I have a question about nitrate. I posted it in the link in my signature "Natty's Green and Red Paradise"

Here's the question as well:

Can anyone help me please? I would appreciate it. Thank you.

By the way, I'm dosing EI 20 gallon rated for my 40 gallon because I have low mass and moss doesn't seem to consume much nitrates at all. I have a lot of accessive nitrates.

What kind of lighting?
Pressurized co2?

AH Supply 96 watt shoplights

2.5~ wpg (its not 2.5 but I just round it to the nearest )

Its not the lights. Also, if you did click on the link I told you where I originally posted the question, it should tell you all of my other specs.

Thanks.

Maybe decrease no3 and po4. Increase so4. Your plants will tell you if something is wrong.

Do you use a timer with your lights? Consistency is everything.

Are you adding 1/4 tsp (teaspoon) or 1/4 Tbs (tablespoon). You labeled it as tsb. If you are adding 1/4 Tbs, you'd be adding ~17ppm each time, which could account for your high nitrates. You should be adding something closer to 1/4 tsp, which would only be ~5ppm each time.

Most folks try to run nitrates in the 5-20ppm range

Its tsp, I got the measuring spoons so that's not an issue.

sorry mixed up on tsp with tsb and all that stuff.

I mean tsp.

So, if I have too much nitrates, can I instead of dosing 1/4th tsp, I can do 1/8th? Whats the minimum amount of nitrate I should keep it at?

Thanks folks.

If you really have 40ppm, just stop dosing it for a while. There's no need to add more at this point. Like I said, anything in the 5-20ppm range will be fine. You can test periodically, which will help you get a feel for how fast your plants use the nutrients, which will help you better understand the rate at which you should add them via ferts

You should really calibrate your test kits if you haven't already. Hobby grade tests are notoriously inaccurate.

I got nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia test kits from API, is that not good enough?

I did test it out with fresh tap water and it showed 0 nitrates, which is accurate isn't it?

What happens if my nitrates are too low?

Any test kit could be inaccurate. It's not a good idea to just trust them blindly. You can just make the calibration solution to be sure that yours is working accurately. https://www.plantedtank.net/forums/wa...solutions.html

Low nitrates could cause a number of problems, including algae. Any deficiency can cause problems. The key is to ensure that the plants always have what they need to grow (N, P, K, traces, co2, light, flow, etc.) to prevent these problems. Algae thrives when the plants aren't growing well (ie. there is some factor limiting their growth). Just don't let your nitrates (or other ferts/co2) bottom out, and you should be fine. http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_nutrient.htm

Is there a specific reason why you are so worried about the nitrates?

I guess I'm new with planted tanks and after reading around here a lot, I got a bit concern about the talk of nitrates being toxic and how I should keep it low to about 20ppm or less. So I checked mines and it is 40ppm and that really surprised me.

It's not just the inhabitants that are being affected by high nitrates, its the plants too.

Or is this whole idea wrong?

I appreciate the clarification and the explanation, thank you very much.

Well, nitrates can be harmful in very high concentrations (but, obviously, different species have different sensitivities). If you are concerned, you can just do a large water change (50% or so) and not add more back in. The fresh water will reduce the amount in the tank. Then you can monitor the changes over time, which will allow you to modify the EI regimen for your tank, like I mentioned before.

Okay, I understand. Thank you.

Oh yeah one last quick question. Do you use purigen? I was wondering if they get rid of nitrates well.

I have high nitrates in my shrimp tank which has killed quite a few and even with wc, I've still been having problems. Thanks!

I guess I stuck with EI dosing so much even with high nitrates because I was afraid that if I didn't follow it exactly, something horrible might happen like my tank getting ruined from algae.

EDIT

Oh yeah, are you the one that sold me the christmas moss or the flame moss I forgot?

YW.

I do use Purigen. It is great stuff. It does a nice job clarifying the water. Seachem claims that it removes nitrates, but I have never seen this effect in my tanks.

If WC's aren't reducing the nitrates, then that suggests that there are nitrates in your tap, or the test kit is inaccurate. I hate to harp on it, but testing the kit will help you a lot in this case.

I think it was the flame. It seems to be doing well in there

It is but I think the sae's are nibbling it a bit and its getting thin because of it O.o

I just bought them awhile back too. Wonder where I should put them now lol.