# Korallin Sulfer De-nitrator Reactor!



## OMGnitrateAGAIN

So I took the plunge & ordered one of these!
It should arrive some time next week. 
I hope to keep my nitrates at 0-5 PPM with one water change every other month. 
Check it out!
http://www.marinedepot.com/Korallin_BioDenitrator_w_Eheim_1048_Pump_Bio_Denitrators_Nitrate_Reactors-Korallin-KL9111K-FIFRISDN-vi.html

I got the smallest one, plus an aqualifter dosing pump, aqualifter pre-filter, a barb fitting flow valve & some tubing. Once it's up & running I'll post up if it was a $400.00 mistake or the best 400 I've spent on the tank.


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## Ægir

OMGnitrateAGAIN said:


> So I took the plunge & ordered one of these!
> It should arrive some time next week.
> I hope to keep my nitrates at 0-5 PPM with one water change every other month.
> Check it out!
> http://www.marinedepot.com/Korallin_BioDenitrator_w_Eheim_1048_Pump_Bio_Denitrators_Nitrate_Reactors-Korallin-KL9111K-FIFRISDN-vi.html
> 
> I got the smallest one, plus an aqualifter dosing pump, aqualifter pre-filter, a barb fitting flow valve & some tubing. Once it's up & running I'll post up if it was a $400.00 mistake or the best 400 I've spent on the tank.


Well, they take a few weeks to break in and actually work. And going to bi-monthly waterchanges could be a bad idea depending on whats in your tank. Water changes are a big part in replenishing trace minerals, and keeping CA and alk in check (if you arent using a ca reactor or 2 part especially!)

Let us know how it goes... but things like that are no replacement for water changes and bio-filtration


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Ægir said:


> So I took the plunge & ordered one of these!
> It should arrive some time next week.
> I hope to keep my nitrates at 0-5 PPM with one water change every other month.
> Check it out!
> http://www.marinedepot.com/Korallin_BioDenitrator_w_Eheim_1048_Pump_Bio_Denitrators_Nitrate_Reactors-Korallin-KL9111K-FIFRISDN-vi.html
> 
> I got the smallest one, plus an aqualifter dosing pump, aqualifter pre-filter, a barb fitting flow valve & some tubing. Once it's up & running I'll post up if it was a $400.00 mistake or the best 400 I've spent on the tank.


Well, they take a few weeks to break in and actually work. And going to bi-monthly waterchanges could be a bad idea depending on whats in your tank. Water changes are a big part in replenishing trace minerals, and keeping CA and alk in check (if you arent using a ca reactor or 2 part especially!)

Let us know how it goes... but things like that are no replacement for water changes and bio-filtration
[/quote]
I have done quite a bit of research on the sulfer based units. This should actually help my calc. levels stabilize as well as pull my nitrates down to zero, or close to it. I use the Seachem AquaVitro line of supplements on the reef & my LFS uses their "Salinity" brand salt mix. My tank really is easier to maintain since they started selling this stuff pre-mixed. I'm going to buy a bucket eventually. 87 USD for 220 gallons worth is a bargain IMHO. The Denitrator is just the last piece in my puzzle. Until I get an Aquacontroller Apex.


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## His Majesty

interesting. im always sceptical of things that claim you can get away with doing monthly or bi-monthly water changes

however keep us posted on how it goes. be interesting to see the results.


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## Ægir

OMGnitrateAGAIN said:


> So I took the plunge & ordered one of these!
> It should arrive some time next week.
> I hope to keep my nitrates at 0-5 PPM with one water change every other month.
> Check it out!
> http://www.marinedepot.com/Korallin_BioDenitrator_w_Eheim_1048_Pump_Bio_Denitrators_Nitrate_Reactors-Korallin-KL9111K-FIFRISDN-vi.html
> 
> I got the smallest one, plus an aqualifter dosing pump, aqualifter pre-filter, a barb fitting flow valve & some tubing. Once it's up & running I'll post up if it was a $400.00 mistake or the best 400 I've spent on the tank.


