High levels of NO3, can it cause algae?

dweebikus · 08-08-2006, 09:54 PM

My 10 gallon that's been running for a few months and giving me no troubles at all has started to show the first signs of an algae bloom in the water, as well as small spots of BGA and BBA on a couple plants. I noticed that my water has a pretty high amount of NO3, and I don't have tests for anything other than ammonia, kh, nitrite or ph to test the rest of the nutrients.

Something is unbalanced, so I'm wondering if once I get the other nutrient tests, if I add the nutrients that I suspect are lacking, will the plants start better consuming the excess NO3, or am I going to just have to do drastic water changes?

**bigstick120** · 08-08-2006, 11:32 PM

How much light? Are you running CO2? Just adding NO3 wont grow plants, you need NPK and micros=Iron and trace minerals to grow plants

dweebikus · 08-09-2006, 02:50 AM

I'm not "adding" NO3, my biological filter is producing it. Right now i've got about 14ppm of CO2 in the tank, dosing Flourish once a week, and 28 watts over the 10g for 12 hours.

edit: I realized just now I may not be using the right Nitrogen reference...my nitrates are high, so I suppose that could be NO2, or is your nitrate reading also a measure of NO3?

**Hoppy** · 08-09-2006, 03:46 AM

May I suggest you do some reading in Rex Grigg's website?

08-08-2006, 09:54 PM	#1
dweebikus Planted Member (View User Tanks) PTrader: (8/100%) Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 176	High levels of NO3, can it cause algae? My 10 gallon that's been running for a few months and giving me no troubles at all has started to show the first signs of an algae bloom in the water, as well as small spots of BGA and BBA on a couple plants. I noticed that my water has a pretty high amount of NO3, and I don't have tests for anything other than ammonia, kh, nitrite or ph to test the rest of the nutrients. Something is unbalanced, so I'm wondering if once I get the other nutrient tests, if I add the nutrients that I suspect are lacking, will the plants start better consuming the excess NO3, or am I going to just have to do drastic water changes? __________________ Tanks: 50g 10g

08-08-2006, 11:32 PM	#2
bigstick120 Algae Eater (View User Tanks) PTrader: (231/100%) Join Date: May 2005 Location: Maryland Posts: 3,122	How much light? Are you running CO2? Just adding NO3 wont grow plants, you need NPK and micros=Iron and trace minerals to grow plants __________________ 55 gallon\| 29 Gallon\|ADA Cube\|58 Gallon My Photography site

08-09-2006, 02:50 AM	#3
dweebikus Planted Member (View User Tanks) PTrader: (8/100%) Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 176	I'm not "adding" NO3, my biological filter is producing it. Right now i've got about 14ppm of CO2 in the tank, dosing Flourish once a week, and 28 watts over the 10g for 12 hours. edit: I realized just now I may not be using the right Nitrogen reference...my nitrates are high, so I suppose that could be NO2, or is your nitrate reading also a measure of NO3? __________________ Tanks: 50g 10g

08-09-2006, 03:46 AM	#4
Hoppy Planted Tank Guru (View User Tanks) PTrader: (52/100%) Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 17,198	May I suggest you do some reading in Rex Grigg's website? __________________ Hoppy

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