Friend has high nitrates please help him

[Joeb]

my buddy has a a 160 gallon tank with a fuge. its a pretty old tank that he let go for a while. in the last half a year or maybe a little more he has been working on it cleaning it and restocking it.
his nitrates stay pretty elevated over 80 ppm.
hes done lots of small water changes (25 gallons) and done a few 50 percent water changes. all of this our local reef store has recommended he does.

he has an over flow type filter (large over flow from top to bottom of tank that used to be filled with floss pads and other sponges few months ago we p]ulled out all of the pads and replaced with some smaller pieces of live rock)

the most recent thing hes done was to add denitrifying bacteria.

the nitrates stay the same
nitrites and ammonia are 0

he runs the over flow type filter, 3 media reactors one has chemi pure elite another has another type of phosphate remover. and the third one has the bio pellets in it

his snails keep dropping out and some of the corals don't look so great. he doesn't have to many fish maybe 5 or 6 smaller fish and feeds maybe twice a week...
can anyone help him out? hes starting to get discouraged and I would like to keep him in the hobby since he recently got me back into it lol

thanks guy in advance sorry if I left any info out

 

[jcdeng]

hmmm, how much of the denitrifying bacteria did he add? and is there some sort of sandbed in the tank? I am guessing the nitrates are coming from either the sand or whatever he stirred up when replacing the pads and floss with LR.

as to the snails and corals are they recent additions too? has he ever treated the tank with copper?

And I believe the filter you are describing is call a Wet-dry filter?

 

[Joeb]

not sure how much he added it was however much tropiquarium told him to add as per his tank volume.
he does have a sand bed and he vaccumed it a few times.
we removed the floss pads at least a month or so ago... do you think that is still the issue?
the corals are newer (last 2-4 months) and the snails are just as old. he hasn't added any live stock in at least a month or so.

also his sand bed is only about an inch or 2 deep

not sure if its wet dry. isn't that a sump like design? im going to go over his house tonight and I will take lots of pictures of his whole setup and get them posted up on here... any other information I should get from him?

 

[Greagzter]

Provide the equipment he is using, like what kind of pumps, skimmer. How long ago were the bio-pellets set up? Try taking few pics of his tanks and filtration(sump).

 

[Boomer]

Before we all jump the gun here, it that water tested with another kit first.

 

[Joeb]

ok well were using api test kits but have used 4 different ones.. is this api test kit the issue?
sorry some of the pictures are rotated. that whole over flow box is filled with water and lr with one piece of floss pad at the top as a pre filter (changes that quite often) the pellets have been in there for at least 3 or 4 months

 

[Boomer]

I just want to make sure you get a similar reading from ANOTHER BRAND. I do not buy, at all, all those water changes and it did not drop. If you did a 50 % water change they CAN NOT be the same, test after test. When any kit keeps giving the same answer, after changes, especially many changes, 99 % of the time it is the kit. Kits can go bad or the reagents can be expired.

 

[Joeb]

so do you think that we should get another kit? him and I both agree the amount of water he has changed is honestly just ridiculous.. you can see that small trash can in the pictures hes done that size alone at least 6 times.

but if it is the test kit wouldn't it give me a high reading too?
thanks for the replies

also what about those two corals I posted the picture on the one I think is on its way out most of its polyps look like they have died off?

 

[Boomer]

So, the kit is fine when you use it on your tank ? You do not have to buy another kit, just take it to the fish store.

Do this:

1. Remove 1 liter of water from the tank.
2. Dump out half of it and replace with new Seawater
3. Test the new seawater first to see what it reads. Should read zero or almost zero.
4. Let it mix for 5 min and then test it for Nitrate

I'm also wondering if something he/ you are dumping in there is interfering with the kit, like all those bacteria.

 

[Joeb]

ok I will try that tomorrow evening when I see him..
not sure what other things he could have put in there lol I know he was trying anything he could get his hands on. he did mention once he used a bottle of "nitrate remover" not sure what that was and, that was NOT the bottle of bacteria he added. ill do the test you said and let you guys knoe my findings... anyone else care to chime in?

 

[Boomer]

Tell this guy to stop dumping all this crap in his tank, it is turning it into a mess. Nitrate remover for seawater, WHO's ! No such thing as a Nitrate Removers for Seawater other than various types of carbon dosing, which really are not true Nitrate Removers, although they can reduce remove Nitrate.

You are not going to like this. Do 2 50 % WC 1day apart or 1 75 % and stop from dumping in all that crap, that includes bio-pellets. They are not for everybody or every tank and have caused big issues for many, to include very advanced reefers. They are NOT for any beginner. A tank with that low of a bio- load should not have all these Nitrare issues, although Nitrate levels are often higher in new tanks. A refugium will do him a world of good. Is he over feeding his fish ? Some people can pollute a lake with 1 goldfish in it by bombing it with a B-17 Bomber loaded with food to make sure it gets some

 

[Joeb]

natural nitrate remover by instant ocean
http://www.petsolutions.com/C/Denit...cagpspn=pla"&gclid=CKC_7MjemrcCFYYw4AodxF8AOA
sorry for the crude link

I don't know what it does but he had added that over a month ago... im goin gto show him this thread and see what he wants to do... also like I saidwhen I go over there later today I will get more info to your questions

thanks boomer... also I read the article they have posted for you..
Thank you For serving For us and our great country :beer:

 

[Boomer]

That is more or less Bio-Pellets in a bottle

also I read the article they have posted for you

I'm lost, who posted what article for me to read ?

 

[rambler67]

I say start with the basics get another test kit or the lfs to test the water. test the water coming out of the rodi and test the new batch of salt water you could have bad filters in the rodi or bad batch of salt. make sure all the sponges and filter floss are cleaned or replace on a regular basis. make sure every thing has good flow so there is no place for debris to get stuck and cause a rise in Nitrates. and stop throw junk in the tank!!!!

 

[Aquadicted]

your refugium is kinda small for a good sized tank... You should probably keep up on your water changes at least weekly..

 

[Aquadicted]

and dont throw away the salt. Instant ocean is known for its consistancy