ray keepers please read....and answer..

[jcardona1]

my example isnt specific to rays, but i was having nitrate issues in my 400g. even after doing 80% water changes every week, my nitrates were still 80ppm+. i finally installed a 24/7 drip system and removed all the sand, and a week later nitrates are down to about 10-20ppm. the 3" sand bed was being a nitrate factory in my tank!!!!!!!

just something to consider

okay here's a nitrate update, a week after setting up the system!!! first off, here's something a little interesting. i used two different API test kits, and they both gave different results.

the kit on the left was purchased was purchased over 2 years ago. the one on the right, less than a year. i was under the impression these things had long shelf lives? either way, one is saying 20ppm, and the other is saying 10ppm, which is GREAT!!!!! and especially considering this is a 400g tank with a huge bio load; some monster pbass, big silver aro, large bichirs, etc.

so now the question is, which should i consider accurate



and here's the reults from last week, when i first set the system up. tap water on the left, and tank water on the right, well over 80ppm (right after doing a 75% water change

 

[DB junkie]

say your nitrates are at 100. even though you are doing alot of waterchanges, u are prob just keeping it steady at 100

say u did a 100% waterchange 3 days in a row, ur nitrate would drop a good amount. then u could go back to your normal routine to keep it in check. just a thought

Intresting..... 3 75% waterchanges (630 gallons) a week is not enough to lower nitrate levels? Hard to fathom the fact that an amount of water like that only maintains levels. Not disagreeing with you at all. I know you're right. I can keep them low if I just do daily WCs but after the first year of having rays my life changed, WCs became un fun and I developed a strong hatred for seafood. Drip systeems have definetly made life better, but I still hate seafood.

My test kit is probobly old enough to have expired a few times. This is probobly a bunch of my trouble.

 

[SpeshulEd]

My 450g is a pain. My nitrates hang around 80-100ppm. I read in Dr. Ross's book that rays thrive all the way to 200ppm and don't show signs of stress until the 300-400ppm range. I stopped worrying so much after this.

I was doing 2-3 75% water changes a week in the beginning and the other fish in the tank used to flash more. I assumed this meant I needed to do more water changes. Now, I do 1 75% change a week and the fish have stopped flashing and the nitrates hang around 80-100ppm. I'm calling that good for now.

An automatic drip is coming in the near future though.

I have hard water and high ph. Nitrate levels are around 5-10ppm coming out of the tap.

 

[michalm]

1. What type of test kit are you using and age?
API - couple months

2. Where is your location?
MA, Chicopee

3. Size of tank?
180 gal

4. Stocklist?
2 x Balck Arowana (15" and 17")
3 x StinRays Motoro (13", 12", 11")
1 x Pleco Panaque Royal L-27a (7")

5. How much do you feed and how often?
Rays - 2 times per day 4-5 shrimp
Arowanas - 6 super worms and couple Hikari Palets

6. What type of filteration..details
Wet/Dry MegaFlow Model 4
Eheim Pro 3e 2078

7. How often to you change the water, and amounts changed?
Automatic Water Changer System - 1.5 gal/h = 252 gal/week

8. What are your nitrates before and after water change?
Every time the same ~ 10ppm

Because I had lots of problems with NO3, I made my own Automatic Water Changer System. It works perfect !

This is youtube video, how works my system. Polish version - sorry. The English will be for couple days. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHJU7e-S97M

Thank you

 

[keepinfish]

here is my ghetto home made sump. Don't laugh...

I think it is working pretty well as my tank is always been crystal clear.. click HERE

I used a old overflow box and drilled holes in the bottom. I run my water over filter floss then through post scrubbers. then i have my water column in the sump full of scrubbies mostly submerged. I also have some pothos growing in the water.

 

[SpeshulEd]

here is my ghetto home made sump. Don't laugh...

I think it is working pretty well as my tank is always been crystal clear.. click HERE

I used a old overflow box and drilled holes in the bottom. I run my water over filter floss then through post scrubbers. then i have my water column in the sump full of scrubbies mostly submerged. I also have some pothos growing in the water.

Awesome! Makes me not feel so bad about my sump now.

My biggest problem at the moment is microbubbles. So far I've pulled apart the pump and put it back together, that diminished the bubbles but didn't fix it. So I then replaced all the plumbing before the pump. This fixed the problem for abotu an hour. Starting to drive me nuts. When I set up my automatic water changer, I think I'm going to convert things to hard plumbing.

 

[keepinfish]

Awesome! Makes me not feel so bad about my sump now.

My biggest problem at the moment is microbubbles. So far I've pulled apart the pump and put it back together, that diminished the bubbles but didn't fix it. So I then replaced all the plumbing before the pump. This fixed the problem for abotu an hour. Starting to drive me nuts. When I set up my automatic water changer, I think I'm going to convert things to hard plumbing.

obviously the K.I.S.S. works....


as far as the micro bubles i had that problem before too, add more scrubbies in your water in the sump seemed to help me.

 

[DB junkie]

Nitrate can only be removed with plants and WCs. So without either how are some keeping thiers in check and others struggling?

I'm sure there's something to be learned from these #s... I just don't know what yet...

Hmmm. Now plants get brought into the equasion?

Pathos must be that difference.

To my knowledge this is the 1st time in this whole nitrate conversation that any plants being involved has been brought up. Makes a lot more sense now doesn't it?

 

[keepinfish]

i do not have many though... Do you think it could make this big of a difference?? i have only had these plants in this for about 6 months. I have a P tank that i have been expermenting with and it has hang on filters. I have the filters full of plants, roots everywhere.. I have higher nitrates in this tank than i do in my other tanks without plants... Explain that..LOL

 

[vamptrev]

i do not have many though... Do you think it could make this big of a difference?? i have only had these plants in this for about 6 months. I have a P tank that i have been expermenting with and it has hang on filters. I have the filters full of plants, roots everywhere.. I have higher nitrates in this tank than i do in my other tanks without plants... Explain that..LOL

it dosnt matter, u still cheated lol