quatermass

I just add a decent modern bacteria bottle like Safestart or One and Only and it's cycled in 3 days or less.

Then I add a little sugar at the end to get rid of any high nitrates and it's ready for fish.

cerianthus

Interesting!
Can you explain bit more details on interaction b/n sugar and nitrate?

quatermass

It's been know for many years that sugar added to a tank removes nitrate.

Tetra EasyBalance is one such product, it is 90% sugar in solution. Why spend £9 on a few grains of sugar!

cerianthus

Ah! as Carbon source for dentrifying bacteria to multiply and convert NO3 to N2 gas.
That can be accomplished w/o any sugar or any induced organic compund such as alcohol (, methano, ethanol, etc) since when gravel is left alone, would have other organic compund , protein, to be catabolized as substitute carbon source and conditon for denitrification. Maybe not as much as when induced with other organic compound such as sugar, ethanol, etc.
At $4.00/5 lbs of sugar (rush to supermarket when on sale at $2.00/5lbs and stock up, lol!), still expensive task to add sugar to tank to induce denitrification which will become ABSOLETE once gravel is disurbed until anaerobic/anoxic conditions is re-established.

I thought there was other direct interaction b/n sugar and NO3. Thanx for refreshing my memory though!

quatermass

The effect of the sugar only lasts a few days and I only use a tiny amount.

I wonder if the carbon released by the sugar would be a reasonable substitute for CO2?

cerianthus

I guess you mean CO2 production in the tank when the sugar is added.
If substantial amt of CO2 is produced due to Sugar, pH should drop accordingly (that is if any free C is around since sugar is consumed and metabolized either by nitrifying/denitrifying/any heterotropic bacteria for their own organic cpd synthesis and/or to produced energy to perform bodily functions).
Never have added sugar directly into tank, although have accidentally add alcohol (flat beer) with no adverse effects.

LMK how it works out! LOL.

quatermass

Yes, measuring pH would be a way to test for CO2 production. I use a CO2 indicator in my planted tanks so if there is an excess of CO2 being produced I should also see it in there.
Thanks Ceianthus, I'll keep that in mind.

Lucy

These posts have been moved out of the API test kit sticky.
They had little to do with the topic being discussed.