Nitrates 20, do I need to address it?

[jejenkins]

Have 14 BC. 21lbs liverock, just put fuge in last night in chamber 2. Lost one clown this am, lost another a week ago due to ick. (had a mishap with the temp). Thought the one that passed today would make it. Totally healthy eating looked good last night. Wife called today.....dead.

Existing livestock is a small zebra stripped with yellow head like a firefish.....cleaner shrimp and about 30 dwarf snails of various kinds.

Tested water when got home. Ph 8.2, Nitrite 0, Ammonia 0, Nitrate 20. Using API kit. Tank up about 3 1/2 months now. Never had a water quality issue and two fish that had passed before......never had a spike in anything.

So, what causes just nitrate to elevate and at 20 do I need an emergency water change?

Dose once a week with water change Kent essential elements. Don't think I have over dosed.

Have Chemipure in chamber one. No bioballs, sponge etc.

Any thoughts or help appreciated. I don't want to lose my exisitng stock

 

Whoops also have a small cluster of zoas and a small mushroom.

Jon

[nanofish36]

I would maybe do a water change and then then test your levels. Nitrates build up in the presence of bacteria and maybe coming from the natural biological process occurring on your live rock.

[jejenkins]

Thanks for the reply. I did forget to mention I had cyano outbreak starting about 1 1/2 weeks ago. Probably due in part to my increasing the feeding frequency when trying to nurse my perculas through the ick phase. Cyano, from my understanding is a bacteria......could this be partly responsible for the elevated Nitrates?

Thanks again

[TimothyUhl]

What's left in the tank? If there is nothing too fragile left, a large water change won't hurt much.

 

Are you running any filter floss before the chemi-pure? If you're not running floss and changing it frequently, the chemipure could be doing the same thing bioballs would do--catching detritus and letting it rot until it starts putting out nitrates.

 

How old is your Chemipure? You should throw some fresh carbon in as soon as you can.

 

BTW - 40 is the "safe limit" for hardy fish. It's also the legal limit on drinking water. 20 Is a bit high, I'd lower it ASAP. If fish are dying off, invertebrates will be less tolerant.

 

It's a bummer about the lost fish man, sorry to hear it!

[Trolldoll]

IMO the high nitrates did not kill your fish. I have friends with FOWLR tanks and they keep there nitrates at 20. Corals need lower nitrates.

[MitchReef]

IMO the high nitrates did not kill your fish. I have friends with FOWLR tanks and they keep there nitrates at 20. Corals need lower nitrates.

 

Point well stated....I was going to ask what all lives in the tank....20 isn't really high if it's not a reef....

[vangvace]

Have 14 BC. 21lbs liverock, just put fuge in last night in chamber 2. Lost one clown this am, lost another a week ago due to ick. (had a mishap with the temp). Thought the one that passed today would make it. Totally healthy eating looked good last night. Wife called today.....dead.

Existing livestock is a small zebra stripped with yellow head like a firefish.....cleaner shrimp and about 30 dwarf snails of various kinds.

Tested water when got home. Ph 8.2, Nitrite 0, Ammonia 0, Nitrate 20. Using API kit. Tank up about 3 1/2 months now. Never had a water quality issue and two fish that had passed before......never had a spike in anything.

So, what causes just nitrate to elevate and at 20 do I need an emergency water change?

Dose once a week with water change Kent essential elements. Don't think I have over dosed.

Have Chemipure in chamber one. No bioballs, sponge etc.

Any thoughts or help appreciated. I don't want to lose my exisitng stock

 

Whoops also have a small cluster of zoas and a small mushroom.

Jon

 

If you lost a fish to ick then be caustious about adding another fish in the short term. (Not that you made mention of adding new fish but ick can survive in a tank w/o a fish for 4 months. fyi)

 

You nitrate increase could be from feeding or, more likely, the fish that just died. Nothing wrong with doing an extra waterchange for peace of mind. (when is your next scheduled one btw?)

 

The aquarium I volunteer at doesn't have a saltwater tank with nitrates below 18, reef included. (except maybe the seahorse and jellies but I haven't dealt with them yet.)