Dealing with high nitrates in reef

[redFox33]

My nitrates have been sitting at 30 ppm for weeks now, and my Zoanthids are looking kinda sad. I do weekly 10% water changes, run a protein skimmer, and have a refugium with Chaeto. What else can I try to bring them down?

[lumin5]

30 ppm ain't terrible, but it's definitely on the high side for Zoas. You might wanna bump those water changes to 20% weekly. Also, how's your feeding routine? Overfeeding's a sneaky nitrate booster.

[DarkFable9]

30 ppm ain't terrible, but it's definitely on the high side for Zoas. You might wanna bump those water changes to 20% weekly. Also, how's your feeding routine? Overfeeding's a sneaky nitrate booster.

Agreed. I'd also check your skimmer's output. If it's not pulling much gunk, it might need tuning. What salt mix are you using? Some are nitrate-heavy straight outta the bag.

[mountbob]

Hey, don't stress too much! Zoas can bounce back once you dial things in. Have you tested your source water? Sometimes tap or even RO/DI can have nitrates. Also, how old's your Chaeto? If it's not growing fast, it's not sucking up much.

[DuskFlyer]

I'd throw in some nitrate-absorbing media like Seachem Matrix or Purigen. Works wonders in my 75-gallon. Also, what's your bioload like? Too many fish can overwhelm even a solid filtration setup.

[Sakurako]

Hey, don't stress too much! Zoas can bounce back once you dial things in. Have you tested your source water? Sometimes tap or even RO/DI can have nitrates. Also, how old's your Chaeto? If it's not growing fast, it's not sucking up much.

Seconding the Chaeto check. Mine took off once I added a cheap LED grow light. Also, consider vodka dosing—sounds sketchy, but it's a legit nitrate reducer if done right.

[fluxon9]

Before you go dosing anything, maybe try cutting back on feedings for a week. I had a similar issue, and my tank chilled out once I stopped dumping in so much mysis.

[Busday]

Or just get a bunch of hermits and tell 'em it's a buffet. Jokes aside, yeah, overfeeding's the usual suspect. What's your cleanup crew looking like? More snails = less leftover food.

[waveset]

My nitrates were worse, like 50 ppm, until I added a deep sand bed. Took a few months, but now they're steady at 5. Just gotta be patient with some fixes.

[redFox33]

Thanks for all the ideas, everyone. Gonna try bigger water changes and cut back on feeding first. Appreciate the help!