Well, they take a few weeks to break in and actually work. And going to bi-monthly waterchanges could be a bad idea depending on whats in your tank. Water changes are a big part in replenishing trace minerals, and keeping CA and alk in check (if you arent using a ca reactor or 2 part especially!)

Let us know how it goes... but things like that are no replacement for water changes and bio-filtration
[/quote]
I have done quite a bit of research on the sulfer based units. This should actually help my calc. levels stabilize as well as pull my nitrates down to zero, or close to it. I use the Seachem AquaVitro line of supplements on the reef & my LFS uses their "Salinity" brand salt mix. My tank really is easier to maintain since they started selling this stuff pre-mixed. I'm going to buy a bucket eventually. 87 USD for 220 gallons worth is a bargain IMHO. The Denitrator is just the last piece in my puzzle. Until I get an Aquacontroller Apex.








[/quote]

Why are you having a nitrate problem? Could you tell us more about your setup (filtration, skimmer, sump and tank size, how much rock sand, fish etc) Pictures would be awesome also

You can buy boxes of salt (instant ocean reef crystals) that make 200 gals for 40-50$ if you watch sales.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

It's a 75 gallon "Surfline" tank from Perfecto. 
I have an Aqueon model 1 sump. 
CPR overflow. 
CPR H.O.B. Refugium. 
Red Sea C-Skim 1800. 
Rena Filstar XP3
Emporer 400. 
1 MP40 & 2 MP10s with wireless drivers. 
TONS of filtration & water movement. 
I DO have a high number of fish & soft corals. 
Between that and my kid feeding the tank to show her friends








on occasion my nitrates go from 40 - 80 ppm. 
This unit should help me get it under control. 
As far as the salt goes. Look up the specs on the Aqua Vitro "Salinity" brand salt.









Also, if you search for "subiesleeper" on YouTube you'll see my videos of both tanks.


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## Ægir

OMGnitrateAGAIN said:


> It's a 75 gallon "Surfline" tank from Perfecto.
> I have an Aqueon model 1 sump.
> CPR overflow.
> CPR H.O.B. Refugium.
> Red Sea C-Skim 1800.
> Rena Filstar XP3
> Emporer 400.
> 1 MP40 & 2 MP10s with wireless drivers.
> TONS of filtration & water movement.
> I DO have a high number of fish & soft corals.
> Between that and my kid feeding the tank to show her friends
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> on occasion my nitrates go from 40 - 80 ppm.
> This unit should help me get it under control.
> As far as the salt goes. Look up the specs on the Aqua Vitro "Salinity" brand salt.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Also, if you search for "subiesleeper" on YouTube you'll see my videos of both tanks.


40-80ppm









Are you using RO/DI water or tap water?

You should get rid of those HOB filters, and that canister... Thats a big part of your problem

I would get things under control by fixing whats causing them, not adding something else to combat the problem... By eliminating those worthless filters, weekly or bi-weekly water changes, and cleaning out any trapped food or detritus in your tank and sump. I dont know how old your kid is, but i would put a quick stop to that as well, explain that they can watch when YOU feed the fish. You should have no problems dropping the nitrates to 0 WITHOUT adding that detonator... the fact you have a refuge, skimmer, and a sump is indicating something else is REALLY wrong. unless you have 8 or 9 lionfish or groupers i didnt see in your videos?

I am familiar with the salt... I just think its overpriced for your needs when you could buy twice as much of another salt mix, and do twice as many water-changes


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

The emporer has had it's bio-wheels removed. I have filter specific media trays that I use to run purigen pouches in it when needed. Steady flow & quick changes to fresh pouches after regenerating. The canister has foam & mostly pond matrix media in it. I had bio-balls in my system for a while. Since swapping out to the pond matrix media the levels have been dropping very slowly. I appreciate your advice. I'll post an update once it's up and running for a week or two.


