need some help on Nitrate

[gempot]

I got a 55g tank with 4 discus in it, tanks is set up already for about a month (old filter and media are in use from my old 30g tank, bio sponge and substrat of Eheim) before adding the discus and they are doing awesome more space to swim, i noticed that for 2 weeks now my Nitrate level is always 5.0ppm ammonia is .25-0ppm nitrite is 0ppm ph is 6.4 did a lot of water changes everyday 30-70% but still nitrate is 5.0ppm, just last night as i was doing my w/c i tested water out of the tap and ro water since im doing 50/50, nitrate on tap is in the range of 10-20ppm ro same thing 10-20ppm i know that some people says that 5.0ppm is still safe and doing w/c is the best way, is there any other way I can get my nitrate to at least 0ppm?


Thanks

Arvin

[discus6628]

Mine is also similar. I have 100g and do wc everyday between 50-75%. My nitrate also between 10-20ppm. I think it has to do with the amount food you feed. Ammonia and nitrite is at 0. I am currently raising the frys and have been heavily feeding them.

[gempot]

i did cut the amount of feeding from 4 times small portions to 2 times small portions by the way they are in 3-4", i even empty the water and waste that was in the canister because they can contribute on my ammo and nitrate readings i have...by the way i have a BB tank planning to aquascape it once they reach the the desired size..i was thinking of putting 1-2 plants in it just to help lower the nitrate level but not sure if it will help since the source is showing a trace of nitrate...

[discus6628]

since u are using canister. It is good idea to use pre-sponge filter. That will help trap the food and then u could clean the pre-sponge during every wc. In that way, your canister insider will be much cleaner.

[troysdiiscus]

Do you use Prime or anyother conditioner? Do you age your water? I too have had similar readings. I curently have potted in two pots of water sprite. Most stem plants are fast growing that will use some of that out of the water. But we do so many WC not sure that it will be able to use it up before you are adding more to it. What I have done that works for me so far is in my aging barrel I took a 3 inch piece of pvc and put in a carbon block filter and purigen and run my pump through it and a small hole in end of pipe cap to slowly push the water through it at a rate of 7 gallons per hour, is my guess. I age my water for 24 hours so by the time I use it my reading is almost 0 then add prime to tank when using. My reading in my tank has been 0 nitrate and ammonia and nitrite. I use to use half RO and tap, now I am mostly just using tap. Hope this helps...its worked for me......

[gempot]

any suggestion on that pre-sponge filter? Im using the EHEIM 2071 G65 canister im using the pad that came with it and the fine filter pads that came with it as well....

[discus6628]

You can find some sponge that about 1-2" thick at LFS. Then use knife to cut X and then you can put it at intake of your canister.

I don't have luxury on age water. I fill my tank direct from tap water after put the prime into the tank. I use to get micro bubble.
http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?103137-Micro-bubble-occur-during-water-change&highlight=micro+bubble
But homemade spread bar with micron sock filter material wrap around it and solve my problem. My discus is more happy now with my WC.


any suggestion on that pre-sponge filter? Im using the EHEIM 2071 G65 canister im using the pad that came with it and the fine filter pads that came with it as well....

[gempot]

@troydiiscus, yes I am aging my tap and using Prime, before i was doing all RO when I got the discus from Kenny he told me that the fish are all tap, but I know something is wrong on my tap since I live near a water recycling plant that probably causing my tap water to be troublesome for me, I am planning to go to full tap but since of this reading it holds me back, i kinda like your DIY thing there but are you using a overhead pump for that? and can you post a picture of that here i would like to try it....

[troysdiiscus]

I can take a pic tonight for you, what I did is take a piece of 3 inch pipe bout 11 iches but a cap on one end drilled a 1/8 hole ( i think) and the other end put a threaded coupling and a 3 inch cap that screws in to change the filter. I put a 3/8 bard in the cap end, at the end of the filter a put a mesh bag with purigen. I use a 370 gph fountain pump. I run my line from pump to filter. I also have an airstone to circulate water and heater. I estimate that I get atleast 7 gph of course more contact time the better filteration. was just a solution rather than having a undersink 2 or 3 canister filter system.

[100fuegos]

any suggestion on that pre-sponge filter? Im using the EHEIM 2071 G65 canister im using the pad that came with it and the fine filter pads that came with it as well....

I use this pre made sponge (http://www.ebay.es/itm/290679880134?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649#ht_3540wt_1397) on my intakes with great success. It fits like a glove, quite easy to take them out every day to clean them under the faucet

[Tazalanche]

I'm using the Filter-Max III prefilters on my 2217 & 2236 Eheim canisters.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=21426