200+ PPM Nitrate to < 20 dosing Sugar! It Works!

[fantastic4]

Spent a good day reading the entire sugar post on Nitrate reduction with sugar and then anouther good day reading the Vodka one as well.

Long story short... I decided to try it myself....

2 tablesppons white sugar every night

Before doseing Nitrate 200+ PPM API Test Kit (Blood red vial!)

1st 24 hours white tank blowout (no deaths), Nitrate RED 200+ PPM. Skimmer going crazy.

48 hours, tank white, skimmer going crazy. 200+ PPM Nitrate

4 days later 100+ PPM Nitrate (White cloud effect reduced)

2 weeks later 60+ PPM Nitrate (no more white cloud effect)

1 month later 10-20 PPM Nitrate

2 months later sugar added every three days, nitrate at <20 and hovering. Decided to try for 0 and will be dosing everyday again.

Also tried Vodka, seems to be more potent as the white cloud is thicker, only doesed a few of those airplane size shots worth. "Smirnoff"

Note: Tank looks ultra clear, was never clear like this. Other people have reported same results after using sugar. No fish deaths during dosing.

IMPORTANT
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DO NOT USE FAKE SUGAR (you know that pink packaged diet sugar, I heard that it is a fish killer). Use plain white table sugar.

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Ensure you have a skimmer to take out the junk the bacteria bloom creates, else do not use this method
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Don't worry about white cloud, just skim it out

[Serioussnaps]

Also, I prefer folks to do it without causing a bloom as you did. A little bit every day or two over time will drop it safely without blooms. YOU CAN KILL THINGS LIKE THAT.

[mfp1016]

So, water changes, what about those??

None?

Some?

Surely, you could have lowered your nitrate levels with just water changes, unless of course you have issues with something releasing nitrate into the column.

[fantastic4]

mfp1016, I'm a big fan of water changes, however, in my case I think my nitrates were due to these issues...

Recently broke down two tanks and combined them into 90g - 130g total volume (I believe my anerobic bacteria was destroyed in the DSB)

Also recently removed a very large wet/dry I had for years, so I think my system was messed up from that older cycling method (perhaps to much of a certain type of bacteria?)

Anyhow, water changes helped, but my nitrates quickly went back up, I was only making minor dents, so I tried the sugar. I have been trying to wean off of it, as I think my anerobic bacteria is now fully populated as my nitrate holdes steady at <20 PPM without dosing for days, however, I want a zero reading.

I know many people are upset at this technique and would prefer everyone to use traditional methods like water change or less feeding or more of this and less of that (I think these other measures are good), but after reading about why sugar helps -- the catalyst aspect -- I see no harm as a daily supplement. In my case I have a very expensive Blueface Angel, a mated pair of maroons with the female in the 6-7" size (very rare in this size for the home aquarium) and I was willing to take the plunge to elliminate high nitrates. It worked for me, no fish deaths and my tank looks healthier than before.

[mfp1016]

Wasn't trying to rag on you, just probe you!

Haha, just wondering if you had an organized water change schedule IN ADDITION to your sugar dosing. And I was also wondering what your nitrate issue could be stemming from.

[madadi]

so is this a reef tank you tried it on? im guessing it was fish only with 200 NO3.

i have about 110g system volume. if i wanted to avoide the bloom how much should i dose? also i only have less then 5 NO3, can it still help?

[fantastic4]

My tank is a FOWLR, 200lbs LR, 90g main display, 130g total volume. Would do a search on Sugar Dosing and read what others have done on dosing amounts.

If your at 5 NO3 PPM and you want 0, I would try doses at 1 teaspoon per day everyday forever.

The whitecloud appears to be a non toxic bacteria bloom created by the acceleration of nitrate eating bacteria. People who monitor oxigen levels have noted decreased oxigen levels when bloom is present, so a skimmer and plenty of water movement will help keep oxigen levels up.

I do not have scientific evidence, but what seems to be happening is some low population nitrate eating bacteria is allowed to re-produce fast when carbon in the form of Vodka or Sugar is present. The nitrate eating bacteria appears to bloom at first due to the vast amount of nitrate in a system like mine with 200PPM and then settle down a clear as the nitrate is consumed. Once your system is down to less then 20PPM NO3, no bloom will occur.

My DSB appears to have anerobic bacteria at an accelerated rate since I introduced the sugar as nitrogen bubbles in good qnty can be seen released from sand as my wrasse kicks up top layer. (This qnty nor bubble size was never the case in the past). I am assuming my LR has anerobic bacteria accelerated as well.

As for your tank, I would think that adding sugar will boost the anerobic to the point all nitrates are consumed. Would add 1 teaspoon per day and monitor for 1 month. If no change, then add 2 teaspoons each night.

GL

[madadi]

good advice. i started to dose sugar last night. I'm adding it slow so will see what happens. thanks

[matt_54351]

be extremely careful with white bacteria blooms!!! my tank crashed hard from the same thing (although the bacteria was fed from a different source). I had a very cloudy tank and decided time was the best cure and was very wrong. I lost all my corals, hard soft, everything, 3 out of 5 fish, snails, hermit crabs, it killed most of my bristle worms!!! all my pods and mysis bit the dust too. several hundred dollars worth of damage!!!!!!!!

please be careful

pm me if you want more specific details

[PUGroyale]

I appreciate your excitement with your success BUT....

Large bacterial blooms SUCK huge amounts of dissolved oxygen from the water!!! ...you're lucky you didn't kill some or all of your tanks inhabitants.

PLEASE PEOPLE... if you read this thread exercise a good deal more caution! The same results can be garnered in a safer, slower fashion, by dosing less sugar and/or vodka. JMO

[madadi]

im dosing just a tea spoon in the morning. no bloom yet.

[dots]

I have used this method quite alot, in fact experimented with my nano cube a couple of times pushing the limit of it, crashing it and seeing what it took to recover and the results from doing so.

Its not a replacement for poor husbandry, and to be used in emergencies or intances where a fish or liverock has spiked your water.

I have found with long time use it appears to cause cyano blooms and over the summer had a bout with receeding tips.

Though not substaniated, one has to realize that sugar not only drives the growth of "good" but "bad" bacteria. I believe over time I disrupted the balance within the system in which could have lowered the nutrients to a point where the corals own symbiotic algae began to die from starvation, bleaching the coral and possibly leading to a overwhelming population of vibro which overwhelmed the pieces. This was further compounded due to a BB tank.

Take it lightly, I think there is more going on with it than we realize. But a useful tool to have regardless.

[madadi]

oops, looks like im getting a bloom. water is just a bit milky. very very little. i thought the glass needed some cleaning but it was still with a tint of white. anyway i looked at the skimmer and it was going crazy. looks like all the bacteria is being skimmed out? hope it wont get worse then this lol crossing my fingers.

[saltydog64]

Originally posted by madadi
oops, looks like im getting a bloom. water is just a bit milky. very very little. i thought the glass needed some cleaning but it was still with a tint of white. anyway i looked at the skimmer and it was going crazy. looks like all the bacteria is being skimmed out? hope it wont get worse then this lol crossing my fingers.

masadi- how about an update.......last said looks like a slight bloom starting ??? Nitrate results ??
THX