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## His Majesty

damn 40-80 nitrates









egir has given you solid advice. 
your running skimmer and a refug no need to the hob and cannisters. not giving you any benefits from them
weekly water changes will help immensely


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

His Majesty said:


> damn 40-80 nitrates
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> egir has given you solid advice.
> your running skimmer and a refug no need to the hob and cannisters. not giving you any benefits from them
> weekly water changes will help immensely


As I said, the HOB is modified to run bagged media. No biological there to create extra nitrate. The canister has bio media in it. I'll most likely pull the canister out once the denitrator arrives and is cycled.


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## Ægir

Any updates? You get it yet or when is the expected arrival date?


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Ægir said:


> Any updates? You get it yet or when is the expected arrival date?


WOW! Perfect timing....
It arrived yesterday.
I did some of the pre-assembly this morning & had to get to work.
The instructions for assembly are a little lacking, (Their German to english translator needs to be fired







)
It's kind of funny though because the directions for testing the efficency of the unit(to adjust the effluent drip rate)are top notch.
The overall build quality is fantastic. This thing is beefy. If it were to get knocked over, I think it'd keep right on running (I have no intention of testing this theory







)
I have a break today from 3-5 EST. I'll be finishing the install then & will post the baseline Nitrate levels then.
After that I'll post updates every few days untill it's fully colonized with bacteria. 
Wish me luck.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Setup was actually pretty simple!

I originally thought I'd need the toms aqualifter pump to keep a steady flow to the unit & I'm fairly certain that this is not the case. Hahaha.

I unplugged the aqualifter & barely noticed a difference in the effluent drip rate. I'll probably still keep it on just to be on the safe side.

Nitrates are around 60ppm right now. I'll test again first thing in the morning, but I'm pretty sure I won't see a reduction for a week or two. I've also been considering buying bottled bacteria & introducing it right into the intake to try and jump start the colony. Thoughts on this specific idea?


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Aegir, You had asked about the bio-load in my tank.
Here goes.
1 Lunare Wrasse 6" "Ozzy" NOT REEF SAFE he bites the "heads" off any unwary snails & smashes them into the glass








1 Sailfin Tang 5" "Nibbles"
1 Unicorn Tang 6" "Spike"
1 Ocellaris Clown 3" "Larry"
1 Maroon Clown 4" "Moe"
1 Clarki clown 2" "Curly"
1 Lemon Peel Angel 3" "Pie"
1 Algae Blenny 4" "Chompers"
1 Snowflake Eel 13"







"Seymore"
6 Green Chromis 1" - 2" "Borg" 1of6 2of6 3of6 4of6 5of6 6of6
12 - 15 Nassarius snails "Zombie snails"
1 Green Serpent Star 8" spread "Sirius"
1 Pink Serpent Star 6" spread "Patrick"
1 Blue linkia Star 4" spread "Eifel"

Corals etc...
LOTS & LOTS of Zoos
1 Carpet 5" "Larry"
1 GIANT purple 19" tip "Moe"
1 Hatian long tenticle 4" "Curly"
Torch - 5 heads.

I think that's it LOL


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## Ægir

Keep us updated, and pics would be awesome...

What you really need is a bigger tank for those tangs... a 6" tang in a 75 gal is really cramped.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Ægir said:


> Keep us updated, and pics would be awesome...
> 
> What you really need is a bigger tank for those tangs... a 6" tang in a 75 gal is really cramped.


If I can ever catch either or both of them, they have a home in the 1200 gallon show tank @ one of the LFS'.

If you search for subiesleeper on youtube you'll see vids of both my tanks. I plan to take a vid of the tanks filtration setup tomorrow morning before I go to work.


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## shiver905

I hope it works for you.

40-80ppm is very high.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

shiver905 said:


> I hope it works for you.
> 
> 40-80ppm is very high.


