Nitrate And 40Ppm Question...

[Mamashack]

Are there any specific plants that are known to remove more nitrates? Or will any plant do the job? I've been looking on Ebay and seen some moss-balls which the shop owner said would definitely shift nitrates, but was just wondering if there are any plants that do the job better.

 

[snazy]

No, pick easy plants that are fast growers. The faster they grow, the faster they'll utilize nitrAtes. Then again, plants prefer ammonia, so they'd steal some of it from the filter bacteria too. Moss balls take years to grow. I wouldn't say they take much nitrAtes but then I can't measure that

 

[TwoTankAmin]

snazy- the tube is clear, the fish don't see it. What they do see is the particles going up and anything that might be food is always a draw.
 
Mama- go for stem plants. Most can be floated as well as planted. Also floaters like frogbit work well too.

 

[Mamashack]

Thanks snazy and twotank - I'll see what Pets at Home has to offer later today.

 

[snazy]

snazy- the tube is clear, the fish don't see it.

 

 I didn't think that they don't see the tube itself.

 

[Mamashack]

More plants is always good.  As far as "fasting" fry, it generally isn't recommended.  BUT, with that said, I've been fasting my tank regularly, and I've had several corydoras fry grow up in my tank with NO intervention from me.  The live plants actually are home to a variety of microorganisms that normally would feed the fry in the wild, things like "infusoria" and the like.  I have a fairly good number of real plants and the fry do just fine without any special treatment from me.
 
 
A 20% PWC won't do much to lower high levels of any contaminant in the tank.  Imagine you have 100ppm nitrate, a 20% water change (with 0ppm nitrate tap water) would only lower the levels to 80ppm.  Not noticeable on the API test kit.  On the other hand, doing a 50% PWC would lower the levels to 50ppm, and a 75% PWC would drop it to 25ppm.  Personally, I am a fan of LARGE water changes.  The 20% water change schedule that is so often discussed is best for lowly stocked tanks.  More heavily stocked tanks really benefit from a much more aggressive water change schedule.  I do 25% weekly, a 50% monthly, and a 75% every 6 months.  In the summer I do even MORE water changes than that, and do a 25% water change twice a week, sometimes 3 times a week.  I use this water for my flowers in the summer, and I use it to emulate a "rainy" season for the fish.  It works for me, and I think the fish actually appreciate the change in seasons like this.

 I'm trying a little experiment since yesterday's 30% pwc still made little difference to the highish nitrate levels (yes I know I'm being paranoid, but indulge me! lol)
Since my tap water nitrates are so high (20ppm) to start with I'm going to compare Nitra-Zorb against Safe Balance both of which claim to reduce the nitrates. The Safe Balance seems to be cheaper on a weekly basis, tho I have to say I'm impressed that so far the Nitro-Zorb has reduced the tank water level from 40-80ppm to 5ppm in 24 hours. I just hope it's not too low for the plants now! lol
The sachet has to be recharged every week with aquarium salt which will last 5 weeks whereas the Nitro-Zorb sachet should be changed every 8 weeks (go figure!) Anyway after 5 weeks I'll change to the Safe Balance and see if that does what it says on the label and compare the nitrate levels. I'll still be doing the weekly water checks and a 25-30% pwc every week regardless if only to refresh the water and give my kitchen floor a good wash in the process! lol
Watch this space!

 

[Mamashack]

I've just had a worrying thought! If the Nitro-Zorb removes the ammonia as well (the level is now 0 from 0-0.25ppm) does that mean the nitrifying bacteria will starve and die leaving me with the need to cycle again?

 

[snazy]

Yes, it will compete for ammonia. I am not accustomed to the product you are using but putting it on the final level of filtration will be best as it will just take out ammonia that wasn't filtered by the bio level previously, although it will still compete with the bio bacteria.
Why don't you get more plants instead. They should be able to control the nitrAtes if they grow healthy and you have enough of them.

