Nitrate Level

[5teady_2012]

Just done a water test( using API test kit) on my 4ft tank and the levels are

Ammonia - 0

Nitrite - 0

Niatrate - 40+

What is the best thing to do to get my nitrate down and what is the recomended level? - In the tank there is Endlers and bristlenoses.

 

[MartinD]

Nitrate levels are always reduced by water changes. Say around 30% water change to drop it down.. but:

I replied to a post in another thread about this and the guy say nitrates in his tap water was 30ppm.
What's yours? My tanks are always around the 5ppm mark, and I always change if they hit 10ppm.

 

[5teady_2012]

My tap water is also reading around the 30 mark

 

[MartinD]

My tap water is also reading around the 30 mark

I guess then all you can do is medium water changes but often to get the levels down

am I the only person without this kind of water? lol

 

[5teady_2012]

Are you shaking up your bottle 2 on your nitrate test

 

[MartinD]

Are you shaking up your bottle 2 on your nitrate test

yep!

I've literally just done another test on my tap water and it's sitting at... 0ppm

 

[5teady_2012]

If i do small water changes on my tank though, with my water reading 30ppm on a nitrate test, my tank aint going to get below that is it?

 

[MartinD]

If i do small water changes on my tank though, with my water reading 30ppm on a nitrate test, my tank aint going to get below that is it?

Probably not but then you don't want it to. If your tap water is sitting at 30ppm you don't want your tank water to be lower.
It means every time you do a water change, you're dropping the nitrate levels in the tank only for them to go up again as soon as you
do a water change.

 

[5teady_2012]

Any other ways to drop the nitrate?

Is there a way i can get a big drum to fill up with water and leave it standing a while and treating it so that when come to doing a water change, i can add it from the drum rather than the tap?

 

[MartinD]

a wee bit out of my depth now i'm afraid. I don't think there's any way to drop it unless you add chemicals. In saying that, I don't even know if there's chemicals that will do that but even if there is, would you want to use that then add to your fish?

Hopefully someone else will be able to advise you on that. I'm off to a fish shop I've never been to before to check them out. I'll ask them while I'm there

 

[5teady_2012]

OK m8 thanks, let us know what they think

 

[andywg]

Don't worry about 40ppm, scientific studies suggest nitrates are non toxic until a level of 400ppm is present. CFC keeps 'rays in London 40ppm tap water.

Ways to get rid of nitrate include: Planted tanks (though they should eventually utilise ammonia before it is converted to nitrate by bacteria), algae filters, anaerobic filters (once no oxygen is present bacteria utilise nitrates and convert it eventually to nitrogen gas which leaves the water at the surface) or RO filters.

I personally wouldn't worry about it in the slightest, especially as you seem to be using API, a nitrate test kit I found as useful as a chocolate teapot. Mine could read 160ppm on fresh RO and salt.

 

[loachman]

Plants and water changes reduce nitrate.

Really though, anything under 100 is supposedly fine for the just about every freshwater fish out there. It isn't something to really worry over, especially considering how sensitive the liquid nitrate tests are to how vigorously they're shaken. Just keep up with weekly water changes and it won't be an issue.

 

[5teady_2012]

OK will do, thanks all

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Plants use nitrates as a fertilizer so planting up the tank a bit more will help reduce the nitrate levels, but make sure you have the right strength lighting for your plants so they grow well because if the plants start to die off they may actually make the nitrate problems worse. Adding more filtration to the tank can also help reduce nitrates as well as doing small to medium sized water changes as previously suggested etc .