Hydra FAQ Update
 

Hi friends!

We've uploaded the latest Hydra FAQ (vers 1.16) and you can download it here. Hope it helps!

Yours sincerely,

Qian Hu

Hi Qian Hu,

i was browsing through your hydra FAQ and noted that "Nitrates are then reduced by Hydroxyl Radicals to produce Nitrogen gas and escapes from the water". But since hydroxyl radicals have higher affinity for NH3/NH4+/NO2 as compared to NO3, how effective would a hydra stream be if my main goal is to reduce nitrates?

Eg my matured tanks have undetectable TAN and nitrites, but i have issues with keeping nitrates below 100ppm. my aim is to use a hydra stream for the return piping from water that has already passed through sump to tank, to reduce the nitrates to nitrogen. Technically since there is undetectable NH3/NH4+/NO2, the hydroxyl radicals would be more effective in reducing nitrates?

Do u have any data regarding how much nitrates would be reduced? Eg if my tank has 80-100ppm nitrates, and i'm doing WC every 2-3 days to keep it within that range, and i add in a hydra stream while maintaining my WC routine, would my nitrates have a noticeable reduction? i was unable to find any information on this online, and the nearest i could find was :
http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/topi...-hydra-stream/
which states "Does not reduce nitrates if already present. Other nutrient export method required ".

Advise would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Shermie,

Thank you for your enquiry and congrats on having a very efficient filtration system that is able to handle NH3 and NO2! You are right in that Hydroxyl radicals produced by the Hydra Stream have higher affinity for NH3/NH4+/NO2 as compared to NO3.

Assuming you have a well stocked tank with regular feeding routine. Under such conditions, NH3/NH4+/NO2 is constantly being produced through waste, etc and as such the Hydroxyl radicals will target them first and lastly the NO3.

The Hydra Stream has been tested to be able to reduce Nitrate gradually overtime but it will not be able to provide quick results. We have data on the Nitrate reduction but Nitrate reduction is not the Hydra's main strength, it's main strength has been in reducing NH3/NH4+/NO2 and improving water clarity. Do drop me a PM with your email address and I'll email the tests results to you.

PS: I understand your current water change routine of once every 2-3 days is maintaining your NO3 levels at 80-100. Again I don't know your feeding routine or stocking levels, but a combined method of using Hydra (to control rate of NO3 increase) + current water change frequency + reducing the feeding for this period of NO3 reduction might be able to help.

Hi qian hu,

thank your for the fast response, much appreciated!

i have 4 rays 13-14" and 4 aros 20-25" in a 6x2.5x2.5, and feed twice to thrice daily, so i have extremely high bioload :o WC 50% every 2-3 days to maintain nitrates below 100, it'll be great if utilizing a hydra stream 3 could help reduce ntirates noticeably, i'll be very happy with around 50-60ppm.

was hoping that since the water that would pass through the hydra would already be cleared of most, if not all, NH3/NH4/NO2, the hydra would have a higher chance of working on the NO3. reducing NO3 gradually is fine, as long as at the end of the day i can see the results :)

going to PM u now for the test results.

thanks again.

Wow, that must be such an impressive tank!! For aquariums with higher bioloads and big water volumes, what some of the Hydra users do is that they link up multiple Hydra Streams so that there's more exposure time to the Hydroxyl Radicals.

Thanks for your PM!

Dear QH, my hydra stream internal metal plate is a little rusty. Not sure why. The pump is still working fine. Is it still effective?

Hi Ethan,

Thanks for your support of our Hydra Stream!

It is normal that one of the electro-plate’s surface will becomes brownish, due to the chemical reaction deposits. You can clean the electro-plate’s surface during maintenance to remove any slime that will reduce the efficiency.

As the electro-plates are made of titanium, they do not need to be replaced throughout the entire operating life of the product. However, again regular cleaning is recommended for optimum performance. Hope this helps ^^

Restarting back my hobby after few years. Due to rushing for CNY 2017, tank sized 5x2x2.5 was brought to my house on 20/01/17. On the 21/01, a 12" arowana and 2 rays, 8"and 5.5" was introduced into the tank. And another 3 more rays (all about 8"), a 8" Harlequin Lancer catfish and a 9" dwarf Oscar was added about a week later.

Ammonia always showing high reading. WC almost everyday from 30-80% and yet still no signs of improvement till now. Usually the reading will be from 0.25ppm to 2ppm after WC and double up every 6-8 hours.

Just installed a Hydra Stream 2 to my tank on the 12/02/17 on the 5,500lph return pump. Ammonia reading is at 8ppm and WC of 90% done and reads 1ppm now. Lets see what Stream2 can do for me.

Having known that the water parameters are so bad. I would not have added anymore rays, or any fishes. Its more of torturing the fishes than for the wellbeing of the fishes.