Jump to content

ReefdUp

Officer
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    910

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Posts posted by ReefdUp

    Captain Nemo's Escape

    in Dedicated Tank (Build) Forum

    On 12/12/2022 at 6:25 AM, cpeguero said:

    Recently saw discussion in another thread about dosing nitrate, so I just started doing that over the weekend. I'm dosing a nearly saturated potassium nitrate solution. Still have to dial it in, but my nitrates this morning were 2.9 ppm and phosphorous dropped from 64 ppb to 13 ppb over 2 days! Thanks to @ReefdUp for info on this!

     

    Yaaay!! That's great!

    Bacteria Dosing?

    in General Discussion

    3 hours ago, cpeguero said:

    What sort of product do you buy? From the calculator you linked to, you can get the nitrate from a couple different sources - Potassium nitrate and ammonium nitrate. Have you tried both? I would imagine the ammonium nitrate adds in ammonium, which gets processed by the bacteria (and therefore gets you more nitrate). Would the Potassium that is added from Potassium nitrate be an issue at all?

     

    Looking to try this out (since I'm running out of things to fiddle with and need to get acros to be able to thrive in my tank).

     

     

    I actually use sodium nitrate.

    Amazon:  Sodium Nitrate, Reagent Grade (chemically Pure) – 1 lb. Bag https://a.co/d/13Ucime

     

    But I think I remember Randy Holmes-Farley calculating out the amount of potassium added from dosing potassium nitrate, and I don't think it was much (if you decide to use that, check my memory). 

     

    I've used Brightwell's NeoNitro with success, but I need my supplements in much larger bulk nowadays.

     

    Power Outage backup ideas? How long (usually) are outages in Arlington?

    in General Discussion

    EF ECOFLOW RIVER Pro Portable Power Station 720Wh, Power Multiple Devices, Recharge 0-80% Within 1 Hour, for Camping, RV, Outdoors, Off-Grid https://a.co/d/5pFzQbz

     

    We got rid of our giant gas generator for it, and we even take it camping and to the backyard for random fans and other accessories.

     

    There are various sizes, and we sized ours for camping. 

     

    We've only had minor power outages here (knock on wood).

    Help w/ Chaeto

    in General Discussion

    Have you ever used Vibrant?

     

    That aside... are you able to grow any other macroalgae or other algae at all? Are you doing anything for iodine? Do you have green corals or soft corals in the tank, and if so, how are they doing?

    Bacteria Dosing?

    in General Discussion

    14 hours ago, cpeguero said:

    Really interesting discussion! I personally dose Microbactr 7 weekly (per instructions). Got my aquabiom results recently. It’s quite well balanced, but they said they didn’t find any nitrite processing bacteria in the sample, which was weird.

    My nitrates have always been undetectable, but phosphate levels have been high… haven’t checked them recently. Maybe I’ll look into dosing nitrates… algae is better than it was, but still more than it should be….


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

     

    No nitrate processing bacteria with no detectable nitrate... even while dosing MB7?? That is odd. Did you only gather a water sample or take a swab from along the glass/rocks? I think most bacteria is present on surfaces (not in the water column), so that might be the reason. 

    Bacteria Dosing?

    in General Discussion

    1 hour ago, howaboutme said:

     

    You mentioned you dose 40mL daily. What NO3 does that get you? What's your sweet spot?

     

    I need to look up my recipe (I'm not near it right now). But I try to keep my nitrate at 4ppm. Anything lower, and it's gone the next day. Anything higher, and then I start to get algae issues.

    Bacteria Dosing?

    in General Discussion

    Here's a calculator for dosing nitrate... 

    http://www.theplantedtank.co.uk/calculator.htm

     

    You can buy pre-made solutions, but I buy my nitrate in bulk (probably on every watch list by now...). Pre-made is probably the best until you see how the tank reacts.

     

    So, here's why I love managing nutrients this way... I have super-rich colors in my SPS that I can tweak just right. My SPS don't get pastel/ bleached, I can run high alk without burnt tips, and I avoid the plagues of dinos (typically associated with low nutrients). 

     

    The downside is that if I forget... well... you don't want to know my phosphate levels. Let's just say I can't use the Hanna ULR phosphate checker... (But, I know I'm a fringe case from my rescuing efforts.)

    Bacteria Dosing?

    in General Discussion

    2 hours ago, DaJMasta said:

    Hmm, your description of the high phosphates and no nitrates sound somewhat like the way my tank has been running.  I've been carbon dosing (vodka) but have been limited on how high I can go with it because of lack of nitrate, even though my phosphate levels are routinely 1ppm or more.