I know. Even with my fuge & weekly water changes it's tough to keep down. If I can get the wrasse, & tangs out it'll probably help a lot too. But EVERY fish in my tank gets along with the other tank mates. I don't want to disrupt things. I'm going to pick up a tank cycling liquid with anaerobic bacteria in it and add it to the reactor via the inlet. I'm hoping to jump start the colonization.


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## shiver905

Just looked at your vid.

Tank is super overstocked, You need to try to get those tangs out.
Bioload of your tank is huge.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

shiver905 said:


> Just looked at your vid.
> 
> Tank is super overstocked, You need to try to get those tangs out.
> Bioload of your tank is huge.


Hence the Korallin Denitrator









I've tried to catch them. Everything but a hook & line. 
They're too fast for me. LOL
If this reactor pulls the nitrates down as advertised I'll be happy. 
If I can eventually get the tangs & wrasse out THEY'll be happy.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

It's hard to tell what happened, BUT I'M FREAKIN' HAPPY!
I added one tiny bottle of "cycle" directly into the inlet tube of the reactor around lunchtime yesterday, to "seed" the media with lots of bacteria.
(MUCH tougher than it sounds







)
The bottle was 2-3 oz. max. 
Nitrate was still between 50-60 PPM
I didn't change the water or add anything else to the tank.
My feeding schedule is also unchanged. 
Nitrate reading as of today......
20-30 PPM!!!
Unless there was a liquid miracle in that bottle of "cycle", the unit is working MUCH better than I hoped it would. 
Pulling down the nitrates in half a week instead of 2-3 was a pleasant surprise. 
I'll be posting daily on the water quality. 
& I will post some pics up once I tidy the area around the tank up a bit.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Here's a link to the latest video. 
Bio-Denitrator content inside!

Check out this video on YouTube:






I think the water test vials in the video might just sway some of the skeptics. 
Nitrates are around 15-18 and still dropping.

The info that came with the unit says results should be noticeable in one to three weeks. 
My system is responding much faster.

Looks like it was $400.00 well spent, so far.


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## Ægir

OMGnitrateAGAIN said:


> Here's a link to the latest video.
> Bio-Denitrator content inside!
> 
> Check out this video on YouTube:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I think the water test vials in the video might just sway some of the skeptics.
> Nitrates are around 15-18 and still dropping.
> 
> The info that came with the unit says results should be noticeable in one to three weeks.
> My system is responding much faster.
> 
> Looks like it was $400.00 well spent, so far.


Looks good man, get rid of those HOB and canister filters and i can almost guarantee they will drop faster.

I also noticed you said your "return pump is powering your skimmer" as well? and then refuge to sulfur detonator? If you could re-configure that you would possibly be better off. Feeding the skimmer with water thats run through your sump already, and then feeding the reactor with refuge water is prob hindering efficiency. I have always had great results with skimmer first, sump second, and then feeding the fuge with a T from the drain (before it went to the skimmer) and a ball valve. The skimmer does the dirty work, and lightens the load on the sump (and reactor!) giving you better results.

The way you have it configured is putting a huge bio load on your sump (and media)... which could also be part of this battle?

just throwing out some ideas to help you out man! Great looking tank, cant wait to see it progress once the params straighten up.

Have you thought about finding a tank and making a sump for under the stand? IE all that in one neat unit?

Oh yeah... unplug and remove that canister and HOB


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

The HOB is off the tank. 
The canister will be pulled soon & then going onto another tank with the HOB in the near future. 
I have a HOB overflow & HOB refugium on the reef now. 
There is a fully enclosed stand available for my odd shaped tank & I plan to pick it up ASAP. 
Draining & moving my established reef to swap stands is going to SUCK.








I'm sure it'll be worth it though.








