vodka dosing

[ReefApprentice]

So i have been hearing recently that you can dose your tank with vodka.But i have a few questions
1 so what does it do for your tank?
2 wouldnt it get the fish drunk?
3 how exactly does it work out in the long run?

 

[rufus2008]

Its supposed to feed the beneficial bacteria in your tank. Being well fed they multiply, which in turn help keep your tank params (ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate) in check. Sounds good but there can be problems, if you have a power outage the bacteria came use up all oxygen in your tank and the rest of its inhabitants can die. Thats my understanding of the process anyway, i'm sure someone else may have a better understanding of it.

 

[DaveK]

Vodka dosing is a way to supply a carbon source for anaerobic bacteria. Since they have a food source they multiply and consume nitrate. It has little effect on aerobic bacteria which typically break down ammonia --> nitrite --> nitrate.

The amount dosed is only a few ml, so in theory, there is no issue for the livestock.

My take on it is that it can work, but it's use must be carefully balanced, and if you mess up bad here, you have a tank of very dead livestock. I think there are better ways to manage nitrate, and that it's not worth risking your system.

I should point out that others think this sort of dosing is fantastic.

 

[ReefApprentice]

So that's what it does.Ia also should note that I'm not going to des my tank but was wondering a lot about this.But now I wonder who discovered this...

 

[DianaKay]

I've wondered about this also, as I too have seen it mentioned.
Doesn't sound like anything I'd ever want to try.

 

[DianaKay]

So that's what it does.Ia also should note that I'm not going to des my tank but was wondering a lot about this.But now I wonder who discovered this...

EXACTLY what I was thinking. Somebody dosed themselves a little too much & needed to share with their tank maybe?

 

[Mayja]

This could be a lot cheaper for me since we have several bottles of various types of vodka in the house (Russian household). Though I'm sure hubby would kill me if I grabbed his Imperia by Russian Standard... unless I said I drank it all, which would give me bonus Russian points... hmmm...

 

[Mayja]

This brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "getting tanked!" LOL. Okay, I'm done.

 

[orieng]

In case the fish don't like it we can finish it..

 

[frisbee]

Check this out.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/index.php

HTH.

 

[Bearjohnson]

You need to start small in the beginning like everything else

1/2ml per 25 gallons to start.

 

[Steve L]

I've done it, and it does work. Honestly I got better results dosing with regular old sugar. Depending on how high your trates are you have to be careful not to over-do it or you risk suffocating your fish. It takes several doses to get the trates down and then scheduled doses to keep things in balance.

I'd say if your nitrates are 20 or below don't bother. It's better just to fix whatever is causing the high nitrates in the first place.

 

[Mischko]

I think the biggest danger is for the owner of the tank dosing like, one for me, one for the tank ;-) But joking aside, this method sure does work but requires fine tuning over time. How it works was explained already, but there are maybe 2 things to mention. First, if you plan dosing vodka or any other carbon source like vinegar, sugar, you need a skimmer which is capeable to skim out the increased amount of bacteria. Best is to have a skimmer bit oversized for your tank. Another good thing is to run your skimmer with ozon so you always have a good oxygen level in the water. Overdosing with vodka can lead to a bacteria bloom very very fast which will reduce the oxygen level in the water very fast!
With all stuff you dose into your tanks, always start low and slowly increase the level.

 

[DaveK]

So that's what it does.Ia also should note that I'm not going to des my tank but was wondering a lot about this.But now I wonder who discovered this...

I've wondered about this also, as I too have seen it mentioned.
Doesn't sound like anything I'd ever want to try. ...

I know these are old questions on an old thread, but I did come across something of an answer for you.

Denitrification columns, or filters and such are not new. They get mentioned in Spots book Captive Seawater Fishes. That was published in 1992. In the book he also cites an older study done in 1976. In many of these early setups methanol (wood alcohol) was used. In others ethanol (grain alcohol) was used. Still others used different substances. The point being that you need to supply an organic carbon source.

While someone had to be first to start dosing vodka, you can see that the groundwork was already done.