     

    Not exactly bacteria dosing, but the carbon dosing is sort of for the same thing (and my aquabiomics test came back pretty well balanced and diverse), so I wonder if I should try dosing some nitrate and increasing the vodka addition (to the tank, I swear!)

     

    Try the nitrate dosing - go slow. You might just be a convert! I absolutely love it and find it much easier to manage than other nutrient reduction methods once you get used to it. You may not need the vodka dosing if you just bump up your nitrates.

    Bacteria Dosing?

    in General Discussion

    2 hours ago, howaboutme said:

     

    It sounds like you're talking about the redfield ratio? Many years ago we talked about it as a thing but I've seen more recent posts where it's not. I'm NO3 limited too but haven't played with it since I don't check PO4.

     

    The Redfield Ratio isn't directly related. That doesn't change the fact that bacteria process phosphate and nitrate. Limiting one limits the uptake of the other. I don't maintain a ratio; I maintain sufficient levels of both to reduce both.

    Bacteria Dosing?

    in General Discussion

    When I talk about bacteria dosing, I'm talking about essentially carbon dosing theory without the carbon addition. There is a balancing act with the levels of nitrate, phosphate, bacteria, and carbon. If a tank is high in phosphate and nitrate, it may just need a bacterial boost (both nutrients are required for bacteria). If the nutrient levels drop, then regularly dosing bacteria will address the nutrient levels together... up to the point the tank is carbon limited. Both phosphate and nitrate are testable. Carbon and bacteria are the limiting factors after that. Address those, and phosphate and nitrate are easily controllable.

     

    My tank is typically high on phosphates with undetectable nitrates, so I dose both bacteria and nitrate to reduce the phosphates. It generally takes 40ml nitrate solution (I forget the concentration I made) for my 120g tank... DAILY... to keep the phosphates low. I also dose Microbacter 7 daily (although I've use others).

     

    On the rare occasion, I have had my tanks become phosphate-limited, and nitrate-high, so I've had to dose phosphates to help bring down the nitrates. Crazy, I know. But the amount was super-low (maybe 6ml of the solution).

     

    On the super-rare occasion, I do extremely low carbon dosing just to boost the bacteria temporarily.

     

    My tanks are mature, but I bring in dying corals frequently (which should contribute to the biodiversity, but maybe in a negative manner). I have the aquabiomics kits to test my tanks, but I just haven't done it yet. 

     

    Bottom line, I don't recommend this technique for anyone without advanced knowledge and testing capability, as it is a complete juggling act. For the advanced aquarist, it's nice to have very precise levels of nutrients controlled over time (rather than too rapid of a drop with GFO). But, at a minimum, bacteria dosing can help rule out a bacterial-limitation on nutrient processing for a newbie.

    Member had an algae problem and sought advice

    in General Discussion

    Of course, everything that was said, but I'm also a huge fan of bacteria-dosing. This can help speed up the cycling process with reducing nutrients. It's hard to overdo (if you're just dosing bacteria), but it can get expensive. This is also easy to build upon once the person grows in the hobby (balancing nitrate, phosphate, bacteria, and carbon - which requires advanced testing and dosing). 

     

    I have multiple mature tanks, and I have very distinct tank responses when I manage my nutrients this way. I practically don't even use my skimmers anymore. But, every tank is different. 

     

    All that being said, I do hesitate to suggest bacteria dosing as it could be conveyed as a "miracle in a bottle." There are tons of garbage products out there, and I wouldn't want a newbie just believing every bottle without having a good understanding of the mechanisms at play.

    FragFest! October 15, 2022 from 12 Noon until 5:30 PM

    in Club News

    If you joined as a member in-person, please see if your account has the necessary changes made.  Unfortunately, there are several applications with undecipherable writing, so I did the best I could.  If something isn't correct, please send me a message with the correct information.  

     

    Also, if creating a username on the spot was too much pressure at the time, please let me know what you actually want!  Otherwise, you'll be stuck with "NameTBD####" for perpetuity!  :lol:

    Post your FragFest Goodies!

    in General Discussion

    1 hour ago, dipg said:

    Not sure which red tabling acro you got but I had donated a WWC Wow Acro colony for the Fragfest. 
    here is the picture of the colony I took before sending it to Fragfest

    2AB6BA74-FE78-45FC-B179-ECA0BE39AD3D.jpeg

     

    That's phenomenal! Yes, that's what I received. Thank you!!

    FragFest! October 15, 2022 from 12 Noon until 5:30 PM

    in Club News

    Thanks to all the volunteers, sponsors, vendors, and everyone that came out! It was a great event, as always!

     

    If you joined as a member in person today or had other changes made to your account, please give me a day or two to process them all. Feel free to reach out if you need anything. And... welcome!

×
×
  • Create New...