Solution to my problems

[Poseidon]

So its no secret that i have high nitrates and high phosphates, bad cyno, red slime and other sorts of algae... well i has a plan to fix it
just wanna run it by you all to get an opinion. 

so i have an aquastik vertex reactor with a mag 3 that im going to use for biopellets for the nitrates. I plan on buying the 1000ml from BRS via the group buy.
thats the first picture

The second is an old r/o filter and the third is the cartridge, i believe it was used for carbon. It has all the orings, and everything is in good shape so i figure why dont i save 40$ and turn it into a gfo reactor instead of buying one? all i need it some fittings for 1/2" piping and some hose.
I also plan to buy the 4lbs of GFO from BRS and a maxi jet 1200 to run the reactor.

Any thoughts? This should clear up my issues or not?
my questions in particular, will the maxi jet 1200 work good with 1/2" hose?
i have 2 maxi 900's at home... i could use them if that works too...

thanks!

 

[unibob]

If they are that high, I would just being doing larger water changes. Get your levels down before introducing both IMO. If you nitrates are 100, do a couple 30-50% water changes to get it in half, do it again an it's halved again. And so on. Gfo is more meant for maintaining low phosphates rather then knocking down a high level of them my opinion only.

 

[dale]

i agree, and after you do that your plan should work great to keep it running well,., i use a maxijet 1200 for my phosban 150 and it works just fine... im trying to do 40% water changes ( takes me forever to make water, 5 gal jugs and i work alot) then i think im going to do bio pellets,., i have no algae but my nitrates were high., they went from 80 down to about 15 now with 40% waterchanges about every 10 days 3 times now...

 

[Salty Cracker]

Should work, if you ever want to come by london and see what I have set up... I mean I went from exactly the same problems you have to ultra low nutrient system, you're more than welcome, I'll tell you all the 'secrets'  ;D

 

[unibob]

Should work, if you ever want to come by london and see what I have set up... I mean I went from exactly the same problems you have to ultra low nutrient system, you're more than welcome, I'll tell you all the 'secrets'  ;D

Does it make sense for him to do some big water changes first so he isn't spending $$$$ on gfo and pellets?

 

[Poseidon]

salty what did you use initially to get all your nitrates and phosphates down? i could always order another 1 time use sorta thing to help initially with the levels....as well as the gfo...

i might have to do more water changes but thats only a bandaid... i need to fix the problem for good...

i did 2 50% water changes in 2 weeks and it cut my nitrates in half and then half again so they were like 40... but that 2 weeks later there back up to 80 or 90... not sure what the problem is but i need to fix it... and from what ive been reading.. bio pellets is the best way to go...
same goes for phosphates but i think my rocks are leaching abit so ill need the gfo to get that anyways...

 

[spyd]

Bio-pellets and GFO will work onr educing both nitrates and phosphates. Your nitrates seem to sky rocket pretty quick. What size tank are you running? What powerheads? What skimmer? What size sump? and what livestock do you have in there?

Water changes will decrease nitrates drastically. biopellets work well. I run a UF-15. A mag 300 should be enough. Go to Michaels craft store and buy some embroidery round plastic patterns. Cut them down to fit just under black foam at the top of the reactor. That will keep any pellets from getting into your system. Add the pellets slowly to your system using 1/4 intervals every couple weeks until your reach your desired amount. Soak the pellets in RO water for a day before putting them in the reactor.

A MJ 1200 will work for your GFO reactor. If it clumps a bit too much though, the MJ1200 will have a hard time keeping it fluid. It is the minimum pump size I would use. 1/2" hose is fine. Rinse the GFO off really well in RO water before putting it into the reactor as it is very dusty.

Definitely need the questions answered up top though to find out where those nitrates are coming from.

 

[Poseidon]

Bio-pellets and GFO will work onr educing both nitrates and phosphates. Your nitrates seem to sky rocket pretty quick. What size tank are you running? What powerheads? What skimmer? What size sump? and what livestock do you have in there?

Water changes will decrease nitrates drastically. biopellets work well. I run a UF-15. A mag 300 should be enough. Go to Michaels craft store and buy some embroidery round plastic patterns. Cut them down to fit just under black foam at the top of the reactor. That will keep any pellets from getting into your system. Add the pellets slowly to your system using 1/4 intervals every couple weeks until your reach your desired amount. Soak the pellets in RO water for a day before putting them in the reactor.

