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how do i reduce nitrates in the water

4 years, 10 months ago

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sjj1012

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CHECK YOUR WATER HOSES. I found that my water filtration hoses (both inlet and return) get food buildup along the inside of these hoses that cause HIGH NITRATE levels in my water.

Regardless of water changes or regardless of the nitrate levels from the tap, the tank nitrates would spike rediculously high within hours of a water change. Then I realized the insides of my hoses (which are hidden beneath and behind my 75 gal tank) were lined with gunk.

Ultimately, I discovered that I had to CLEAN THE INSIDE of my hoses at least every 6 months and REPLACE them at least every 12 months (since the inside of the hoses could not be cleaned sufficiently enough to prevent nitrate spikes when the hoses got too old).
I hope this helps someone as I WISH that someone had told me this before I had lost fish.

Age: 55-65

Gender: female

1 year, 4 months ago

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donad1956

martin, tn

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I have a 75 gallon saltwater tank and struggled for more than a few months to get my nitrate level down to an acceptable reading. The level was high despite the fact that tests consistently revealed no ammonia and no nitrites. The struggling found me spending more than a little on various additives and water changes. It then dawned on my dumb self that I had never checked the nitrate level of the new water I added to the tank during regular water changes. Oooops! I live in the country and thus get my water from a well rather than a public water system. The well water has a fairly high nitrate level, so frequent water changes did less than nothing to solve the problem. I then picked up some reverse osmosis water from a nearby grocery store. Nitrate levels in that water were zero. Gradually...and thankfully...using the reverse osmosis water rather than my well water brought the nitrate levels down to nothing. Obvious moral to this story. Check your water source before you do anything else.

Gender: male

1 year, 8 months ago

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CWT5007

Mount Jackson, VA

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I had a HUGE problem with nitrates. What I had to do was an immediate and thorough gravel clean to get rid of any uneaten food, a 30% water change daily until levels started to stabilize(which was 3 weeks), and I added Seachem Prime daily to help lock the nitrates and Seachem Stability to help the bacteria in my tank break it down. I also cut down drastically on feeding and fed them every other day an in moderation. Finally I bought the Seachem de*Nitrate filter media to help start the nitrate breakdown as well as for a home for nitrate eating bacteria to grow on. I had to wait for that to ship to me, since the stores had it for 3 time what they charge here, but I noticed an improvement as soon as I got it in my filter.

I won't kid you- it was a HUGE struggle and I lost a bunch of fish until my tank finally cycled out. It is something called "old tank syndrome" and can happen. Although in my case it was because I had purchased some plants that had baby apple/mystery snails that got into my canister filter and destroyed its capability's from one cleaning to the next. When I found the problem I had to do such an extreme cleaning that I lost a lot of the beneficial bacteria in my filter media. I still have the little buggers in my filter, though it is 1 or two and not fifty plus with eggs everywhere!!!) and it has been about 7 months now, but I know they are there and watch my filter more carefully and clean it a little more often.

Good luck to you and I hope this help! I had such a hard time when I was looking for help.

Age: 35-44

Gender: female

2 years, 5 months ago

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fishie21

Chicago, IL

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This is one question that is impossible to answer without listing products. I suggest you do a search of the aquatics section - enter reduce nitrates and many of the products I buy are listed. You will find more products that lower nitrates in the chemical filtration section. You will also find a liquid product that will detox the nitrates in the water conditioner section. Doing regular water changes will also help - but some municipal water supply does have nitrates (my local water supply has nitrates - and other things harmful to fish - hence part of the reason I switched to reverse osmosis water). You can also call the 1-800 number on the site and ask for an aquatics expert. They can help direct you to the best products to try.

Age: 55-65

Gender: female

4 years, 7 months ago

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4fish

Lima, OH

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Thank you for your question. To better assist you in this matter, we would recommend directly contacting our Customer Support Department at 1-800-381-7179 ext 226. You can also e-mail us at customerservice@fosterandsmithaquatics.com.

