Vodka dosing?

Hey guys, I've been reading lately and I've come across some people saying that they dose vodka to their tank to reduce nitrates and algae? How true is this?
Like, I can go to a regular ol-liquor store and get a vodka off the shelf and dose? ( I know its low amounts.. but does it really do anything? harm anything?)

I've also seen vinegar being used.. Whats the science behind this?
Any links to a good reputable read on the how-to subject? I think it would be a good idea to try on my 150G tank.

 

bump

 

I've never tried vodka dosing but here is a link to read.
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/

 

start an min: 04:00 if you dont want to watch the whole thing, its pretty good video to watch whole

basically vodka dosing (carbon source) is food for beneficial bacteria

 

Great info Swiss!!


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I have vodka dosed. The idea is the alcohol provides an energy source for bacteria. Given vodka, the bacteria rapidly multiply. In the process, the bacteria absorb nitrates to make proteins and to a lessor extent phosphates. Your skimmer will remove the bacteria. The idea is the process will lower the nitrate levels in the tank. In order to work, you need a skimmer that is more than able to handle the load of your tank.

In run my nitrates at less than 1 ppm but still measurable. Adding vodka will rapidly lower the nitrate levels in my tank often making them unmeasurable. I will dose some nitrates to keep the levels at the just detectable levels.

I had some phosphate problems in the beginning from leaching rock work. I vodka dosed and dosed nitrates. I believe this helped lower the phosphate levels.