Zero nitrates dull sps

[Ryan15236]

My nitrates have been on the way down for awhile but they have stayed at zero now for 2 weeks. Phosphate is staying consistent 0.08ppm-0.1ppm. I’m still in early stages of keeping sps. A few of them are looking good and a few are looking dull and pasty. Wondering if I should consider an amino supplement or nitrate dosing?
Tank has zero algae issues and looks good. Coralline growing well. Alkalinity got down to 7.0dkh and I slowly bumped up to 7.7 over last 3 days and increased my dosing. I’m seeing growth but it’s slow
I have increased my feeding and added more fish and not looking to go this route. I have 21 fish including 5 tangs, foxface and CBB. Others are small/medium fish. I feed 1 frozen cube in morning along with 1 sheet of nori, autofeeder feeds NLS pellets at 12pm and 4pm and then I feed another cube in evening. I run a skimmer 24/7, change filter socks every 2-3 days, have lit refugium but not growing macro algae, 5 gallon weekly water changes. 180 gallon mixed reef tank running for 20 months with plans to go sps dominant

 

[js-3Design]

Well you need higher nitrates otherwise your corals will never grow or even survive.
I would start dosing ammonia

 

[MajorDad74]

Grok ai is perfect for nailing issues like this. And Randy Holmes Farley here on this site. The only go to’s imo. Grok will tell you what to dose and how much. Good luck!

 

[X-37B]

Some ideas.

Go to 400 micron mesh socks, clean maybe once a month or when needed.

Reduce WC to every 2 weeks.
I do 5% a month on all systems.

Feed more. I feed heavy 4-5× a day in my 150, 90% acros.This always brings up no3 and po4 in my 22 month old system. 5-6 cubes plus some pellets for 10 fish.

If that does not work you can look at dosing no3, or as above mentioned ammonia.
My 150 22 months
Po4 runs .1-.2.
No3 runs 5-20
This sytem runs 2 oversized skimmers and I control
Po4 with gfo when needed and no3 with vodka daily.

 

[js-3Design]

Grok ai is perfect for nailing issues like this. And Randy Holmes Farley here on this site. The only go to’s imo. Grok will tell you what to dose and how much. Good luck!

You trust an hallucinating word generator that has no knowledge about anything nor understands anything with the life of your pets? Wow.

Op, please educate yourself and learn what to do and how to do it. Understanding your reeftank is very important. And a LLm won't help you with that.

 

[MajorDad74]

Grok ai is perfect for nailing issues like this. And Randy Holmes Farley here on this site. The only go to’s imo. Grok will tell you what to dose and how much. Good luck!

You trust an hallucinating word generator that has no knowledge about anything nor understands anything with the life of your pets? Wow.

Op, please educate yourself and learn what to do and how to do it. Understanding your reeftank is very important. And a LLm won't help you with that.

Done it for a year and my parameters are perfect.

 

[MajorDad74]

Grok ai is perfect for nailing issues like this. And Randy Holmes Farley here on this site. The only go to’s imo. Grok will tell you what to dose and how much. Good luck!

You trust an hallucinating word generator that has no knowledge about anything nor understands anything with the life of your pets? Wow.

Op, please educate yourself and learn what to do and how to do it. Understanding your reeftank is very important. And a LLm won't help you with that.

Oh and btw, grok directly quotes Randy. So educate yourself and stop spreading bs you know nothing about.

 

[js-3Design]

Done it for a year and my parameters are perfect.

Oh i believe it can give correct answers most of the time.

But you need to understand why and what you are doing.
Sooner or later grok will hallucinate. And than you kill your reef and dont understand what went wrong.

Never trust an ai with anything important. It will bite you in the butt.

 

[js-3Design]

Oh and btw, grok directly quotes Randy. So educate yourself and stop spreading bs you know nothing about.

Anything randy says is worthless without the context in which he said it.

I won't believe randy will ever advice to listen to an Ai.