A MJ 1200 will work for your GFO reactor. If it clumps a bit too much though, the MJ1200 will have a hard time keeping it fluid. It is the minimum pump size I would use. 1/2\" hose is fine. Rinse the GFO off really well in RO water before putting it into the reactor as it is very dusty.

Definitely need the questions answered up top though to find out where those nitrates are coming from.

i have a 180g with 40gal sump
3 power heads with a mag 24 for a return on either end of the tank with one return having 3 spouts..
the power heads are 1050's korilias? i think, and one huge tunze....
the skimmer is a corallife 220 with a 550gph pump.... i only have to change the cup out once a month maybe? if that...

i have 4 large fish and 10 small ones... just to sum it up real quick. corals are all softies and doing amazing as well as the fish... its just to much algae eye sore for me

 

[Salty Cracker]

[quote author=Salty Cracker link=topic=3285.msg27381#msg27381 date=1349907630]
Should work, if you ever want to come by london and see what I have set up... I mean I went from exactly the same problems you have to ultra low nutrient system, you're more than welcome, I'll tell you all the 'secrets'  ;D

Does it make sense for him to do some big water changes first so he isn't spending $$$$ on gfo and pellets?
[/quote]

Oh sure, as long as the water changes are 0TDS and teh salinity is good, there's never anything wrong with water changes!  ;D

 

[Royal Aquariums]

I would recommend upgrading your skimmer when you can.Coralife super skimmers don't have the greatest reputation.

 

[Salty Cracker]

salty what did you use initially to get all your nitrates and phosphates down? i could always order another 1 time use sorta thing to help initially with the levels....as well as the gfo...

i might have to do more water changes but thats only a bandaid... i need to fix the problem for good...

i did 2 50% water changes in 2 weeks and it cut my nitrates in half and then half again so they were like 40... but that 2 weeks later there back up to 80 or 90... not sure what the problem is but i need to fix it... and from what ive been reading.. bio pellets is the best way to go...
same goes for phosphates but i think my rocks are leaching abit so ill need the gfo to get that anyways...

I started with ROWA, it seemed to work really fast to drop the levels (I initially used the phosguard, but it dropped the levels really fast, but they shot right back up when I removed the media.... obviously leeching out of the rock).  Honestly the only way to do it is long term, as you clean the water it will draw it out of your rockwork.  I think it took me 2-3 months to see real positive change in the tank, and probably another 6 to see consistent 0.00 phosphate (nitrates dropped from 10ppm to 0 within the first month of GFO use).  I did go from ROWA to hi-cap GFO.  I experienced a bloom of dinoflagellets, that can feed off the iron (look up 'the red tide'), but they went away with a few doses of peroxide (which was nerve-wracking to add to a delicate ecosystem!).  The advice I got on reefcentral was to not get frustrated (which is easy when you don't see quick results), but to keep doing what I know is right: water changes, and regular changes to the carbon and GFO.  Like I said it was almost 6 months before I saw pristine water with very low levels of everything, but it was worth it.  I doubt your tank is anywhere near as bad as I had let my tank go, so you might have much better results, more quickly!

 

[Salty Cracker]

I would recommend upgrading your skimmer when you can.Coralife super skimmers don't have the greatest reputation.

Can't argue with this, a good skimmer helps a LOT. 

 

[teebone110]

[quote author=jerry_doucette link=topic=3285.msg27382#msg27382 date=1349909645]
[quote author=Salty Cracker link=topic=3285.msg27381#msg27381 date=1349907630]
Should work, if you ever want to come by london and see what I have set up... I mean I went from exactly the same problems you have to ultra low nutrient system, you're more than welcome, I'll tell you all the 'secrets'  ;D

Does it make sense for him to do some big water changes first so he isn't spending $$$$ on gfo and pellets?
[/quote]

Oh sure, as long as the water changes are 0TDS and teh salinity is good, there's never anything wrong with water changes!  ;D
[/quote]

There is a problem with regular water changes when using Instant Ocean, I ignored the fact that IO has lower levels of CA, which can cause your tank levels to fall below target if your not careful. Don't ask me how I know :?