4 years, 10 months ago

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DRS1

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I have an old tank about 20 yrs old and now I can not get rid of the fish smell. What product do you suggest?

I have 2 outside filters and an undergravel filter. I just got finished removing all the gravel and washing it.
the filters where completely cleanined. I have small fish and three large rocks.

Age: 45-54

Gender: female

4 years, 7 months ago

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Diane1964

San Antonio, TX

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I have a 55 I bought in 91, it doesn't smell fishy! You have to have active bacteria in your tank to get rid of fish waste and your tank will not smell fishy. Set your tank up! Get yourself some Prime, Microbe-Lift Special Blend, and Microbe-Lift Nite-Out II. Follow instructions, let your tank set-in for about two weeks. Add fish and enjoy! Now! Stop cleaning your tank, vacuuming the gravel, just clean the algae off the glass once in a while. Feed the fish one time a day,what they will eat in two minutes. Remember fish look for food all day, make them find it all! Get some oxygen in your tank, bubbles! I've got 11 large African Ciclids, diffidently over crawled, I do a small water change, down about an inch every couple of weeks. If your going to deep clean one thing at a time, one filter wait a week, the next. you need to keep your bacteria up to keep the fishy smell gone. I can actually drink water out of my tank and it taste better than out of the tap.

Age: 55-65

Gender: male

2 years, 1 month ago

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icthoman

Lincoln Ne

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I prefer to use natural products. You can put vinegar in a spray bottle and spray the whole tank down with the filters inside them (soak everything including the lip on the top trim and the silicone corners) and then cover it with a plastic bag or plastic wrap for at least 24 hours but not more then 72 (especially on plastic or your o-rings) to seal it and prevent the vinegar from evaporating. You may even want to put paper towels on top of and in the filter so that the vinegar stays in contact with the surface and doesn't run right off.

Rinse it all down very well and see if that worked. The smell should be less if not cone, also you should not smell vinegar. If you do, rinse it under warm water until the vinegar is gone. Remember vinegar will make your water acidic, so you don't want to forget to rinse it thoroughly. I do not have gravel any longer, however you can soak your grave and rocks in it as well. Just remember if you have an beneficial bacteria in the gravel, you will be killing them. you also want to soak it in water and rinse it well to remove the vinegar.

Vinegar usually works on removing the smell for me. I did this when I bought a 55 gallon tank from someone who had goldfish in it, it was pretty smelly and had so much build up on it because they would salt the water. they trough in a filter that I thought I was going to use, it got the smell out of that as well. Sometimes if the smells are really set in you may have to repeat it. With vinegar it's no problem cause you can get a gallon for $1

Age: 35-44

Gender: female

2 years, 5 months ago

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fishie21

Chicago, IL

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Assuming you do not have live plants I would use a charcoal filter media heavily until you get rid of the smell. It needs to be replaced every 3-4 weeks.

Age: 45-54

Gender: male

3 years, 4 months ago

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TonyVideo

Rushville, IN

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Thank you for your question. Please contact our Customer Service Department at 1-800-381-7179 or email Customerservice@DrsFosterSmith.com as more information is needed to better answer your question.

ajl

4 years, 7 months ago

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DRS1

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Does water conditioner have an expiration date?

5 years, 6 months ago

by

Zackie

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I know you have already received an answer. All of the products I buy (prominent name brand companies) have expiration dates - or lot numbers (which you can call the company and find out when it was made if necessary) - stamped on them. If you can't find an expiration date, then look to see if the product lists "shelf life" (some will say how long the product will last on shelf and also how long after opened). You can be pretty sure that the products you are getting from Drs. Foster and Smith are fresh with the amount of sales going through this company. When my products arrive, I look at the Expiration dates - and write them larger for easy view. I also mark with permanent marker the date I received the product and store accordingly. Water conditioners are not as critical with expiration dates as bacteria products. You have invested a lot of money on your fish. Use quality products and check bottles for dates. I would not use the products much beyond their expiration dates. Most conditioners I have purchased are stamped with dates three to four years from date of my purchase.

