Recommendations nitrate removal from tap water

[Sunnyspots]

I have 4 to 16 ppm nitrates in my tap water. Assuming it occasionally/frequently comes out at 16 ppm (I live in a very agricultural area) it would leave little leeway for nitrates in the tank. I have seen there are various filters, and what I assume to be binders like Seachem De*Nitrate, but am lost as to what might be the best option out of so many. Does anyone have experience of the various possibilities please?

 

[Byron]

@AbbeysDad has very successfully dealt with this issue and will be able to provide all the detail.

 

[P J]

Hi Sunny, before adding the tap water treat it with something like Aquasafe, but fish will happily live in water with nitrate levels of 40 ppm or slightly above, don’t use so called products that remove the nitrate, make sure you have an effective biological filter in a cycled tank.

 

[Sunnyspots]

Hi Sunny, before adding the tap water treat it with something like Aquasafe, but fish will happily live in water with nitrate levels of 40 ppm or slightly above, don’t use so called products that remove the nitrate, make sure you have an effective biological filter in a cycled tank.

I am starting to worry that the phosphate levels (still to be tested once I get the kit but the water company add phosphorus) and nitrate levels might push me to start using RO water. Obviously I don't want to be doing that if at all possible.

 

[P J]

Be patient and ensure you have a viable biological filtering capacity, this will take a minimum of four weeks to establish itself, don’t put additives into the tank and make sure you have a filter capacity of about ten times the tank volume, don’t clean the filters in this period and ensure there is good surface agitation to maintain oxygen levels in the tank. Stability will eventually be established. You are over thinking the issue.

 

[Sunnyspots]

Be patient and ensure you have a viable biological filtering capacity, this will take a minimum of four weeks to establish itself, don’t put additives into the tank and make sure you have a filter capacity of about ten times the tank volume, don’t clean the filters in this period and ensure there is good surface agitation to maintain oxygen levels in the tank. Stability will eventually be established. You are over thinking the issue.

Well I've got all that in place and am almost fully cycled now after 33 days. I'm still going to check phosphates as I know the water company adds phosphorus and I am overrun with algae and diatoms. I know some, or all, should clear though once I've done my huge water change before adding fish. I really don't believe I am overthinking the issue, although I can see why you might think so. I am merely thinking ahead to when I own fish and basing my concerns on reading my tank and tap water quality report. I want to fit my fish to my water not the other way round .

P.s. thank you for the reassurance vis-a-vis nitrate levels managed by fish.

 

[Essjay]

Most experts now recommend that nitrate should be kept below 20 ppm. It used to be thought that 40 ppm was OK but it has been revised downwards in recent years.

 

[Sunnyspots]

Aaah. That was what I thought and why a tap water level of 4 to 16 bothered me.

 

[Essjay]

The easiest way to keep nitrate under 20 with a tap level like yours is to stop more being made in the tank. When there are live plants in a tank, they take up the ammonia made by the fish and they don't turn it into nitrite. Floating plants are very good for this.

About 9 months ago I quarantined some fish without using any mature media, just plants. It was the first time I'd ever done anything like this, so I tested the water daily and never saw a trace of ammonia. The plants removed it all. It was a 25 litre tank with 12 kuhli loaches and 2 large water sprite plants from my main tank and 2 bunches of elodea bought at the same time as the fish and left to float.

 

[DoubleDutch]

Think the way you tank and your fish are doing is a better sign than "I've been told it is too high". Plants need nitrates and phosfates.
Nitrates of 16 isn't bad at all. Aquabrands make us think so cause they earn money on nitrayr absobers etc....

 

[Sunnyspots]

Luckily my tank is fairly heavily planted, including with Salvinia natans. It's good they do more than just look pretty, provide oxygen, give hiding places for fish etc.! They really are fantastic things.

 

[Spyro]

Aaah. That was what I thought and why a tap water level of 4 to 16 bothered me.

I think it's important to understand what those numbers mean in reality.
<20mgl = optimal conditions
prolonged exposure of 20mg - 80 mg = possible impact on health issues, growth rate, mortality rate, etc. It means that some of the fish might live slightly shorter, some fish might develop chronic illness and some fish might die. But percentage is quite low (between 1% and 10% of population) compared to fish in optimal conditions.
>80mg prolonged exposure = you starting to see increase in mortality rate, serious adverse health effects, fry survival and growth rate, etc. But still percentage of population.
>200mgl prolonged exposure = and you start seeing serious increase in percentage of population that has seriously adverse health effects, mortality rate, etc.
>400mgl prolonged exposure = serious increase in mortality rate and poisoning causing serious deformations, irreversable damage, etc.

It's worth noting that some fish species are a lot more sensitive than others to nitrate poisoning (Discus for one) than others.
And that fish can aclimate to Nitrate levels but new fish can get Nitrate shock poisoning from much lower concentrations than fish in the tank with elevated nitrate; resulting in nitrate shock death.
That's my understanding of several studies I read on Nitrate poisoning.