 

[Mamashack]

I put 3 new plants in there yesterday altho the guy at the LFS said they would only help in the long term. I've got the sachet held in between the Fluval U1 filter and the aquarium side. It did say to put it in the filter but there wasn't room so I thought that would be a good compromise. Perhaps I should remove it now and start using the Safe Balance next week instead of what I was planning. What do you think? Don't want to solve one problem by causing another!

 

[snazy]

Personally, I would concentrate on growing the plants and plant as heavy as you can. In the long run they are the healthiest solution and will take out of the water all type of toxins, metals, ammonia, nitrIte, nitrAte, just to name a few...Plant as much as you have room and you like it and try growing them. Possibly some ferts needed for that but you'll be surprised how much nitrAtes they'd pull out of the water the least. They may even bring down the nitrAtes to nothing eventually. They need to be healthy and growing to do that and sometimes it isn't so easy, but if you choose the plants carefuly to suit the tank conditions, with a bit of reseach and care you should get them going.
 
The other option is to use the products you've bought in case the plants don't make it, and see how it goes in conjunction with the plants and filtering. The problem is that these chemicals will try outcompeting both the plants and the filter bacteria but since you've got them already, try them and observe, then make up your mind.
Have you checked out Seachem Purigen instead? It's supposed to be one of the best when it comes to removing organics and hence less nitrAtes, ammonia and nitrites for that matter? For a small filter and tank like that you only need a tiny amount. I put it in a mesh bag and spread it along the lenght of the U2 and U4 filters I've got so it fits somehow.

 

[Mamashack]

I've removed the Nitra-Zorb sachet and put it in a plastic bag in the fridge for now. It's done what I'd wanted and got the nitrates down to a reasonable level i.e. one I can distinguish on the results card (5ppm). I'll see what the levels are later this week and decide how to proceed.
I've checked out the Seachem Purigen and from what I understand it needs the use of bleach to be recharged and that makes me wary as I haven't found a decent chlorine test, other that what was on the dip-sticks I stopped using in favour of the API Master Test Kit which is much more accurate if more time consuming. However it doesn't have a chlorine test. I would also like to find a decent one if I can as I've been told by the water board that the amount of chlorine in domestic drinking water can vary from week to week depending on what needs treating. They only prepare it for human consumption and not fish-keeping and whilst they said they would happily let me have the figures, the chlorine level might be totally different within a few days!
I've been pondering some time about this and know there are several products for removing tap water chlorine such as Waterlife's Haloex. API's Stress Coat and Tetra's Aqua Safe. They all seem to have different ingredients and therefore the quantities used are different. Is any one better than the others and is it possible to overdose? I've been using Haloex (formaldehyde) and putting in more than recommended as using the dipsticks always showed it to be slightly +ve using the recommended amount. <Deep breath!>
Sorry I've digressed from the main topic, but the product you recommended prompted me to ask.

 

[snazy]

Can you find Prime where you are? It's the most concentrated and comprehensive when it comes to what it does, so it works out cheaper at the end.
To be on the safe side with chlorine fluctuations in tap water you can dose double the recommended amount at water changes. I often do myself. Sometimes the water stinks of chlorine.

 

[Mamashack]

Never heard of Prime but I'll keep an eye out for it - thanks

 

[Mamashack]

Have checked on Ebay and Amazon (UK sites) and the smallest I can find is 250ml which treats 2500 US gallons which is about 2000 UK gallons and would probably go out of date before I had chance to use ½ of it. It seems to be available in the smaller quantities in the USA but then the shipping makes it prohibitive. If you know anywhere in the UK that sells the 50ml size I'd be grateful to know. For now I'll carry on with what I've got and give twice as much as is recommended. I also read that most dechlorinaters turn chlorine into ammonia - didn't know that. The more I learn the more there is to learn! 

 

[Mamashack]

Lol! I've just done the maths and if I exchange 30% every week (5 UK gallons) it would take me 8 years to go thro that lot!!!  Even a 50ml bottle would last more than 18 months and most of these things tell you to use them within 12 months of opening. I suppose it's a good idea for the aquarists with more water to treat, but as an enthusiastic hobbyist I only have a 60L (15 UK gallon) tank. But thanks for the heads-up snazy - much appreciated!