Ammonia Absorbing media?

[bumblebee]

I was just curious if anybody has any experience with the White Diamond Ammonia absorbing media? My thinking is that... if I can reduce the amount of ammonia going into the nitrogen cycle, then I can reduce the amount of nitrates at the end. Does this work? Has anyone tried? Glad to hear everyone's opinions on this stuff! Thanks.

 

[Harmonic]

I don't think it works like that. Reducing the ammonia going into the cycle reduces the cycle, not the end result. What happens when using ammo-lock or white diamond is that nitrites can't flourish, and your tank kinda gets stuck at the end of the first stage. Even worse, many people leave the ammo-stuff in too long, and it becomes a poison distributer instead of a poison sponge. I recommend a chemical/compound free cycle, with attention payed to testing and water changes.

The only thing I find chemical absorbing compounds are really good for is to throw in the filter during a desperate emergency while you're preparing to do a big water change. It might save some lives in that situation.

 

[cichlidmaster]

Agree with Harmonic....................

This stuff should not be used while cycling a tank. It will defeat the purpose

Nitrates are not a by product of ammonia, nitrites are!!

CM

 

[bumblebee]

Well my tank is fully cycled, I was simply trying to think of ways to reduce how fast the nitrates build up...but thanks for the info.

 

[Harmonic]

Well, CM may be a bit exited over it, but he's right. The "nitrite phase" severs any relationship between nitrate and ammonia. Efficient nitrate reduction, or "Natural Nitrate Reduction", NNR for short, is a very tricky subject. It's kind of the holy grail for saltwater hobbyists, as we try our best to keep nitrates at zero all the time. It can be achieved through cultivation of anaerobic bacteria, and/or proper balance of O2/CO2 exchange between floura and fauna. A person should have a very thorough understanding of aquarium chemistry before getting into this area. Fooling around with anaerobic bacteria and deep substrates is very dangerous; the smallest mistake can cause the tank to crash.

A more reliable method if you have the room and the cash, would be to plumb up another tank, somewhere above the main display tank, and use a powerhead to pump the water up to it, then gravity back. The increased water volume would slow nitrate build up. The larger the auxiliary tank, the slower the build up.