5 years, 3 months ago

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4fish

Lima, OH

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Most chemicals do not post expiration dates. I would not use it if it is over 5 years old. I buy only enough that will last a year. If it last a little longer that is fine. If it gets hot like in a storage shed. Toss it out. Keep it in a cool dark place. Heat destroys the chemicals effectiveness. If you leave the cap off the bottle for a day it might not work like it should.

5 years, 5 months ago

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sterling

Longmont, CO

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There may be a date on the product, but often times products are useable well beyond the date. I use this product up very quickly, especially during the dog days of summer when the water evaporates so quickly that an expiration date becomes insignificant. Hope this might help.

5 years, 5 months ago

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Pezhead

Pennsylvania

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Does water conditionar have an expiration date?

5 years, 6 months ago

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Zackie

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Not sure. If kept in a try place, can see how it can go bad.

2 days ago

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Quickster

New Kent, Virginia

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Yes - i aqua safe has it on the bottom of the bottle.

2 years, 2 months ago

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RumDum

St. Cloud MN

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Although most water conditioners do not list expiration dates on them. I would toss out stuff older than 5 years.
All chemicals break down and the purpose of your conditioner( a chemical) is to remove very bad chemicals from the water. Some people will not use stuff over 3 years old.

Personally I do not use anything over a year old if possible. I buy the size bottle that I will use in a year. If it last a little longer it isn't a big deal. I try and keep it as fresh as possible.

Do not use any conditioner that got hot from being in storage or other situation. Heat breaks down chemicals very fast.

If you leave a cap off your conditioner for a day or so it might not be as effective either.

5 years, 6 months ago

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sterling

Longmont, CO

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I have a 50 gal freshwater & problems with ph.

Right now I only have 2 angel fish about 6 months old & I believe they are both female. All my other fish died & my problem is that I can't seem to keep the ph up. No matter what I have tried (changing water or adding ph buffer) I can't keep the ph up. I have city water which is on the high side of hard. Even in my 20 gal tank which I use as a back-up while I try to stabilize the water in the 50. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Age: 55-65

Gender: female

4 years, 8 months ago

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zigie

gator country fl

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Not sure. I use deep well water and treat all with API Ph 7.0, and Tetra Aqua safe with stabilizers and electrolytes.

2 days ago

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Quickster

New Kent, Virginia

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pH is not that hard to fix. If your water is too acidic and you want something more neutral an easy solution is household baking soda. Simply mix 1 teaspoon of baking soda in 1 cup of water for every 5 gallons of water, so for a 20 gallon tank that would be 4 teaspoons in 4 cups of water. mix to dissolve as much as you can and then add 1/4 of the water to your aquarium (optimally by the outlet of your filter so it gets dispersed quickly). After 30 minutes add another quarter of the solution (mix again if some has settled). Wait 30 minutes again and repeat 2 more times until all of the solution is gone. You are doing this in steps because fish can not handle rapid changes in pH, this allows the pH to gradually increase and your fishes bodies to become accustomed to the ever increasing pH levels. Check the pH levels in your tank after 24 hours, you should see an increase. If you still need the pH higher, then you can repeat the process.

If this is too much for you , Seachem sells a product called Liquid Alkaline Buffer. It states it raises levels and buffers to pH 7.2-7.8.

I had some pH issues and the baking soda did the trick for me, since then I haven't had a problem-however my fish prefer it a bit acidic.

Age: 35-44

Gender: female

2 years, 5 months ago

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fishie21

Chicago, IL

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Thank you for your question. We feel it would be best to contact our Customer Support Department as we would have additional questions for you. Please call us at 1-800-381-7179.

mah

4 years, 8 months ago

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DRS1

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