Emergency!

[bollands]

I knew this tank i have bought has high nitrates from the beggining as the previous owner could only have the lights on 3 hours a day max to stop exessive aglae growth but i never knew the levels were at 200ppm and thats after a 15% water change, taken half the original sand and added live sand and hover the bottom. bought a phosphate and nitrate remover and removed the bio-balls the first thing i did when i got the tank a week ago but still really high!! amazing fish are still alive. got 20kg of live rock in 128l orca tl550 what to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

p.s. THE FISH SEAM HEALTHY!

BTW PROTEIN SKIMMER BUST BUT ORDERED OTHER ONE, GOT UV STERILISER AND TWO POWER HEADS RUNNING

SHOULD I HAVE A REFUGIUM?

 

[Truck]

what test kit are you using? are you using it right? is it for salt water?

are you using a filter?

 

[aaronnorth]

some fish can survive NO3 at about 400ppm, and some into 1000ppm. But still hobbyist test kits dont go that high usually.

To get it down i would just carry on with 20% daily water changes.

 

[n3ont3tra]

How many fish?

 

[bollands]

ok i just bought macro algea for the back also

the test kit is a red sea one and they tested it also in the shop because i was so shocked!
i only got 3 fish
2clowns and a mandarin atm

 

[Truck]

ok i just bought macro algea for the back also

the test kit is a red sea one and they tested it also in the shop because i was so shocked!

how many fish? what size tank? are there any bio balls/ceramics in the back? that are clogged?

 

[bollands]

no no
i took them out just chemical new media in there now and i have 3 small fish

i got some macro algea is it enough light at the back whoever has an orca?

 

[rabbut]

Daily 5-10% waterchanges untill they drop to normal. Toxic shock works both ways, so nitrate has to come down SLOWLY

 

[Crazy fishes]

Daily 5-10% waterchanges untill they drop to normal. Toxic shock works both ways, so nitrate has to come down SLOWLY

Nitrates aren't toxic though at 200ppm. So you can go with 5-10% daily but that is going to be expensive for R/O if you are buying it. I would hit the tank with a 50% water change and then another 50% water change which in theory should bring the levels down to 50ppm. The essential thing is that the water you add has prefectly matched temperature and pH to the tank water. It is this rather than sudden drops in nitrate which kill fish and invertebrates. I have done bigger water changes on a tank containing dwarf puffers (notoriously difficult to keep alive long term) and they pulled through because I matched the physiochemical parameters of water to that of the tank. I have had my puffers for two years now and hopefully much longer. They are lovely little fellas.
I also have two marines so I do have some knowledge of marine systems just in case you got thrown by the dwarf puffers ...

Hope this helps

Regards

 

[seffieuk]

Daily 5-10% waterchanges untill they drop to normal. Toxic shock works both ways, so nitrate has to come down SLOWLY

Nitrates aren't toxic though at 200ppm. So you can go with 5-10% daily but that is going to be expensive for R/O if you are buying it. I would hit the tank with a 50% water change and then another 50% water change which in theory should bring the levels down to 50ppm. The essential thing is that the water you add has prefectly matched temperature and pH to the tank water. It is this rather than sudden drops in nitrate which kill fish and invertebrates. I have done bigger water changes on a tank containing dwarf puffers (notoriously difficult to keep alive long term) and they pulled through because I matched the physiochemical parameters of water to that of the tank. I have had my puffers for two years now and hopefully much longer. They are lovely little fellas.
I also have two marines so I do have some knowledge of marine systems just in case you got thrown by the dwarf puffers ...

Hope this helps

Regards

Again I agree with CF, this is getting to be a habbit

Seffie x

 

[rabbut]

If you take a fish and acclimate it from water with say 0ppm Nitrate and stick it into water with Nitrates at 100ppm (the equivelant of the OP's tank after a 50% waterchange) without mixing waters first (as per during a waterchange) you'd expect the fish to flake. When I say toxic shock works the same way, I mean that lowering nitrates by the same ammount via a waterchange will nack the fish just as much as acclimating them into a higher Nitrate system. Feel free to drag them down fast, but as with Freshwater, expect heavy fish losses if you do. It isn't always the case, some get lucky, but a lot of fish will suffer if the Nitrate drops too fast.

 

[Trod]

i got some macro algea is it enough light at the back whoever has an orca?

I would add some more light in the back, I have a marina LED white light lit 24/7


http/www.shopwiki.co.uk/search/Marina+LED+Single+Light

 

[bollands]

thanks for all your help guys i just dont know haw the previous woman could get the nitrates soooo high,
#
she never used a siphon just a sausepan to do partial water changes so i siphoned out the crap from her sand yesterday and put new live sand on top, if it stays high i might get some more live rock. i think my live rocks not to liv anymore loll
i also have a wormy looking thing with tentacles that moves is grey and flexible not a bristle worm shall i move it>>>?

 

[rabbut]

Can you post a photo for ID?

 

[bollands]

this forum cant host anything above 100k for pics and i got hi spec camera so dont know what to do