subject: Dealing With Aquarium Nitrates And Nitrites [print this page] The most dangerous element in your aquarium is called ammonia; fortunately it gets cleared up through a process called the nitrogen cycle that allows life in your aquarium when two different types of bacteria transform it into less dangerous substances called nitrates and nitrites.
Aquarium nitrates and nitrites can still be harmful to your fish tank water and your fish. Your fish can get sick and even die if proper levels are not maintained. One reason has to do with the growth of algae in your tank.
With nitrate levels as low as ten ppm, algae can grow, and it can decrease the oxygen levels which will put undue stress on the fish and if the fish are young it can stunt their growth. At 100 ppm, the fish will feel the results of the nitrates and if it does remain there, it will make them vulnerable to disease and could even cause problems reproducing.
When you have plants in the fish tank, they will utilize nitrates which are a good thing to help keep it low, but algae can form on them if nitrates are not monitored in the fish tank water and eventually they will become sick and die.
So, what are the root causes of nitrates? Not keeping the filter clean, over feeding the fish, decaying plant material, detritus, and over stocking the tank are all contributing factors. Nitrates are formed from the late stages of nitrite conjugation and are always present in fish tank water.
When you use water to fill up your fish tank, it can be as high as 40 ppm. Test the water before you add it to the tank. If the water is unusually high, above 10 ppm, try bottled water that has lower sources of nitrates or ones that do not have any at all.
If you have a large fish tank, you can use a nitrate reducer additive. This can be used for saltwater and freshwater fish tanks and it will maintain low levels of the nitrates as the microbial base will metabolize the nitrates to N2 gas and keep reproducing; therefore the system will produce fewer algae to clean, changing the fish water out not as often, and healthier fish. This can even lower the cost of maintaining the fish tanks.
In sump filters, biological filtration is systematic; water is pumped very slowly through a sealed chamber, which creates lower oxygen. The bacteria will breakdown the nitrates and remove it from the system. The filter media that is used is deniballs which is a carbon food source for bacteria. It needs to be replaced once a year.
