Reduce Nitrate In A Salt Water Fish Tank
This salt water fish tank article is a follow up from a previous post entitled “Are Plants For Aquarium Really That Necessary?“.
When you embark on the task of keeping a salt water fish tank, one of the most important task that you will have to do regularly is water changes. Why is changing the tank water so important? Well, there are a number of reasons but one the main reasons is to reduce nitrate levels in the fish tank to healthy levels for your aquatic life which generally is anywhere between 10 to 50 ppm. The other reasons for periodic water changes is to replace trace elements in reef tanks and reduce or remove toxins but reducing nitrate levels still remain the main priority.
Salt Water Fish Tank
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Maintaining healthy nitrate levels is one of the most frustrating aspects about keeping a salt water fish tank. And anyone who keeps a salt water fish tank will tell you that it can also be costly, in terms if the price of a bag of sea salt and also the constant water change. But there are some things that you can do to reduce the need to change water very often and keep nitrate levels low.
High Nitrate Levels In A Salt Water Fish Tank
Once nitrate levels start to reach the 100ppm mark, the fish will begin to feel its effect. Through long term exposure to these levels, the stress that is placed on the fish will cause them to be more susceptible to disease and will also lower their chances of reproduction.
High nitrate levels will also decrease the oxygen level in the water placing even more stress on the fish.
Nitrates are consumed by plants and since algae is a plant, high nitrate levels will cause algae to build up faster. If the plants that you have in your tank is not sufficiently consuming the nitrates, algae will take over and grow on them causing your fish tank plants to die.
You will need to test the water on a weekly basis to gauge the nitrate levels. The kit that I use for testing the water is Nitrate Lab which I find to be the most accurate test kit so far.
Tips For Keeping Nitrate Levels Low In A Salt Water Fish Tank
1) Do not over feed the fish. Also, always remove left over food that have not been eaten for never more than an hour. Excess food is one of the main contributors to high nitrate levels.
2) Maintain the cleanliness of the tank. Waste produces nitrates and having a cleaner tank would ensure that the nitrate levels are low.
3) Keep live plants. Live plants consume nitrates and help ensure that the nitrate levels are healthy in a salt water fish tank.
4) Nitrogen in filter media. Nitrogen enriched filter media will help reduce the nitrate levels. While it will not drastically reduce it, it will lower it to sufficient levels and is a good alternative to expensive denitrators or special filters.
Equipment To Control Fish Tank Nitrates (Click for details)
Now that you’ve learnt about reducing nitrates in a salt water fish tank, why not read up about How Often Should You Change Filter Media?
A large tank has certain decided advantages. A large number of fishes can be kept without overcrowding, and they will usually grow better than when kept in smaller confines. There are several species of fishes which tend to be pugnacious when crowded into a small aquarium.
Hi Humberto,
Thank for dropping by. What you have been told is true. Larger saltwater fish are more difficult to breed and if you’re just starting out, it’s really a better idea to get your feet wet with the smaller varieties. Here are some great ones to start with:
Damsels – Excellent starters. They are hardy, able to withstand harsher conditions that other saltwater fish, they’re cheap and not choosy eaters.
Clownfish – What saltwater fish tank can go without a clownfish. They’re easy to breed and great to watch.
Gobies – They do an excellent job at keeping the tank algae free.
Well that’s three to start you off. You’ve given me a great idea for the next post so check that out.
Tim
Hi I wonder if you can help; I’m getting interested in having some fish and have started looking at buying an aquarium recently. I would love to keep some larger fish, but I’ve been advised previously that I should start with something littler. You wouldn’t have any ideas of the types of smaller salt water fish that i could start with do you? I appreciate your help