DIY Denitrator Coil

Hey all! Thought I would dive in and give one of these Denitrator coils a try. I;m following the plans put out by Don Carner, they sound good and basic and might do the job in the long haul. :-/ He recommends using the pressurized type system rather than syphon which brings up my question for the experts here on 3reef. 8) It's obviously a very low flow pump I need with a ball valve to control the drip. What pump would you recommend? It will feed out of the sump then back in the same, less than a foot head. I see pond fountain pumps that are pretty small but I would rather go with some quality now so I won't be replacing too often down the line. :-/ Thoughts??

 

My thought is, why make a denitrator coil, when dosing directly to the tank works just as well. Problem with the denitrator is, if the bacteria population crashes, it takes a while for it to grow back. I had considered doing the same, but found vodka dosing to be much easier. Ever wonder why you don't see denitrators for sale anymore?

 

VODKA!?? I thought that was for Friday night! What do you do? pour a shot in the tank? Guess I need to get caught up with the 21st century Tell me more!

 

Yep, one for you, one for the tank. The best source for info is an article from Rc that details how it works and how to do it. I'm on my phone right now and don't have the link handy.

 

Ahh, found it pretty quickly from my phone.

Vodka Dosing by 'Genetics' and 'Stony_Corals' - Reefkeeping.com

There is a lot of info on 3Reef as well.

 

I did this for a while and found neutral results. I think my issue is that while I was carbon/vodka dosing I did not have a sump and was only using a HOB protein skimmer.

I think if you have proper filtration, carbon dosing would show major benefits.

 

WOW! Lot of info and choices here. It seems to boil down to two thoughts; both methods have there supporters. Vodka support says simple and easy. Coil support says more natural and also simple. Vodka process seems to have many unknowns as to possable side effects over the long term but what could be simpler? Coil process doesn't take much to build, doesn't need any maintenance but could crash if the bacteria die or O2 gets in the system, no harmful effects but will have to recycle again so back to where you where when you started. Have I missed any key issues?

PS: My LFS still sells the denitrator coil, about $120, can build one for about $40

 

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One question I can't seem to find an answer to about vodka dosing is what happens when you stop, such as when going on vacation for a week? I can get the feeding done but not the vodka shot :-/

 

agree with you Vodka best method to control both of no3 and po4 and create natural food for corals
i tried denitrator simply it killed every thin by hydrogen sulfite
before you try it check this Vodka Dosing by 'Genetics' and 'Stony_Corals' - Reefkeeping.com

 

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