Help Fast!!!!

[Varkalis]

I have a Fluval FX5 on my 29 gallon. Should i take it off, and just keep the biomax that was in it? will i be ok without that kind of flow. I will still have two HOB filters and a Sea clone 150. can someone answer me quick?

[Varkalis]

I took out all the filter pads and all i have in there is biomax, and carbon. Should i just take the biomax out and leave the carbon or just stop using the whole thing?

[Varkalis]

Anyone please... ever its been up and running, i cant get my nitrates down.

[jvdb]

I don't understand why you have a 1000GPH canister filter rated for a 400 gallon tank on a 29 gallon?

Why don't you sell it on eBay and get a sump with macro-algae refugium? I think that along with a better skimmer will solve your nitrate problems.

edit: I would sell all your HOBs, Sea Clown, and that huge Fluval on eBay and buy or build something like this:

http://www.aquamartonline.com/01551_1_2_1551.html

[Varkalis]

I just took it off. A kid at my LFS, who supossidly got trained by one of the best reefers, told me that flow is the key to a good reef. and that the fluval would do that for my tank. I had my doughts because everyone knows that they are nitrate farms. i just had it dialed down, to about 3/4 the flow, and cleaned it once a week. even that wasnt good enough. I am just going to go back to the way it was. Protein skimmer, HOB refugium and a hob filter just for water movement, and to hold carbon. My nitrates then never went about 10ppm, and that was with only doing a water chance once a month. I just added top off, and B-Ionic. Of course i will be doind my weekly water changes now, instead of supplementing.

Thanks for your post by the way.

[jvdb]

In the mean time you could get some Nitrate removal stuff and put it in your canister. I don't remember what it's called, but I'm sure if you search the forum you can figure it out.

[jvdb]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11119198#post11119198 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Varkalis
I just took it off. A kid at my LFS, who supossidly got trained by one of the best reefers, told me that flow is the key to a good reef. and that the fluval would do that for my tank. I had my doughts because everyone knows that they are nitrate farms. i just had it dialed down, to about 3/4 the flow, and cleaned it once a week. even that wasnt good enough. I am just going to go back to the way it was. Protein skimmer, HOB refugium and a hob filter just for water movement, and to hold carbon. My nitrates then never went about 10ppm, and that was with only doing a water chance once a month. I just added top off, and B-Ionic. Of course i will be doind my weekly water changes now, instead of supplementing.

Thanks for your post by the way.

No problem. I agree water flow is good, but you should look at a powerhead like a Tunze Nano Stream, or Koralia instead. I have lots of live rock, a good sand bed, good water flow, and a decent skimmer (IMO), and I have had no measurable nitrates -- since after the first month my tank was setup.

[Macimage]

You could run it empty for just the flow until you get other equipment. It depends on if you want to use the HOB filters for water flow or the Fluval.

I did that with a Fluval 403 on a 55 gallon tube tank that wasn't drilled and only had hang on equipment. I took the water out of one side and returned it to the other side of the reef tube tank.

Joyce

[BurntOutReefer]

"I had my doughts because everyone knows that they are nitrate farms."....
Not true. Bad husbandry makes them a nitrate factory...

[Varkalis]

What happened was about a month ago, all my live rock fell. So I took them all out and found that my starfish was crushed. once I had all the rock in a tub with tank water. I figured I could move the tank, about five feet to a different wall in the room so you didn’t see everything behind it.

Anyway. I did a lot of reading about canisters, and like you said Burntoutreefer, as long as you keep them clean you should be ok. I decided to use the fluval because it was not being used for freshwater anymore. I replace all the pads and media with new. And for about a month now I cant seem to get the nitrates below 40ppm. I didn’t understand why because I cleaned it out very well every week.

I was doing a water change last night and couldn’t decide to take it off or not. so I started this thread.

I noticed that no matter where I put the outlet, and how much I turned down the flow. My mushrooms were getting blown like crazy. I am sure they didn’t like that too much. I am going to take jvdb's advice and sell it. my friend wanted my 75 gallon in the first place, for FW, so he can use his 29 gallon to finally start the reefing experience.

I want to see how the tank sits without the fluval.

[jvdb]

I wonder if you've got some die off?

You could try running some of this stuff in your filter and see if it helps out:

http://www.seachem.com/products/product_pages/denitrate.html