 

[MajorDad74]

Done it for a year and my parameters are perfect.

Oh i believe it can give correct answers most of the time.

But you need to understand why and what you are doing.
Sooner or later grok will hallucinate. And than you kill your reef and dont understand what went wrong.

Never trust an ai with anything important. It will bite you in the butt.

Here are the sources for my specific question. As I stated, grok is perfect

 

[MajorDad74]

Oh and btw, grok directly quotes Randy. So educate yourself and stop spreading bs you know nothing about.

Anything randy says is worthless without the context in which he said it.

I won't believe randy will ever advice to listen to an Ai.

I literally stated that it quotes Randy specifically.

 

[code4]

Randy Holmes Farley has lots of information out there on dosing for nitrates. Bottoming out on nitrates can lead to other issues also. One being dinos. I am no expert and encourage you to research it. But in my opinion you should get the nitrates up.

 

[exnisstech]

I dose ammonium bicarb to keep NO3 detectable in my SPS tank.

No AI needed to find the information.

DIY Ammonia dosing for low nitrate systems

Some reef aquaria have chronic low nitrogen availability. One indicator is very low nitrate. Nitrate dosing is a fine remedy, but it is possible that ammonia dosing may be more beneficial for some organisms since ammonia can be energetically easier to assimilate than is nitrate. For this...

www.reef2reef.com

And a handy dosing chart compliments of the late Maimi Reef.

DIY Ammonia Dosing Chart

Introduction: Many reef tanks have an incredible nitrate demand, and despite the additional fish and coral food, still struggle to make an impact on the nitrate level. This can subject corals, anemones, coralline, macro/microalgae, and clams to nutrient starvation. Any photosynthetic organism...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[js-3Design]

Asking grok what and how much to dose won't help you with that (as stated in your first message)

 

[MajorDad74]

My nitrates have been on the way down for awhile but they have stayed at zero now for 2 weeks. Phosphate is staying consistent 0.08ppm-0.1ppm. I’m still in early stages of keeping sps. A few of them are looking good and a few are looking dull and pasty. Wondering if I should consider an amino supplement or nitrate dosing?
Tank has zero algae issues and looks good. Coralline growing well. Alkalinity got down to 7.0dkh and I slowly bumped up to 7.7 over last 3 days and increased my dosing. I’m seeing growth but it’s slow
I have increased my feeding and added more fish and not looking to go this route. I have 21 fish including 5 tangs, foxface and CBB. Others are small/medium fish. I feed 1 frozen cube in morning along with 1 sheet of nori, autofeeder feeds NLS pellets at 12pm and 4pm and then I feed another cube in evening. I run a skimmer 24/7, change filter socks every 2-3 days, have lit refugium but not growing macro algae, 5 gallon weekly water changes. 180 gallon mixed reef tank running for 20 months with plans to go sps dominant

Here my experience with ai and nitrates

https://grok.com/share/c2hhcmQtNQ_57bb2eed-4e8f-4c58-be89-e8ea9eccbf74

 

[MajorDad74]

edited

 

[Ryan15236]

With NO₃ at 0 for ~2 weeks and PO₄ holding ~0.08–0.10 ppm, you’ve landed in a classic SPS imbalance zone: phosphate present but nitrogen limited. In early SPS systems, that often produces exactly what you’re describing — pale, pastel, or “pasty” tissue despite otherwise healthy conditions.

You’ve already done the right things (feeding more, fish load, stability, alk correction). Let’s break down what’s happening and what to tweak.

⸻

What your numbers are telling you

Current state:
• Nitrate: 0 ppm (limiting nutrient)
• Phosphate: 0.08–0.10 ppm (available)
• Alk: 7.7 dKH (good for SPS)
• Coralline growth: strong
• No nuisance algae
• Good fish load & feeding

Likely result:
• Zooxanthellae density drops → pale tissue
• Reduced nitrogen → reduced pigment & protein synthesis
• SPS appear pastel/dull instead of rich coloration

This is not starvation of the coral itself — it’s nitrogen limitation of symbiotic algae.

