Nitrates

[grettonman]

i am considering purchasing one of these NR 5000 Nitratereductor 3000ltr from Aqua Medic. http://www.swelluk.com/marine/8-35-491

Has anyone used one and are they effective. Ido not want to stop regular water changes but ensure my zebs are in the best possible water conditions

[Raul-7]

i am considering purchasing one of these NR 5000 Nitratereductor 3000ltr from Aqua Medic. http://www.swelluk.com/marine/8-35-491

Has anyone used one and are they effective. Ido not want to stop regular water changes but ensure my zebs are in the best possible water conditions

It requires weekly feeding, usually ethanol (don't waste money on the Deniballs they are basically a source of carbon aswell), to keep the bacteria alive; and you must fine tune the flow through the reductor. If the flow is too slow, H2S will foul the whole house, if it's too fast it will be ineffective.

My recommendation or at least that's the generally accepted is that nothing effectively removes NO3 better than plants. Even waste treatment plants rely on plants. Use emersed plants. they are much more effective and require less light, etc. For example, many in the past have used Spathiphyllum tasson, just use something to keep the plant dry, but the roots wet. I believe AquaMedic sells something like this, you hang it on the rim and allows you to plant emersed plants.

[Caesars]

I tend to agree. I had the Aquamedic one with the lactose balls - which doesn't require weekly feeding. The house was literally stinking after a while - it was as if something had died in here. In the end I had to disconnect it. There is a way to regulate it - but you should be aiming at having some nitrates in the water rather than 0ppm at the exit point.

Ceratophyllum demersum is an excellent nitrate absorbing plant, have you considered it?

[Mindy]

I've started using Indian Fern (Ceratopteris thalictroides) to help help reduce nitrates. It was recommended to me by Discus keepers. I'm told it does a good job. Mine is only just establishing so I can't confirm any results yet, but I'm hopeful. You can plant it or float it. Though I think floating plants are good for nitrates because they take all their nutrients from the water column.

[grimreaper]

Hi grettonman
I have run a NR 5000 Nitratereductor for 7 years now. It is used to maintain a low nitrate level in my shrimp culture system (Marine) It is controlled using an Aqua medic ORP meter and a solenoid valve. The ORP meter controls a solonoid valve and has its set point at -200 mv. When the voltage in the main chamber drops to -200 mv the solenoid valve opens and system water is pumped into the unit. The voltage will start to rise and the solenoid valve switches off. The cycle repeats itself. You cannot control this unit by adjusting a flow. You will finish up with a hydrogen sulphide reactor which is very smelly and very poisonous to fish and humans. The unit is fed 4 times a day with 1 ml of cheap Vodka, yes Vodka. The Vodka is dosed using a peristaltic pump and a timer. The unit is filled with Aqua medic media (round black plastic balls, not the white ones) It has been cleaned out 3 times since starting. The shrimp culture system is VERY overfed. Testing with a Tetra test kit the colour come out bright yellow. This info also applies to fresh water systems. Hope this helps