a display and solve nitrates.

Almost bought one of these. I think the company no longer exists.

 

[twentyleagues]

Recall the coil denitrators of the 80s or 90s as well as AquariPure both relying on a slow drip with latter utilizing several coarse layers of media to first exhaust DO via nitrification then process bound oxygen via nitrates plus a food source. Guessing that food source was carbon.

With the advent of carbon dosing this now seems obsolete and for those swaying carbon dosing doesn't solve phosphate I'll have to disagree because I ran a decomposition test for 2 and half plus years which started on the basis of utilizing natural denitrification which at first worked until it didn't and then dosed carbon to solve nitrates and phosphates. Kept my nitrates under 20 and could bottom it out at will. Phosphates remained under 0.25 ppm. I know to some that's high but was using API because precision wasn't the goal. Proving I could elevate levels then drop them was the focus. Those API colors were closer to 0 than 0.25 ppm and final push easily solved with lanthanum chloride.

Isn't this an unnecessary complication which can be solved by dosing were a Fuge/ATS not practical?

I ran an aquaripure back in the early 2000s on my 120 I remember it being a pain constantly having to adjust flow and inject vodka daily. I stuck with it for a couple years and it did work but still had to adjust and feed it at least a few times a week. One reason I have not built one of these yet. Even though I understand the technique I just dont have the want to mess with it, I just started carbon dosing.

 

[bubbgee]

Thank you for your input, I am planning on carbon dosing, not sure which route I will take, dose directly to the sump or build Nitrate reactor,

I dose my bacteria, NoPox or TP NP Balance at the sump area where my nitrate removal is located. Instead of a reactor, I placed my bio bricks (a lot of it), dead sps/lps corals, macro algae and miracle mud in the sump. I also run GFO when my phosphates are out of whack.

 

[GARRIGA]

Here’s the internal workings of AquariPure and how I understand denitrification.

 

[twentyleagues]

This was the model I had like your pic just taller. The port at the top is for a carbon source they recommended using vodka. This was marketed for both salt and fw tanks the only difference was amount of carbon source for fw was a lot less. Pretty sure I went through a 1/5 of 5 o clock in about a year on my 120 lps tank. When I added the 125 and 90g tanks this became pretty much useless and I switched to biopellet reactor eventually.

 

[GARRIGA]

This was the model I had like your pic just taller. The port at the top is for a carbon source they recommended using vodka. This was marketed for both salt and fw tanks the only difference was amount of carbon source for fw was a lot less. Pretty sure I went through a 1/5 of 5 o clock in about a year on my 120 lps tank. When I added the 125 and 90g tanks this became pretty much useless and I switched to biopellet reactor eventually.

Would you agree the carbon dosed was the magic and not the media used or restricted flow? As you mentioned, was fickle about getting flow dialed in.

 

[twentyleagues]

Would you agree the carbon dosed was the magic and not the media used or restricted flow? As you mentioned, was fickle about getting flow dialed in.

I think the flow being "fickle" was from the bacteria building up. I never had it reduce nitrate without a carbon source. Back then we didnt have hannahs I used mostly api so maybe a more accurate test would have showed a better pic. But on the 120 I usually between 20% bi-weekly water changes and this unit I could keep nitrate around 20ppm with a pretty high fish load. My euphyllia grew like crazy too.

 

[GARRIGA]

I think the flow being "fickle" was from the bacteria building up. I never had it reduce nitrate without a carbon source. Back then we didnt have hannahs I used mostly api so maybe a more accurate test would have showed a better pic. But on the 120 I usually between 20% bi-weekly water changes and this unit I could keep nitrate around 20ppm with a pretty high fish load. My euphyllia grew like crazy too.

Could it also have been detritus build up? Plans are to build something similar to decompose detritus vs dealing with skimmers or socks then rely on algae to polish the nitrates and phosphates. Carbon dosing I found in my high co2 home was dropping my pH lower than manageable. Algae can replace the gas exchange from a skimmer.

Could be mulm (the next to last step in decomposition) that was clogging. That brown gunk at the bottom of sumps and canisters. In the AquariPure there's no means of removing that and guessing overtime it accumulated and affected performance.

 

[twentyleagues]

Could it also have been detritus build up? Plans are to build something similar to decompose detritus vs dealing with skimmers or socks then rely on algae to polish the nitrates and phosphates. Carbon dosing I found in my high co2 home was dropping my pH lower than manageable. Algae can replace the gas exchange from a skimmer.

Could be mulm (the next to last step in decomposition) that was clogging. That brown gunk at the bottom of sumps and canisters. In the AquariPure there's no means of removing that and guessing overtime it accumulated and affected performance.

The instructions said if I remember correctly that detritus would not hurt it but to try and filter it out before it got there. At the time I ran filter socks and a skimmer the water was taken from after those. So I doubt it. Instructions also indicated to "flush" the unit by increasing flow for a few minutes then dialing it back in if you noticed a drop in flow, I may have gotten that from talking to them also though not sure its been a long time. I probably had to do that once a month if not more. Seemed like most that was ejected was a clear whitish slime so probably bacteria.

 

[Dukereefnz]

Well I can report that I have my unit up and running and it has lowered my nitrates from 30 to 6. I have never been able to get me nitrates this low. So i am very pleased.