stevereefguy
11/11/2003, 02:26 PM
I asked the Algone manufacturer for the active ingredients in their product and how it reduced nitrates. I rec'd the following reply. Does it make sense?
there is actually a link on our product information site http://www.algone.com/algone_information.asp#test
On your left there is a column named "Algone in the aquarium" "more detailed info". Scrolling down you will find a heading: Algone - "What is it and what does it do"
To shed some light on your question, Algone works among others on the principle of nitrogen starvation. In nature, some plants are utilizing nitrogen in areas where nitrogen is rare, for example yucca schidigera which is known as nitrogen "absorber" and more and more used in animal feeds to combat odor (used in pig farms all the way down to cat and dog foods).
The mixture of the Algone medium is based on such materials known by the principle of nitrogen starvation. Another aspect is that the microorganisms within Algone use nitrogen compounds as a food source. These microorganisms use nitrogen to build proteins that can safely be retained which is referred to as nitrogen retention.
As a result of the above mechanisms, Algone enhances the dissolved oxygen content of the water which in turn favors the beneficial bacteria to break down waste more efficiently. Besides being beneficial for the bacteria colonies, an improvement of water clarity can be observed in most cases due to the higher dissolved oxygen content. More important for reef aquariums, Algone increases the redox potential allowing easier break down of waste and an improvement of overall water quality.
In summary, Algone uses the principles of nitrogen starvation and nitrogen retention to directly absorb nitrogen compounds from the water and enhances the tanks ability to break down waste more efficiently (redox) by increasing the dissolved oxygen content.
there is actually a link on our product information site http://www.algone.com/algone_information.asp#test
On your left there is a column named "Algone in the aquarium" "more detailed info". Scrolling down you will find a heading: Algone - "What is it and what does it do"
To shed some light on your question, Algone works among others on the principle of nitrogen starvation. In nature, some plants are utilizing nitrogen in areas where nitrogen is rare, for example yucca schidigera which is known as nitrogen "absorber" and more and more used in animal feeds to combat odor (used in pig farms all the way down to cat and dog foods).
The mixture of the Algone medium is based on such materials known by the principle of nitrogen starvation. Another aspect is that the microorganisms within Algone use nitrogen compounds as a food source. These microorganisms use nitrogen to build proteins that can safely be retained which is referred to as nitrogen retention.
As a result of the above mechanisms, Algone enhances the dissolved oxygen content of the water which in turn favors the beneficial bacteria to break down waste more efficiently. Besides being beneficial for the bacteria colonies, an improvement of water clarity can be observed in most cases due to the higher dissolved oxygen content. More important for reef aquariums, Algone increases the redox potential allowing easier break down of waste and an improvement of overall water quality.
In summary, Algone uses the principles of nitrogen starvation and nitrogen retention to directly absorb nitrogen compounds from the water and enhances the tanks ability to break down waste more efficiently (redox) by increasing the dissolved oxygen content.