Algae Cleaning Crew

TWallace · 02/17/2006, 11:12 AM

I recently set up a 55 gallon tank. It's been running about a month, with live rock being added a week ago. The ammonia spiked real high after the rock was added, but quickly went down to zero within a few days. The nitrites are still really high, though. I've placed an order for an algae cleaning crew (mostly blue leg hermit crabs and astrea, cerith and nassarius snails) which will ship Monday for Tuesday arrival. I'm considering delaying the order if the nitrites are still high on Sunday night. How toxic are nitrites to crabs and snails? Should I delay the order if any nitrite is detectable? I don't want the poor fellas to be thrown into a toxic environment.

The cleaning crew package actually contained a decorator crab and sea cucumber. I asked that they sub some extra blue leg hermit crabs and astrea snails instead of those two items. I'm unsure that decorator crabs are actually reef safe, though the vendor said he'd never seen them cause trouble. I'm also not sure of how to care for a sea cucumber and wasn't really interested in them. Do sea cucumbers release toxins into the tank if they're stressed or die, or am I thinking of something else?

My filtration setup is an AquaC Remora protein skimmer and a 24" CPR Aquafuge refugium. The refugium has some chaetomorpha and red gracliara algae that's been in it about a week and doing fine, though apparently not growing much yet. Nitrates have dropped from around 30ppm to 10ppm over the last week.

collective21 · 02/17/2006, 11:22 AM

Nitrites are harmful to all inhabitants Delay your order if they are still at all readable on Saturday.

Craig Lambert · 02/17/2006, 11:39 AM

Nitrites are not toxic unless they reach over 100ppm. There are references to this available on the chemistry forum. The confusion over this comes from the fact that they are harmful in freshwater. Having said that, your nitrites are elevated because your tank is still cycling. The next thing to be elevated will be nitrates. I would cancel the order and wait until nitrites fall and nitrates fall to under 20.

mystikdragon7 · 02/17/2006, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Craig Lambert
Nitrites are not toxic unless they reach over 100ppm. There are references to this available on the chemistry forum. The confusion over this comes from the fact that they are harmful in freshwater. Having said that, your nitrites are elevated because your tank is still cycling. The next thing to be elevated will be nitrates. I would cancel the order and wait until nitrites fall and nitrates fall to under 20.

I think I have a hard time believing this.
Nitrites 100ppm and under are not toxic?
So does that mean nitrates aren't toxic over 150ppm?
Can you find the thread that says this?

Nitrates 10ppm and over are harmful to inverts and corals, and can even kill them.

I would hold off on your clean up crew order until your nitrites are at 0 and nitrates are well below 10ppm, 0 at the best.

Craig Lambert · 02/17/2006, 01:10 PM

From Randy Holmes Farley (Chemistry Forum):

Aquarists' concerns about nitrite are usually imported from the freshwater hobby. Nitrite is far less toxic in seawater than in freshwater. Fish are typically able to survive in seawater with more than 100 ppm nitrite!17 Until future experiments show substantial nitrite toxicity to reef aquarium inhabitants, nitrite is not an important parameter for reef aquarists to monitor. Tracking nitrite in a new reef aquarium can nevertheless be instructive by showing the biochemical processes that are taking place. In most cases, I do not recommend that aquarists bother to measure nitrite in established aquaria.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php

02/17/2006, 11:12 AM	#1
TWallace Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Seattle Posts: 1,464	Algae Cleaning Crew I recently set up a 55 gallon tank. It's been running about a month, with live rock being added a week ago. The ammonia spiked real high after the rock was added, but quickly went down to zero within a few days. The nitrites are still really high, though. I've placed an order for an algae cleaning crew (mostly blue leg hermit crabs and astrea, cerith and nassarius snails) which will ship Monday for Tuesday arrival. I'm considering delaying the order if the nitrites are still high on Sunday night. How toxic are nitrites to crabs and snails? Should I delay the order if any nitrite is detectable? I don't want the poor fellas to be thrown into a toxic environment. The cleaning crew package actually contained a decorator crab and sea cucumber. I asked that they sub some extra blue leg hermit crabs and astrea snails instead of those two items. I'm unsure that decorator crabs are actually reef safe, though the vendor said he'd never seen them cause trouble. I'm also not sure of how to care for a sea cucumber and wasn't really interested in them. Do sea cucumbers release toxins into the tank if they're stressed or die, or am I thinking of something else? My filtration setup is an AquaC Remora protein skimmer and a 24" CPR Aquafuge refugium. The refugium has some chaetomorpha and red gracliara algae that's been in it about a week and doing fine, though apparently not growing much yet. Nitrates have dropped from around 30ppm to 10ppm over the last week.

02/17/2006, 11:39 AM	#3
Craig Lambert Premium Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 2,897	Nitrites are not toxic unless they reach over 100ppm. There are references to this available on the chemistry forum. The confusion over this comes from the fact that they are harmful in freshwater. Having said that, your nitrites are elevated because your tank is still cycling. The next thing to be elevated will be nitrates. I would cancel the order and wait until nitrites fall and nitrates fall to under 20. __________________ "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will spend all day in a boat drinking beer." Current Tank Info: 75G Tank, 29G Sump, 100lbs LR, AquaC EV-180, Iwaki MD-20RT return Tunze nano streams 4X54 t-5/Icecap Ballast & SLR's 2x110 vho actinic

02/17/2006, 01:10 PM	#5
Craig Lambert Premium Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 2,897	From Randy Holmes Farley (Chemistry Forum): Aquarists' concerns about nitrite are usually imported from the freshwater hobby. Nitrite is far less toxic in seawater than in freshwater. Fish are typically able to survive in seawater with more than 100 ppm nitrite!17 Until future experiments show substantial nitrite toxicity to reef aquarium inhabitants, nitrite is not an important parameter for reef aquarists to monitor. Tracking nitrite in a new reef aquarium can nevertheless be instructive by showing the biochemical processes that are taking place. In most cases, I do not recommend that aquarists bother to measure nitrite in established aquaria. http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php __________________ "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will spend all day in a boat drinking beer." Current Tank Info: 75G Tank, 29G Sump, 100lbs LR, AquaC EV-180, Iwaki MD-20RT return Tunze nano streams 4X54 t-5/Icecap Ballast & SLR's 2x110 vho actinic

02/17/2006, 11:22 AM	#2
collective21 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: South Carolina Posts: 217	Nitrites are harmful to all inhabitants Delay your order if they are still at all readable on Saturday.