In conclusion, how I see it:
20mgl rule is the same as humans living by all health advises of what might cause illness or death (which is pretty much everything)
<80mgl is same as human not eating particularly healthy diet, having few drinks here and there and living in the city with not so great pollution levels.
Chances are you might live a year or two shorter or have 10% more chance of being ill last few years of your life than someone from 20mgl rule.
80mgl> you are eating excessively and unhealthy food, are overweight, don't do much physical activity, smoke and drink bit to much.
200mg = you are really overeating on sugar, fast food, heavy smoker and alcohol drinker, drink 2lt of Coke a day and spend all your time in front of the TV with beer in one hand and smoke in other.
400mgl = You are drug addict and will eventually overdose if you don't die from heart attack or something else sooner.

I think most fish owners live much much unhealthier lives than what they stress about with their fish.

But that's just my opinion on the mater.
GL

 

[Sunnyspots]

I think it's important to understand what those numbers mean in reality.
<20mgl = optimal conditions
prolonged exposure of 20mg - 80 mg = possible impact on health issues, growth rate, mortality rate, etc. It means that some of the fish might live slightly shorter, some fish might develop chronic illness and some fish might die. But percentage is quite low (between 1% and 10% of population) compared to fish in optimal conditions.
>80mg prolonged exposure = you starting to see increase in mortality rate, serious adverse health effects, fry survival and growth rate, etc. But still percentage of population.
>200mgl prolonged exposure = and you start seeing serious increase in percentage of population that has seriously adverse health effects, mortality rate, etc.
>400mgl prolonged exposure = serious increase in mortality rate and poisoning causing serious deformations, irreversable damage, etc.

It's worth noting that some fish species are a lot more sensitive than others to nitrate poisoning (Discus for one) than others.
And that fish can aclimate to Nitrate levels but new fish can get Nitrate shock poisoning from much lower concentrations than fish in the tank with elevated nitrate; resulting in nitrate shock death.
That's my understanding of several studies I read on Nitrate poisoning.

In conclusion, how I see it:
20mgl rule is the same as humans living by all health advises of what might cause illness or death (which is pretty much everything)
<80mgl is same as human not eating particularly healthy diet, having few drinks here and there and living in the city with not so great pollution levels.
Chances are you might live a year or two shorter or have 10% more chance of being ill last few years of your life than someone from 20mgl rule.
80mgl> you are eating excessively and unhealthy food, are overweight, don't do much physical activity, smoke and drink bit to much.
200mg = you are really overeating on sugar, fast food, heavy smoker and alcohol drinker, drink 2lt of Coke a day and spend all your time in front of the TV with beer in one hand and smoke in other.
400mgl = You are drug addict and will eventually overdose if you don't die from heart attack or something else sooner.

I think most fish owners live much much unhealthier lives than what they stress about with their fish.

But that's just my opinion on the mater.
GL

I like your analogy. It makes a lot of sense!

 

[Wills]

I think it's important to understand what those numbers mean in reality.
<20mgl = optimal conditions
prolonged exposure of 20mg - 80 mg = possible impact on health issues, growth rate, mortality rate, etc. It means that some of the fish might live slightly shorter, some fish might develop chronic illness and some fish might die. But percentage is quite low (between 1% and 10% of population) compared to fish in optimal conditions.
>80mg prolonged exposure = you starting to see increase in mortality rate, serious adverse health effects, fry survival and growth rate, etc. But still percentage of population.
>200mgl prolonged exposure = and you start seeing serious increase in percentage of population that has seriously adverse health effects, mortality rate, etc.
>400mgl prolonged exposure = serious increase in mortality rate and poisoning causing serious deformations, irreversable damage, etc.

It's worth noting that some fish species are a lot more sensitive than others to nitrate poisoning (Discus for one) than others.
And that fish can aclimate to Nitrate levels but new fish can get Nitrate shock poisoning from much lower concentrations than fish in the tank with elevated nitrate; resulting in nitrate shock death.
That's my understanding of several studies I read on Nitrate poisoning.

In conclusion, how I see it:
20mgl rule is the same as humans living by all health advises of what might cause illness or death (which is pretty much everything)
<80mgl is same as human not eating particularly healthy diet, having few drinks here and there and living in the city with not so great pollution levels.
Chances are you might live a year or two shorter or have 10% more chance of being ill last few years of your life than someone from 20mgl rule.
80mgl> you are eating excessively and unhealthy food, are overweight, don't do much physical activity, smoke and drink bit to much.
200mg = you are really overeating on sugar, fast food, heavy smoker and alcohol drinker, drink 2lt of Coke a day and spend all your time in front of the TV with beer in one hand and smoke in other.
400mgl = You are drug addict and will eventually overdose if you don't die from heart attack or something else sooner.

I think most fish owners live much much unhealthier lives than what they stress about with their fish.

But that's just my opinion on the mater.
GL

This is amazing! Love the conclusion! My tank is currently in the <80 category but taking steps to get to <20. All of my tanks have always had problems with Nitrates but I have had my successes over the year double digit aged fish, breeding etc. I think its easier now to get low nitrates than say 10 years ago, much more products around, anerobic filtration, increased plant knowledge etc.

Wills