second month and...nothing...or nearly nothing..

[Cramtellaj]

Hi,

I finished my second Zeo month and..nearly nothing happened.

As advised by Bob, I started to dose 4 drops ZB + 4 drops ZF + 1ml Zstart + 1ml Zstart, this every day since end December....

As algae (or bacteria????..very short green and brown grass on the pans and on the sand) continued to appear, a friend of mine, whose using zeo with a bigger success than me since 6 months now, advised me to cut off Zeostart.

This I did.

I also started, on the advise of the same friend, adding some Iode (before that I dod not add anything except the zeo stuff.

On Friday, I changed my zeo material, passing from 2.5 litres to 2 litres. I changed my 1 litre AC.

Since then, it seems that the water of the tank became more transparent than ever....this will be the only change that I noticed to date , I'm afraid.

And yesterday, I made some tests (Salifert) with the following results:

KH 6 (I consequently reduced a little bit the PH in my Calk Reactor from 6.26 to 6.22 in order to increase the KH production)
Ca 470
MG 1500
Dens 1023/1024

And....surprise...noticeable NO3!!! (Not a lot) but first time ever, that I measured NO3 in my tank....

How should I pursue?

Thanks for helping

Marc

[invincible569]

I would stop Iodide dosing. This will definitely increase algae growth. Its better to only do the basic 4 and later in time, you can dose Iodide, BUT with a small quanitity. Start off at half of recommended amount.

[wasp]

Marc. May be wrong, but my 6th sense is telling me there is other issues in your tank than just zeovit.
Not sure what they are, but how about reviewing feeding practises, giving your sand a real good vacuum, and ensuring plenty of flow. Make sure your skimmer is really pumping out crud. What sort of biolad do you have?

Your tank may have a lot of residual nutrients, and take a while to get rid of. It is encouraging that you saw some positive results following the rock change, although odd about the nitrate.
Without knowing more about your tank, here is my suggestion - Whatever you are feeding, cut it in 1/2. Only increase back up if after a couple of weeks the fish are visibly suffering. Add more ciculation. Use no additives other than the basic 4. Do use Start, a small dose 2 x daily.

This suggestion list may be able to be improved upon with more info about your tank.

Good Luck! Keep us informed, there are lots of good people here who want to see you succeed.

[CosmoKramer]

Marc,clean all your hoses from the sump to your tank.Clean all pre filters if you use them.Also if you do use sponge type pre filters wash them every other day.Whats the net volume of water in your tank?

[Cramtellaj]

Hi, Thanks,

Cutting off feeding by 1/2 is difficult because of these Anthias....(7)
I will stop Iodine
I also want to pursue with not using Start any more....I think I overdosed it quite a lot in the beginning and that I'm still paying the price now...
I would have liked Bob (Aged Salt) to comment my post too...as he was the one who advised me with the dosings last month, but it seems that he did not noticed it...too bad.
My net volume is 850 l (+/- 200 g.) . (I deduced the 100 kg rocks) and I run:

2 litres zeovit
1 litre CA
4 drops a day zeobak
4 drops a day zeofood 7

I 'wash' zeo material once or twice a day. I 'vacuum' my sand once a week, when I change +/- 50 l water.

Now here's an issue: I recently discovered that my osmose reverse device was issuing NO3...filter never changed since 2.5 years....I'm currently working to change it...would this be an interesting track in finding out why zeo is not working at my place?

Thanks

Marc

[wasp]

Anthias Huh? Feeding several times a day, right?

Bob is busy and getting busier, to be honest I don't know how he manages to keep up and read and reply everything. And more new people every day. Now that's dedication!
Anyhow you could try dropping him a PM.

[G.Alexander]

Bob will reply soon

G.Alexander

[Aged Salt]

Hi Marc, thnx. for your update & follow these recommendations totally w/o deviation. Obviously, it all begins with low TDS-RODI water for a reef. Be sure your water source is pristine. Your water parameters are out of line--the Ca level is too high for the carbonates in your system, resulting in coral tissue loss Increase your KH to ~7.5. I agree with no dosing of iodine, or any other supplements until your nutrients are undetectable. Are you using a zeo-filter? At what flow? If your net water volume is 200g[800ltrs] the carbon quantity should only be 2 Cups. Too much carbon can result in coral necrosis. I'd recommend holding all zeo-dosing for 5-7 days & in the interim, rectify the above imbalances. Decrease your photo-period to 6-7hrs for a time. I recommend the following zeo-dosages at this time. Bak/Food7--4drops/4drops every other day with new zeolites then 2x's/wk, dosed in front of the zeo-filter[plz. cycle] with the skimmer off for 60min. I would not suggest that you withold Start, as your nutrient problem will only deteriorate further. Dose Start at .5ml 2x's/day[1ml/day]. Bob

[CosmoKramer]

marc,can you humor me and test for ammonia,please
I also cannot stress enough how important it is to get the proper flow through your zeolites for them to work correctly.Please if you don't have a reactor or the proper gph,correct this and you will have excellent results
Please do this in addition to Bob's expert advice.Thanks