Help with nitrates

[makana]

I changed the flow the best I could but its pretty much impossible to avoid dead spots in a nano cube. I use a turkey basted on the rocks every couple days.

I don't really want to put a pellet reactor on it. The tank is already running way more equipment than I wanted. But I guess that may be my only way out at this point.

I don't think I've read about bleaching the rock. It sounds a little harsh and I would expect the rock to be dead after that. I guess if that's the case I could buy dry rock and swap it in for live over time.

[asylumdown]

If you don't want to run pellets, you could always start dosing vodka, sugar, or vinegar (or all three). It's the same idea as pellets, and there's heaps of how to's online, and it doesn't require a reactor. It's a little more fickle to get going, but once it's dialled in apparently it's quite successful.

[makana]

I'll look into a nano sized reactor. Any thoughts on prodibio? I think there is a nano version of that.

[asylumdown]

Some people swear by it. I tried it on my old 20 gallon nano and 90 gallon reef and it didn't seem to do much, but I might not have given it enough time. Those tanks never tested as having any detectable nutrients though, they were just over-run by problem algaes, so the Prodibio might not have been able to get it's foot in the door, so to speak. There's enough people out there firmly in the Prodibio "camp" to suggest that it does do something

[Proteus]

Yeah it takes 6/8 weeks for prodibio. That's when I noticed the difference. I wouldn't use the nano kit. Just buy the bioptim and digest.

[makana]

Any other suggestions?

Anyone know where I can get prodibio if I go that route?

[Ryan7]

[quote=makana;765933]I have a shallow sand bed that cleaned up with a gravel vac.
I run filter floss that I change every other day.

Why are you cleaning the sand with a vac or cleaning it at all?

Leave the sand alone. Constantly disturbing the sand will cause problems with your nitrates. The idea of a sand bed is to produce natural nitrite/nitrate reducing qualities with pods, worms, bacteria ect....

Ditch the floss.

If your nitrates still remain, start slowing dosing vinager to add nitrate reducing bacteria to the system.

[makana]

A shallow sand bed has no nitrate reducing qualities. All of the reading I have done has led me to believe that it is purely asthetic. If I understand it correctly, a shallow sand bed can become a nitrate factory. Maybe I'm out to lunch but that is what I have read.

Why would I ditch the filter floss? It is my only means of removing larger particles before they settle.

[Proteus]

I have 1/2 cm sand bed which I clean. I run filter material also. But even though you clean the sand bed you should have cuc to get detritus and uneaten food before it breaks down

[makana]

There are a few sand sifting snails that live in the sand as well as a handfull of hermit crabs and a handfull of turbo snails. I never used to clean the sand bed but recently have been reading that a shallow sand bed should be kept clean so I started cleaning it in hopes it would help.