The filter socks in the sump get washed out twice a month & I only have macro algae in the 'fuge, no mud. 
I think that the slight differences in the concentration of nitrates in the main tank, sump & 'fuge don't really warrant re-plumbing the skimmer. (Hard lines)
I could easily pull tank water for the denitrator, but the turnover rate on the 'fuge is so quick I don't think it'll make much of a difference. 
I'll post the levels on the tank & effluent tomorrow around 4:00 pm EST. 
It's not even going to be fully matured for another two weeks or so.








The kit gives extra sulfer media too, I plan on modding a phosban type reactor to hold the rest & set it up on my piranha tank, since the calcium isn't needed with a freshwater setup. I think that's why there's extra sulfer in the bag, in case of a freshwater tank, the 3 + ~ - inches of coral would be the extra sulfer. 
I'll let you guys know how that project works once I set it up. 
Again, I can't see any reason for people having nitrate issues not to buy one of these. Yeah, they're pricy, but a nitrate (or god forbid NITRITE) spike could cause enough damage to a nice tank to cover TWO of the units. 
Look for the update tomorrow.


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## Ægir

OMGnitrateAGAIN said:


> Again, I can't see any reason for people having nitrate issues *not to buy one of these*. Yeah, they're pricy, but a nitrate (or god forbid NITRITE) spike could cause enough damage to a nice tank to cover TWO of the units.
> Look for the update tomorrow.


Its not my money, but I would advise another route and kill it at the source. For 400$ you could have built a kickass sump (skimmer -> rubble -> return pump <- fuge) that would handle any bio-load you could throw at it, a controller (RK lites are 99$ now), fish, corals, etc... or upgraded to a 125 gal.

It just seems like more work to monitor and maintain that one reactor, than it is to do bi-weekly water changes and have a hassle and worry free system. Constantly thinking about _when_ (not if!!) my params are going to spike would slowly eat me alive. And I dont think you have any "dirty" or messy fish in your tank, or that your bio-load is anything heavy... its just not exporting waste efficiently because of the configuration. Because theres not a difference in concentration, indicates you have lots of "blow by" and confirms my suspicions.

I can honestly say i have never seen nitrates that high, maybe in the peak of a cycle... the closest thing I can think of is an aggressive tank (3 huge volitan lions, 2 moray eels, a grouper, 4 large tangs) thats 125 gals. still peaking at 30 max which indicates somethings not straight with your filtration... that canister, filter socks that arent changed weekly at most, any foam or filter floss, sponges are a nitrate factory and doing nothing but trapping waste and letting it decay before your skimmer can pull it.

This is one hobby that cutting corners comes back 10 fold in the long run, and i dont want to sound like a "know it all" or "my way or the highway" type of guy... but i have seen several of my friends run the same route, only to get pissed off a year later that they sill have param problems, their tank is an algae farm, and no LPS or SPS corals will live 24 hours. Im just trying to save you the same headache, so please dont take offense to anything i have said or suggested.

some reading i found:


> I ran one back in the day. They do "work". That is, they can reduce the nitrate level below what we can detect with our test kits. Like previously stated though, they do require quite a bit of guess work. You don't want to over feed them because you can cause bacteria blooms in the display. Under feeding them will render them useless. Just when you think you have a feeding schedule that works, nitrate production in the tank changes. Animals grow, die, get traded, new additions arrive, husbandry habits change. All of these things will alter the nitrate production and the amount of food needed to keep the filter running at peek performance.
> 
> One very important issue that these filters don't address is phosphate accumulation. Phosphate and nitrate usually go hand and hand in a reef tank. Denitrifying filters leave phosphate to cycle through the system, reeking havoc with stony coral growth/health, and fueling algae blooms. The methods used to reduce phosphates usually reduce nitrates as well. Mechanical filtration, skimming, stocking levels, general husbandry, algae in a fuge. Generally, if methods are in place to manage phosphate, nitrate doesn't become a problem either. This, IMHO, renders denitrifying filters useless. A hobbyists time, money, and effort would be better spent on understanding and implementing good solid husbandry practices, than looking for a cure in a box. Many of us have been there done that. Of all the people I have talked to that ran these filters in the past, all of them have formed the same opinion. Including myself. They simply are not worth the effort.
> If someone wants to try one of these filters as a learning experience, then go for it. If you simply want to provide a healthy environment for your pets, there are better ways to go about it.





