Keeping Nitrates under control!

**Jayoneseven** · 03-07-2013, 05:20 AM

After a thorough shaking my nitrates are reading around 20ppm, maybe a little under. but this is only a few hours after a 50% water change. I'm sure (from past experiences) by this time tomorrow it'll be back into the danger zone. We'll see :]

**Jayoneseven** · 03-07-2013, 05:49 AM

Also an additional reply, no I don't use any fertilizer tablets, but one thing to add is that I do use a DIY CO2 diffuser. I have a convenient house with a hollow roof, acts as a perfect CO2 bell, simple yeast + sugar water + soda bottle with a cork that has a hole stuck through it with a pipe air tight inside, leading under my gravel and up into the house. CO2 wouldn't cause nitrates though I'm sure.

**Dennis Bissett** · 03-07-2013, 08:14 AM

I dont think you are over stocked, I would suggest a very thorough vacuum of your gravel as part of a major (80-90%) water change, then test nitrates (not forgetting to shake the test bottle to within an inch of its life) If that test shows over 10 nitrates, do another 50% water change, which will halve again your nitrates. Should your nitrates immediately climb again, I'd remove your CO2 setup - unless theres something decomposing in the tank the yeast and sugar water may produce nitrates as a byproduct - not sure but one way to eliminate it as a cause

**Cermet** · 03-07-2013, 09:28 AM

Well, nitrates don't appear out of thin air ... wait, they do but the amount is trival; lighting creates them ... uh, back to your problem. Most likely the nitrates are built up in the substrate. You need to stir the substrate very well (bet the tank becomes rather cloudy) and do a near 100% water change. If it does not, than maybe you are creating nitrates out of thin air ... just kidding.

As for the CO2 generator, this could be an issue ONLY IF the CO2 generator is overflowing allowing some of the solution to enter the tank (can happen.) That would cause a huge nitrate spike. Do you have an anti-siphon attachment on the yeast bottle?

If all these ideas fail, repost and I'll offer a very simple method that may drive mommy1 up the wall

for me suggesting it but the device will vastly reduce the require W/C and get the nitrates under 5 ppm (or even lower.)

**waack** · 03-07-2013, 10:08 AM

Wouldn't be an in tank algae scrubber would it? hahaha due to your constant recommendation im planning and figuring out how im going to incorporate one lol.

**Honey Badger 1** · 03-07-2013, 12:51 PM

Originally Posted by Cermet

If all these ideas fail, repost and I'll offer a very simple method that may drive mommy1 up the wall

for me suggesting it but the device will vastly reduce the require W/C and get the nitrates under 5 ppm (or even lower.)

Originally Posted by waack

Wouldn't be an in tank algae scrubber would it? hahaha due to your constant recommendation im planning and figuring out how im going to incorporate one lol.

Just a quick word of caution, if you haven't cleaned your gravel well in a while, don't stir it up, this may cause an ammonia spike. Just stick the siphon straight in and leave it until the water going up runs clear, then pick it straight up and move it to the next spot.

**imma24** · 03-07-2013, 12:57 PM

Originally Posted by mommy1

Just a quick word of caution, if you haven't cleaned your gravel well in a while, don't stir it up, this may cause an ammonia spike. Just stick the siphon straight in and leave it until the water going up runs clear, then pick it straight up and move it to the next spot.

LOL mommy1 - the way you describe this way to clean gravel is exactly the way I do it - I never stir up my substrate - justpush that siphon into the gravel until it hits the bottom of the tank and watch everything get sucked up - don't remove it until all that gunk has gone into the bucket. It's amazing how much stuff can accumulate at the bottom.

**Jayoneseven** · 03-07-2013, 01:09 PM

As for the CO2 , I use a large empty soda bottle and I only put in about 1 inch of water, and about a teaspoon of yeast. It's enough to fill the house with bubbles but the frothy product never even makes it close to half way up the bottle. I'll do the vacuuming today and I'll get back to you all with results :] Thanks for the speedy responses, lets hope I can figure something out here.

**Rocksor** · 03-07-2013, 02:22 PM

Worst case, you can slowly take out the gravel over the next week, and go barebottom for awhile. This will eliminate the possibility of too much detris in the gravel causing the nitrates.

**Jayoneseven** · 03-08-2013, 03:38 AM

Bought one of those cool big vacuums today (I was using one I got for free with a 10g tank) and WOW did it some up some crap!! The darn thing emptied over 50% of my tank in minutes, so I'll have to vacuum bit by bit. Tomorrow I'll move some decorations around and be sure to get under them too. Judging by the darkness of the water that came up from beneath the gravel I'm quite sure I just found the culprit of the nitrates!