Dosing Nitrate / Nitrogen on purpose?

[orly20]

Wow! Thanks Nano Sapien! It was a good read and I didn't now that anyone had actually done such an intensive study in the different types of bacteria in our systems.

 

I am would like to hear from others on this topic.

[lkoechle]

Definitely a good thread. I am thinking of seahorse/macroalgae tank for my next tank and I never thought about no3 consumption. Thanks for rezzing it orly!

[masterbuilder]

I have dosed Nitrate in the form of potassium nitrate (kno3 or stump remover). I didnt use it to reduce PO4, was used to help raise my nitrates to a delectable level for my SPS growth/color. It worked.

 

Link to a small app to determine mixing and dosing calculations.

http://web.archive.org/web/20060203055136/http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_aquacalc.htm

[orly20]

No Problem Ikoechle. I see that the more seasoned reefer are the ones that feel more comfortable in dosing nitrate. I am on day three adding 10 drops daily of SFN, 5 drops in the day and 5 at night. I have notices PE on two frags that never showed PE at all. I want to go slow and up the dose until I can see a difference on my nitrate test kit but nothing so far. I guess it will take a few weeks to see the color difference on frags.

I have dosed Nitrate in the form of potassium nitrate (kno3 or stump remover). I didnt use it to reduce PO4, was used to help raise my nitrates to a delectable level for my SPS growth/color. It worked.

 

Link to a small app to determine mixing and dosing calculations.

http://web.archive.org/web/20060203055136/http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_aquacalc.htm

 

 

I am actually in it for the same reason! Masterbuilder, I see you say it worked, could you give me some more detail on your tank specs and dosing regimen you used? Also how long did it take for you to see a difference in color?

 

Thanks for the calculator!!

[masterbuilder]

Orlu20,

The reason was my tank was basically sterile from using dry rock and even fresh plugs for all my coral. Everything tested zero and no algae at all. My SPS started looking pale and weak even with targeted feeding. I dosed a KNO3 solution enough to bring my NO3 up to 1-2 ppm and I kept dosing for about 4-6 weeks until I was able to up my bio load some. The SPS responded very quickly, I could easily see the difference in a week. My only concern with dosing KNO3 was that the potassium might be get to high (I didn't test for it). Since stopping dosing with KNO3, nitrates are low, ust barely detectable them with a salifert kit and that seems to be the sweet spot for my tank.

[Incloud]

On 9/4/2015 at 8:45 PM, orly20 said:

No Problem Ikoechle. I see that the more seasoned reefer are the ones that feel more comfortable in dosing nitrate. I am on day three adding 10 drops daily of SFN, 5 drops in the day and 5 at night. I have notices PE on two frags that never showed PE at all. I want to go slow and up the dose until I can see a difference on my nitrate test kit but nothing so far. I guess it will take a few weeks to see the color difference on frags.

 

 

I am actually in it for the same reason! Masterbuilder, I see you say it worked, could you give me some more detail on your tank specs and dosing regimen you used? Also how long did it take for you to see a difference in color?

 

Thanks for the calculator!!

I realize this post is ancient but I am currently starting to dose for nitrates (nonexistent) and trying to get as much long term or experiential knowledge of how dosing nitrates worked out in the end for those who have followed through. Like everything in this hobby it is a per basis but in short my system is overall 300 gallons and i am having trouble getting a reading of nitrates even with dosing. Of course I have not been too aggressive as of yet and it has only been a couple days but I'd rather be safe than sorry. I'd appreciate any feedback on this topic and your end results. Thanks in advance for your time and consideration!

[OldManSea]

I used to dose nitrate and phosphate in my 5 gallon tank for about 8 months.  I change “100%” of the water weekly and there were no fish.  I have 3 fish now which are fed every day so I haven’t had to dose for about a year.  Dosing nitrate and even phosphate is not uncommon among reefers with no or few fish.

 

I did the actual calculation a while back but here is an off the cuff estimate.  K is 38.6% of the mass of KNO3.  So, if you dose to 5 ppm NO3 you are adding about 2 ppm K.  Natural seawater has on average 39 ppm K, so you can dose For a while without having a big effect.  If you dose NaNO3 then you have no trouble since in seawater Na concentration is about 4600 times the concentration of K.

[Incloud]

43 minutes ago, OldManSea said:

I used to dose nitrate and phosphate in my 5 gallon tank for about 8 months.  I change “100%” of the water weekly and there were no fish.  I have 3 fish now which are fed every day so I haven’t had to dose for about a year.  Dosing nitrate and even phosphate is not uncommon among reefers with no or few fish.

 

I did the actual calculation a while back but here is an off the cuff estimate.  K is 38.6% of the mass of KNO3.  So, if you dose to 5 ppm NO3 you are adding about 2 ppm K.  Natural seawater has on average 39 ppm K, so you can dose For a while without having a big effect.  If you dose NaNO3 then you have no trouble since in seawater Na concentration is about 4600 times the concentration of K.

In many articles I hear of people stating that their calculations from one bottle of potassium nitrate should last about 5-7 years with a daily dose of 20ml concentrate. I don't see how that is remotely possible being I could go through an entire bottle in a week so far and see no rise or even detactable nitrates in my system at all. I don't want to nuke my tank but the figures I'm seeing on different discussion boards are like most things in this hobby and vary to the extreme. 

[mcarroll]

First, don't start a tank with carbon dosing in place....just asking for trouble.

 

Second, if you run down you tank's no3 with carbon dosing – stop carbon dosing.  There is no benefit to dosing carbon per se....just nitrate reduction.  It actually carries some risks.

 

Third, if you choose to dose nitrates for your coral, you should assure that there is a minimal level of po4 available before you start.  >= 0.03 ppm.

 

Fourth, if you begin nitrate dosing, target >= 5 ppm vs "blind" dosing.  

 

N and P should be dosed using the same test+dose process you'd use to accurately dose alkalinity.

 

Last, redfield speaks more to body composition...not so much to dissolved levels in the water.  It doesnot speak to minimum requirements for corals, which are the ppm levels suggested above.