> Cons:
> -Daily maintenance
> -Difficulty controlling fluctuations
> -Danger of dieing anaerobic Bacteria {if there's a user error}
> -It can be complicated to dose food for anaerobic bacteria because you never know for certain how the bacterial population is.
> -You will get 0 nitrates which in his opinion isn't something you should necessarily shoot for in a reef{debatable}.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Ægir said:


> Again, I can't see any reason for people having nitrate issues *not to buy one of these*. Yeah, they're pricy, but a nitrate (or god forbid NITRITE) spike could cause enough damage to a nice tank to cover TWO of the units.
> Look for the update tomorrow.


Its not my money, but I would advise another route and kill it at the source. For 400$ you could have built a kickass sump (skimmer -> rubble -> return pump <- fuge) that would handle any bio-load you could throw at it, a controller (RK lites are 99$ now), fish, corals, etc... or upgraded to a 125 gal.

It just seems like more work to monitor and maintain that one reactor, than it is to do bi-weekly water changes and have a hassle and worry free system. Constantly thinking about _when_ (not if!!) my params are going to spike would slowly eat me alive. And I dont think you have any "dirty" or messy fish in your tank, or that your bio-load is anything heavy... its just not exporting waste efficiently because of the configuration. Because theres not a difference in concentration, indicates you have lots of "blow by" and confirms my suspicions.

I can honestly say i have never seen nitrates that high, maybe in the peak of a cycle... the closest thing I can think of is an aggressive tank (3 huge volitan lions, 2 moray eels, a grouper, 4 large tangs) thats 125 gals. still peaking at 30 max which indicates somethings not straight with your filtration... that canister, filter socks that arent changed weekly at most, any foam or filter floss, sponges are a nitrate factory and doing nothing but trapping waste and letting it decay before your skimmer can pull it.

This is one hobby that cutting corners comes back 10 fold in the long run, and i dont want to sound like a "know it all" or "my way or the highway" type of guy... but i have seen several of my friends run the same route, only to get pissed off a year later that they sill have param problems, their tank is an algae farm, and no LPS or SPS corals will live 24 hours. Im just trying to save you the same headache, so please dont take offense to anything i have said or suggested.

some reading i found:


> I ran one back in the day. They do "work". That is, they can reduce the nitrate level below what we can detect with our test kits. Like previously stated though, they do require quite a bit of guess work. You don't want to over feed them because you can cause bacteria blooms in the display. Under feeding them will render them useless. Just when you think you have a feeding schedule that works, nitrate production in the tank changes. Animals grow, die, get traded, new additions arrive, husbandry habits change. All of these things will alter the nitrate production and the amount of food needed to keep the filter running at peek performance.
> 
> One very important issue that these filters don't address is phosphate accumulation. Phosphate and nitrate usually go hand and hand in a reef tank. Denitrifying filters leave phosphate to cycle through the system, reeking havoc with stony coral growth/health, and fueling algae blooms. The methods used to reduce phosphates usually reduce nitrates as well. Mechanical filtration, skimming, stocking levels, general husbandry, algae in a fuge. Generally, if methods are in place to manage phosphate, nitrate doesn't become a problem either. This, IMHO, renders denitrifying filters useless. A hobbyists time, money, and effort would be better spent on understanding and implementing good solid husbandry practices, than looking for a cure in a box. Many of us have been there done that. Of all the people I have talked to that ran these filters in the past, all of them have formed the same opinion. Including myself. They simply are not worth the effort.
> If someone wants to try one of these filters as a learning experience, then go for it. If you simply want to provide a healthy environment for your pets, there are better ways to go about it.





