Denitrification coil

[Paul B]

I built this coil a few years ago and it worked well. A de-nitrification coil is a simple device that reduces nitrates to zero for no money and it is a simple design costing maybe $25.00 to build. Hurricane Sandy put an end to the thing as it needs constant water flow and a few days without water flow will make the thing as helpful as some of our rock singers. I have posted the construction before but I will do it again in my book that is not out yet. Basically it is a long tube where anerobic bacteria grow on a diet of nitrates and Vodka. The Vodka keeps them smashed so they don't realize they are working for free. The thing also needs 3 weeks to a month to start working but now it reduces nitrates from 40 (which my reef is) to zero. It is still cycling in my workshop and I will again install it on my tank as soon as I get some time.
The device is just the blue tube, the rest of the stuff is just my normal workshop stuff.

The tube on the right is tank water and the tube on the left is water that leaves the coil.

 

[Dan_P]

What tubing material did you use for the coil?

 

[Paul B]

1/4" PVC tubing for sprinkler systems

 

[WTBClownfish]

What is the advantage of this over biopellets

 

[Paul B]

It's free.

 

[ohana888]

What is the advantage of this over biopellets

doesn't need or use biopellets? nothing to replenish but tubes and

you only use ~200ft+ of water line to create an oxygen deprived system = anaerobic bacteria growth + media (mesh or foam blocks or whatever for bacteria to grow on) in complete darkness. the larger PVC tube holds the media that the O2 deprived water passes. if the flow is calibrated, the water exiting the system should have 0 nitrates.

 

[Paul B]

That is the theory

 

[crox99]

How much flow does it need?

 

[LongIslandAndy]

Hi Paul
After reading some of your recent posts (the big temperature gauge)and knowing you for awhile I am going to call you the Dr Frankenstein of reef equipment. You go down to the basement and you start playing with some leftover material and whoosh the majano wand appears !!! I am just kidding, you are the ultimate DIYer. As long as you don't try and create one of those supermodel's in the basement the world is safe. I would like the instructions on how to build that denitrifier

 

[Paul B]

The coil flow is drops, like 3 drops a second, but I won'tpublish details until I perfect it and it needs a little more tweeking, but I will get there as this is probably the fourth prototype. Everything I have ever designed for the tank will be in my book. Maybe I will get a Pulitzer.
Andy, I can build just about anything in my work shop. My entire house and boat is full of DIY and I could write an entire book just with what I built for my boat.
I can build a space shuttle in my workshop if I needed one. A small space shuttle, but a space shuttle none the less.
Andy you guys got in some beautiful Australian corals yesterday and if I get the time, I may come in today for some.

 

[Paul B]

My simplified system. The large clear thing is an empty bio pellet chamber, There are just brittle stars in there, like a 5 star hotel, it is just there because I wanted to build one but I hate bio pellets as I think they are stupid and I almost crashed my system with them. The smaller acrylic thing is a chamber where I can control the water height and it controls the amount of water going through the de-nitrification chamber. As you can see, I have an acrylic fetish

 

[Mattl22]

How does it work??

 

[Mattl22]

R u dosing a carbon source into chamber then slowly returning water to ur skimmer?

 

[Paul B]

It worked great on my test tank but much to slow in my reef so I removed it and added another chamber. It needs 2 months to cycle

 

[Mattl22]

Is the thing u just posted part of ur denitrifier or a different type of denitrifier

 

[Paul B]

That acrylic thing is just the thing that feeds the denitrifier. It is not needed but I have an acrylic fetish so I build everything out of it

 

[Paul B]

The thing finally seems to be cycled and it is working about twice as fast as the original design. This one is the same coil but I added about 5' of sand in a 3/4" pipe. It is processing about one drop a second and so far turns nitrates of about 40 to zero in the 10 minutes or so the water takes to get through the device. I am not going to install it on my tank yet as I still need to do more testing. It has been cycling for one month but I still want to process water faster. The test results are from the water entering the device and coming out.
The device is the blue thing

 

[Seacilian77]

coil

Did I read that correctly? 5'-0" of sand in a 3/4" pipe?
So your basically running the water through real slow and letting the live sand process the nitrates?

 

[rookie07]

Very cool Paul!!

 

[Mattl22]

What kind pump u using to push it through?
So it's going through tubing coiled up ?? Then 5' of 1/2" PVC filled with sand??
Do u think the sand will last over time or could it go bad?
Amazing results so far keep up good work I'm looking into natrureef de nitrate chamber but open to other options to control no3 thanks for sharing Paul