⸻

Ideal nutrient range for early SPS success

For your system maturity and bioload:
• Nitrate: 2–10 ppm
• Phosphate: 0.03–0.08 ppm
• Alk: 7.5–8.5 dKH
• Stability > exact number

You are very close — just missing nitrate.

⸻

Should you dose nitrate?

YES — in your case it makes sense

Because:
✔ Heavy fish load already
✔ Feeding is substantial
✔ Refugium not consuming nutrients
✔ Skimmer & filtration likely stripping N
✔ SPS showing nitrogen limitation

Target: 2–5 ppm initially

Safe nitrate dosing options

Potassium nitrate (KNO₃) solutions:
• Brightwell NeoNitro
• DIY stump remover (Spectracide) solution
• Tropic Marin NP-Bacto Balance (also carbon)

Start slow:
• Raise 0.5 ppm per day
• Stop around 2–3 ppm
• Observe coral response

Signs you hit the sweet spot:
✔ Colors deepen
✔ PE improves
✔ Growth tips intensify
✔ No algae bloom

⸻

What about amino acids?

Amino dosing is optional and secondary.

When amino acids help:

✔ Ultra-low nutrient systems
✔ Enhancing coloration & PE
✔ After nitrate is detectable

Good options:
• Acropower
• Brightwell CoralAmino
• Red Sea AB+ (also carbs & aminos)

If used, dose lightly 2–3x weekly, not daily.

Important: Aminos do NOT replace nitrogen availability.

⸻

Why your refugium isn’t growing macro

Macroalgae require:
• nitrate
• phosphate
• iron & trace elements

With NO₃ = 0, macro simply cannot grow.

When nitrate rises, macro may begin growing — which is a good sign of system balance.

⸻

Alkalinity note (important)

Your move from 7.0 → 7.7 dKH was good.

Keep:
• steady dosing
• avoid swings >0.3/day
• test daily until stable

Low nutrients + high alk can burn tips — but you’re now in a safer range.

⸻

Feeding & bioload assessment

Your feeding is robust and fish load heavy.

Do NOT increase feeding further.
You’re already exporting nutrients faster than you produce them.

⸻

What to expect after nitrate correction

1–2 weeks:
• deeper coloration
• improved PE
• more “velvety” tissue

1–2 months:
• increased growth rate
• macro algae may start growing
• SPS pigmentation stabilizes

⸻

Quick action plan

Begin nitrate dosing → target 2–5 ppm
Keep phosphate where it is
Maintain alk 7.5–8.2 stable
Consider amino dosing after nitrate detectable
Continue current feeding & water change schedule
Monitor for macro growth & coral color change

⸻

If you want, I can also:

✔ Calculate exact nitrate dosing for 180g
✔ Review SPS species you have & expected coloration
✔ Evaluate lighting & spectrum for SPS coloration
✔ Help balance nutrients long-term

You’re very close — this is the stage where SPS tanks start turning the corner.

 

[Ryan15236]

I have chatGPT. I use it for my reef, work, and business. I’m not at the point where I rely on it but use as additional input. Above is ai response to my thread question. I believe AI is a useful tool and avoidance of it will only slow down my progress. I still come here first straight to the source

Edit I will also mention when I did my correction dose for alkalinity it was spot on. It seems it can handle these task accurately and quickly

 

[js-3Design]

Well it isn't telling you anything your didn't already know.

You need to improve nitrates, I advice on dosing ammonia instead of nitrates... but that is personal preferences.

 

[Ryan15236]

Well it isn't telling you anything your didn't already know.

You need to improve nitrates, I advice on dosing ammonia instead of nitrates... but that is personal preferences.

Agreed with one exception. It recommends to dose both. Nitrate daily and ammonia 2x weekly. Listing ammonia as optional or secondary Thoughts here?