> Cons:
> -Daily maintenance
> -Difficulty controlling fluctuations
> -Danger of dieing anaerobic Bacteria {if there's a user error}
> -It can be complicated to dose food for anaerobic bacteria because you never know for certain how the bacterial population is.
> -You will get 0 nitrates which in his opinion isn't something you should necessarily shoot for in a reef{debatable}.


[/quote]

Believe me, I have NO problem with & take NO offense to constructive criticism. 
I'm pulling the canister filter out of the system this weekend. 
I never have any issues with phosphate. 
I had a heavy feeding problem for a while & my daughter used to feed the tank WAYYY too much / offen when she comes over for her weekends with me. (She's forbidden to go near the tank & I hide the food lol)
As far as the article you quoted goes, it sounds like the author was using the other "popular" type of reactor. I specifically stayed away from that type because of the daily feeding & guesswork. Mine requires NO feeding. I just have to test the effluent when I test the water. 
I usually test the water every day anyway (because of the high nitrate problem) so testing two extra vials is no big deal.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

My main tank is now at....

ZERO PPM - Nitrate!!!

I haven't even pulled the canister yet.

The nitrite coming out if the reactor is dropping rapidly too. Once it hits zero the effluent gets tested daily for nitrate. Once that level hits zero the effluent return rate gets increased gradually untill it shows constant 5-10 PPM of nitrate. If the level becomes detectable in the tank I just have to slow the effluent back down to 2 drops per second. No feeding the reactor, calcium in the effluent to keep things buffered, the ability to keep a heavy bio-load & infrequent water changes. I just need to keep up with trace elements etc. 
I'll definitely post up if something aweful happens too, but at this point I think it's a winner. 
I'm going to start on a DIY unit to use the rest of the sulfer and pop it on the piranha tank.

Next step is an aquacontroller APEX.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Ladies & gentlemen....

The main tank is still at 0 ppm Nitrate.

Effluent is now at 0 ppm Nitrite and 20 ppm nitrate.

My zoos are actually stretching out and opening wider than I've ever seen!

My xenia (spelling?) is spreading instead of receeding.

The final bits of red algae are dissolving & separating from the live rock.

Now I just have to keep an eye on levels in the effluent flow. It needs to be opened up enough to keep the bacteria at a constant denitrification rate. I won't speed it up too quickly, just until I have a constant, but low, nitrate level in it. For all I know it's alreay at the perfect setting. As long as it's zero in the main tank & I don't get a nitrite reading in the effluent again it SHOULD be dialed in.

The only thing I did that was NOT in the directions was add the small bottle of Cycle to help jump-start the bacteria colony.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

I had to use the purge valve to release some gas thet collected at the top of the reactor this morning.

This was noted as an occasional step that needs to be taken.

The water visible in the top of the reactor is turning slightly off-white now, also normal. The calcium media is breaking down, so the effluent is starting to help buffer the tank too.









Other than that, the wee beastie is still doing its thing.


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## OMGnitrateAGAIN

Update.

My Nitrate levels in the tank now range from 0 - 10 PPM, depending on my fish & invert feeding schedule. 
I've backed off of the liquid coral food quite a bit by using a bulb/tube type feeder to spot feed them instead of just pouring the stuff in like the directions suggest.

I have the unit set to a one drop per second effluent drip rate. 
This seems to be the best speed for my specific setup.

I DID wind up adding a phosban reactor to my sump, now I have no phosphate spike issues. It did start to creep up a bit, my zoos' didn't like it.... They've almost completely re-opened though. LOL.

All my levels are spot on & I've only added water due to evaporation & salt water to replace my 5gallon skimmate bucket when it fills up.

This weekend I'm going to do a 25 gallon water change & see what happens to my levels.


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