How do YOU lower your Nitrates and Phosphates?

[ScubaSteve]

Originally Posted by zoaElite

I'm all over the map as far as nutrient sinks go, my phosphate is @ zero (Elos) but my nitrate hovers around 10ppm. The Bioload is... a little over the top so to combat:
Water Changes (20% Monthly)
Vertex 15 NP BioPellet Reactor
20g Cheato Reactor
Hydor Performance 700 Skimmer
TLF Running GFO
Carbon refreshed monthly
150 Red Mangroves
350lbs of Liverock
200lbs of Livesand including a 30g 8 inch DSB

Have also started running the full ProdiBio lineup but it's a little early to tell how well that is working. Even at 10ppm I'm getting some wicked color in the SPS.

Holy balls, Levi! All that and you're still at 10 ppm? You, uhhhh, should send some of them zoas my way... you know.. lower that bioload a little bit.

My bioload is... medium/high I guess. I only have 4 smaller fish (one of which I am only fish sitting until December when my friend gets back) but I have quite a few corals. I have many SPS, a couple LPS and a growing collection of zoas.

All this is making me think that I may just stick with the reactor I designed. It is similar in principle to a sulphur denitrator except it doesn't make acid (it's output is actually basic) and runs off a 9V battery. Maybe I'll take some pics during the rebuild and give a lesson on these things.

One thing I might try in the mean time is Vitamin C dosing. It is a carbon source and might help battle the nitrates and it has anecdotally helped promote zoa health. If I do try, I'll go slow and increase it over a couple weeks.

[amoreira]

Following things I do for my 220 gal system...

- 10% per week water change
- ~2 lb live rock per gallon
- 4"-5" DSB (oolitic aragonite sugar sand)
- Macro in the fuge
- Keep stocking low
- Massive skimming (SWC Xtreme Cone Protein Skimmer 250 1A)
- Run biopellets.
- Run GFO (am transitioning from GFO, just recently started using bio pellets)
- Run highest quality carbon (Rox 0.8)

My phosphates and nitrates are virtually nil.

[tlo]

for my 180 with medium bio-load

- 10% weekly water changes
-dsb
-macroalgae
-bio pellets
-skimming
-and I have just started using brightwell aquatics macrobactor 7 with promising results.

This keeps my phosphates at zero(hanna checker) and my nitrates at ~2 (salifert)

I over feed my fish - but I really enjoy feeding them and its something no matter how hard I try - I always will do - so I pay a little extra for water changes/supplements- its worth it for me.

[Parker]

I run pellet but I don't find they make a huge difference. I've tried skimming very wet, very dry, not at all. My skimmer has been off for the last couple weeks because I have been on holidays and there has been no changes in the tank. I have to admit I don't do a lot of water changes, which I should!

[burgerchow]

don't feed very much. Only feed my fish a few pellets every other day. Have a pretty good skimmer, lots of good quality live rock, lots of flow,( 2 vortechs) and only do 10% water change every other month.
works for me.