[APD] Re: GW and vacation and little on nitrogen

["Jim Seidman" <js4 at seidman_net>]

Thomas Barr <tcbiii at earthlink_net> writes:
>But if the fish waste etc is still being produced at the same rate, AND
>there's a relatively small/no biomedia in the filter since someone
might
>feel "well plants prefer NH4" then this allows for GW and other algae
to pop
>up and bloom.

Tom, are you suggesting that algae grow much better with ammonium than
nitrate? This is something I haven't heard before. Don't algae produce
the nitrate reductase enzyme too?

I certainly understand the argument about how stopping fertilization
increases nitrogen levels in the tank. I could understand an argument
about how a biofilter helps prevent ammonia poisoning in this situation.
But I don't understand yet why excess nitrate wouldn't cause the same
algae bloom as excess ammonium.

- Jim

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