But phosphates in a saltwater aquarium can be a big-time trouble-maker, even at natural levels. The seventh most important reef tank water parameter to monitor is phosphate. Phosphate occurs naturally on reefs and is present at a level of ~0.13 ppm. If your pH either starts or falls out of that range, take your time raising or lowering the water over hours or days (depending on how dramatic the difference is) to avoid shocking your fish, corals, and other invertebrates. Dramatic swings in pH can cause problems for your livestock. While the absolute pH is important, it is perhaps even more important to ensure it remains stable. The ideal range you want to aim for is ~8.1-8.4 for a healthy saltwater aquarium. The pH is essential to the chemistry of your reef tank, which is why pH ranks as one of the most important reef tank parameters. The scale reads from acidic on the low end to basic on the high end. pH is a critical reef tank parameter to measure for a healthy saltwater aquarium The pH scale is logarithmic, meaning that 8.0 is MUCH farther from 7.0 than you think. The way I think about pH is this: the pH level tells me how acidic (or not acidic) the water is. It’s a long, drawn-out explanation that revolves around hydrogen ions. I won’t bore you too much with the scientific definition of pH. If you see any level other than zero while you’re testing your water, it’s a symptom that A) your biological filter has crashed or B) it can’t keep up with SOME large source of ammonia (say, a dead fish you haven’t located yet). Other than that, you want your nitrites to remain as close to ZERO as possible. This provides evidence that naturally occurring, beneficial bacteria have colonized your tank. (See? It all makes sense in the end) Ideal Nitrite Parameter for a Reef Tankįor a very brief period of time (a few days, MAX) – say, while you are cycling your tank – you look for the presence of nitrites in your tank. In your filter, bacteria convert toxic ammonia into less toxic nitrite before the second group of bacteria converts the nitrite to nitrate. Nitrite is an intermediate by-product produced by your bacterial filter as part of the nitrogen cycle. Color-changing test kits make it easy to monitor levels of different water parameters Though they ARE related to one another through the nitrogen cycle. Nitrite and nitrate are two separate and important compounds to monitor in your water. The fifth most important saltwater aquarium water parameter is nitrite. Populating your aquarium with soft corals, zoanthids and other corals that absorb nutrients from the water column will also help.Ĭlick here to receive the FREE PDF download and all the other freebies! Spoiler alert: The proper regimen for dosing vodka in the tank is NOT “one for the tank and one for me.” (Sorry to disappoint) Two common ways to do this are through the use of biopellets or vodka dosing. But you can give those populations a boost by adding carbon to your tank. The short version is to allow beneficial bacteria to naturally grow in your tank. They accomplish this via a process called carbon dosing. ![]() However, to help keep your nitrates low on an ongoing basis, some aquarists employ the help of beneficial bacteria which eat the nitrates. The fastest, most natural, and lowest-tech way to remove nitrates from your reef tank is to perform a partial water change. However, levels around 30-40 ppm are generally tolerated by most saltwater aquarium fish (except for fragile species), and many hardy soft corals tend to come from nutrient-rich waters. On an ongoing basis, you want to strive for nitrate levels as low as possible. However, you may get away with slightly higher levels. ![]() It is best to keep nitrate levels as close to 0ppm in a saltwater aquarium. Their health will decline (adding even MORE nitrates) if left unattended. Some invertebrates are intolerant of high nitrate levels. If you are feeding live artemia to your tank, you should filter the water so as to only introduce the clean shrimp to the tank. The animals in your tank will produce nitrates, but it also comes from the food you feed them, as well as from brine shrimp hatchery water. But it also acts as a fertilizer, boosting problem algae growth. More and more nitrate gets generated, allowing the levels to climb. Small amounts of nitrogen in the nitrates get absorbed by certain soft corals or macroalgae. The problem crops up when your aquarium gets more crowded and mature. Then other bacteria turn that nitrite into nitrate. In a properly cycled aquarium, bacteria convert nitrogen waste (often in the form of ammonia) into nitrite.
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