Highest nitrate sps can handle and thrive...

[marine_freak]

Checked my nitrate tonight, .2ppm how high can nitrate go and sps still thrive..... I do not plan to attempt an experiment or anything but I see most people have 0 nitrates.......could this very small amt of nitrate cause my cyno problem??? Oh stontium was high at 20........ magnesium 1200........ dkh 9.3........ ph 8.25...... temp 77.5......... Calcium 525!!!!!!!!!! Cannot get the stuff to go down!!!!!!!!!

[comatose]

I don't think that amount of Nitrate is causing your cyno problem it may be something else causing it.
.2 ppm of nitrate is the highest you want to go with a sps tank, lower the better..
I've been stuck at .1 to .2 for over a year now, never goes higher or lower for me. and have had no problems with my SPS dominated tank.

[Wiskey]

I have a friend who has maintained 25 PPM nitrate for the last year or more, although his colors leave something to be desired, his growth rate is astounding!

Whiskey

[RichConley]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7043116#post7043116 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by comatose
I don't think that amount of Nitrate is causing your cyno problem it may be something else causing it.
.2 ppm of nitrate is the highest you want to go with a sps tank, lower the better..
I've been stuck at .1 to .2 for over a year now, never goes higher or lower for me. and have had no problems with my SPS dominated tank.

It has never been shown that nitrates have a negative effect on corals.

Phosphates on the other hand....

[Serioussnaps]

I'd let it go up to 10, but I like it at 5ppm. At 5ppm, I like the idea of having some nutrients in the tank.

[Amphiprion]

At my workplace, the sewage dump for a reef has over 100ppm nitrate ion and the sps in there still grow (and have some reasonable color as well). I would never recommend allowing these levels to reach this high. But this is why I think that there are many factors for dying corals and most people blame NO3, when it just isn't the case.

[twon8]

i dont' bother checking for nitrates.

[richfavinger]

I just tested mine the other night, my kit goes off the scale at 10ppm, so I'm over, over by how much, I do not know. I need a new Nitrate and P04 kit, any suggestions? I was going to pick up Salifert this weekend at TFP.

Nitrates could be high as I just removed a good bit, but not all my sand, I still have about 1" to 1.5". The clam and my new SPS seems happy. Months ago when tested Nitrates where 0.0. My guess is they are up do to the sand reduction? :) P04 is un-readable, as I run PhosGuard, and replace monthly.

Rich