How do you feed your fish to prevent nitrates??

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Well, I never rinse my mysis, which I feed a cube of every day (Ocean Nutrition brand).

Yes, I can beleive the burst to cyano could come from DOC, or phosphate, probably not so often nitrate.

[Mr.Aiptasia]

Paul B, really sorry about your sponge. I know, it is quite beautiful...
Hmm, is Chemi Clean a some sort of postassium permanganate solution?

If yes, sometimes I add stuff like potassium permanganate directly into my skimmer... on top of the foam... in this case less amount (just a 2-3 drops) is enough. Seems to be less stressful and more effective - my skimmer starts to produce a big amount of really dark foam. What do you think about this way of using potassium permanganate?

I think that sort of a "juice" maybe a bit too "fatty", especially for smaller tanks, thus skimmers may go flat, and as a result - low ORP, less oxygen and a massive cyano growth. What do you think, Randy? Thank you.

[Paul B]

Well, I never rinse my mysis, which I feed a cube of every day (Ocean Nutrition brand).

Randy, your tank is probably in better shape than mine, but you don't add mud and things from the sea.
The "juices" from frozen food IMO adds nothing good to a tank that I would need. The fish can't eat it and I doubt it would benefit corals but it is probably good for sponges and filter feeders. I really don't know.
The liquid is mostly from the mysis being torn apart in the freezing, or thawing process because most of those tiny animals are not completely whole when you thaw them. That is the resulting liquid that comes from the gut and organs of the animal. If you freeze whole shrimp (which are larger) and thaw them, they stay whole and no juice is exuded.
I have never used "Ocean Nutrition Brand" but all mysis are just small shrimp like creatures.
I do have some Hikari Bio Pure mysis and they also contain vitamin B 12, pyridoxine hydrocloride, L-ascorbyl-2polyphosphate, carotine riboflavin,
thiamine mononitrate, biotib chloride, folic acid, calcium pantothenate, insitol and niacin. I know this is all mostly vitamins but I think it is just included to make it sound healthy to the buyer as these are water soluble vitamins and would just wash off as soon as it hits the water.
I have another package of Mysis that is just Mysis.
Whatever is included in the package I wash off.
I also feel clams are a much better food than mysis which is a large portion of shell and not as much internal organs where the bulk of the nutrition is.
If you thaw some mysis you will see that much of the contents is just hollow shells where the internal "meat" has come loose and disappeared in the liquid of the product.
This is all just my opinion of course with absolutely no scientific backing

[ejdustin]

I think there are a few things that would contribute to a cyano bloom like that. When it comes to food there is no doubt that the "juice" will add some amount of N and P to a system. I would ask will this really effect anything. If you test the "juice" the levels will be off the charts as the volume is extremely small so the concentration is very high. However when we add this to our tank the concentration is undectable (in my 120 anyway). I have tested before during and after feeding and I don't see any changes. Obviously with smaller tanks this will have somewhat of an effect but I would hope someone with a much smaller tank has less fish and is feeding less so to some extent the concentrations should be similar.

Anyway I think more important is what the specific tank is accustom to. I for one dont generally rinse my food and don't have N or P. I would imagine that because I have always fed like this that the tank and biology going on in the tank is used to the small amount of extra nutriets and gets rid of it. However for someone who historically does wash their food and remove the "juice" and then all of the sudden stops I could imagine a bloom would come. Missing a day or two might do nothing but if over a week everyday more nutrients were added it could accumulate enough to cause a bloom as the tank isn't ready for the new load. Just thought I would add my ideas I love discussions like this

[Paul B]

the levels will be off the charts as the volume is extremely small

Just thought I would add my ideas I love discussions like this

So do I. But I will discuss anything. Anyway as to the levels of juice being extreamly small that is not exactly true. If you thaw one of those cubes and rinse it off, then put the mysis back into the plastic cube, you will find that most of the volume of that cube was wasted liquid. Sometimes it is almost all wasted liquid depending on how the product was frozen and stored or if it was re-frozen as it sometimes is. Don't forget, this is fish food and not subject to FDA rules or anyone elses rules. That is why those packages all say, "Not for human consumption" It's a good thing it says that because there is nothing I like more than to gnaw on a cube of frozen mysis.

However when we add this to our tank the concentration is undectable

I am sure you will not be able to test anything from a cube of mysis but you also would not detect anything if you dumped a few drops of waste water from Chernoble reactor, Campbells Chicken Soup or sweat from Paris Hilton's dog but there are things you may not want to add, not so much because it would cause a toxic reaction, but just because it is not needed.
I am not one to listen to as to what you should not add to a tank as I add all sorts of things, but I feel the things I add are either benign or helpful. The liquid that comes from pre packaged frozen fish food is a waste product just as when you open a package of chicken and there is some liquid in the package. Would you drink that, or add it to your tank? Why not?

really sorry about your sponge. I know, it is quite beautiful

Thanks, I got it as a tiny piece and it was a nice blue. I have been using Chemi Clean for decades and never saw any detrimental things with it, but I don't remember ever having any sponge with it. I will just get another sponge, it grows wild in a LFS tank here and he will give me some more.

[ejdustin]

Anyway as to the levels of juice being extreamly small that is not exactly true.

I was referring to the amount of water compared to the juice was small, which makes the concentration very high. So testing nitrates or phosphates in the juice will of course be extrememly high but when it is put into the tank the concentration is almost nothing.

[Paul B]

I was referring to the amount of water compared to the juice was small, which makes the concentration very high. So testing nitrates or phosphates in the juice will of course be extrememly high but when it is put into the tank the concentration is almost nothing.

Yes I knew what you meant. But if you do this every day, eventually you will be putting in a lot of juice, over time. Maybe a gallon a year.
I don't know, I took a guess

[ejdustin]

True eventually it would add up but with water changes and what not it can't really get too high... I think lol. As long as you have the biology going on to export the nasty stuff that is.