 

[Salty Cracker]

[quote author=Salty Cracker link=topic=3285.msg27392#msg27392 date=1349913376]
[quote author=jerry_doucette link=topic=3285.msg27382#msg27382 date=1349909645]
[quote author=Salty Cracker link=topic=3285.msg27381#msg27381 date=1349907630]
Should work, if you ever want to come by london and see what I have set up... I mean I went from exactly the same problems you have to ultra low nutrient system, you're more than welcome, I'll tell you all the 'secrets'  ;D

Does it make sense for him to do some big water changes first so he isn't spending $$$$ on gfo and pellets?
[/quote]

Oh sure, as long as the water changes are 0TDS and teh salinity is good, there's never anything wrong with water changes!  ;D
[/quote]

There is a problem with regular water changes when using Instant Ocean, I ignored the fact that IO has lower levels of CA, which can cause your tank levels to fall below target if your not careful. Don't ask me how I know :?
[/quote]

Actually, this is a good point.  I had noticed this rather recently too, had to really up the dosing of the Calcium supplement, I thought it was just all the corals using it up, but further reading suggested it could be from water changes, and I don't use instant ocean.  that's why I have been hoping to try some of that H2Ocean salt...

 

[Royal Aquariums]

You could try reef crystals aswell

 

[Poseidon]

lol i love how these threads get so side tracked XD

i just want these questions answered.

Would starting bio pellets be a good idea (e.g. help my situation)
and would starting gfo be a good idea. (e.g. '' '')

ive tried numerous and huge water changes and honestly, its done nothing for me.... cept make my basement carpet wet 
theres gotta be a better way to minimilize water changes and keep the system stable and levels low.

i know the skimmer isnt up to par normally but i modded it and rigged an air pump to the end of the hose. The main problem with these guys is they dont suck enough air but i fixed that...
but yes, i know it is a bottom of the line skimmer and will upgrade sometime in the near future if i can find a decent used one.
ive seen some Red Sea Berlin Skimmers on kijiji..... any thoughts on those?

 

[Neopimp]

I t will most likely help your situtation to run both of them.  Star the BP slow, add a bunch of GFO.  And save for a new skimmer is my advice. 
You can use some of the other specialty stuff if you really want to remove stuff fast but a consistent water change sched, runnning GFO changed out regularly and BP will get you there.  Just need patience.

 

[pulpfiction1]

neo is right patience is the key ,myself I probably wouldn't put the pellets online till you have brought things down to a much lower level with consistent water changes ,myself I don't use any GFO and I only use carbon once a month ,get your parameters all in spec  even if it means searching through your rock work to find out the source of your high nitrates  or any other aspects that might be feeding your cyno
Sent from my HTC Incredible S

 

[reeffreak]

Would starting bio pellets be a good idea (e.g. help my situation)
and would starting gfo be a good idea. (e.g. '' '')

I think like pulp said  ..... sourcing out the cause of the high levels needs to be figured out first before you start to apply solutions to try and fix the problem. I would be adding the GFO as soon as possible and  carbon , still keep with the big water changes and a GOOD test kit and test often till you see that nitrates are dropping , if you dont keep the WC constant then your getting no where fast and wasting money while your at it. Adding pellets would be at a later time again like pulp said , when your levels are not drastically high it wont be such an impact on the system with lower levels .

If you change water today and wait 4 days before you do it again then the first WC was a waste becasue your levels are most liekly going to be back up in the higher PPM range where they were before you did the first water change . The changes would have to be big and often , Just my .2 cets HTH

 

[spyd]

So to summerize:

- Biopellets will definitely help reduce nitrates and phosphates. Just go slow adding them to a running setup.
- GFO will certainly help reduce phosphates. You can stock up on this right away without any real issues.
- A new skimmer will drastically help reduce nitrates when you have the money to upgrade. I suggest a Reef Octopus skimmer with a Bubble Blaster pump as they are not overly pricey but work very well. Plus, 3 year warranty on the pump.

Also, invest in some additional powerheads when you can. The Tunze is great. The 1050's not so great for that size tank. Add another Tunze when you have the chance. That will help prevent nutrient build-up on the sandbed and help reduce the cyano.

You're plan will definitely help BIG time though so definitely start with that.