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Great article you wrote and have enjoyed the great debate over on the other site, please keep it coming
But here's the rub; studies have shown growth rates decrease once PO4 levels exceed 0.03ppm.
There's certainly a balance to be had.
Which studies are you referring to? Thanks!
I keep hearing about these studies but no one can ever show them
The magic number of .03 seems to have been pulled out of the air
I have been pretty skeptical of the whole phosphate craze from the beginning. Maybe it's just because these hannas never seemed accurate to me or that I never had any dramatic results at either spectrum of any measurement.
My main system read this a few minutes ago and these are some top down shots from my little display tank(plumbed into main) Wednesday.
I know I am in the wee minority here but I really don't see what all the fuss is about phosphate? According to this thing mine are sky high high if not in the "danger zone":nono: :tape2::tape2::tape2:. My acros would tell a different story .........
test 1
test 2
some quick shots from the young tank. Under radion g2
Awesome input into this VERY interesting thread.
I started keeping SPS more than 10 years ago and at that time didnt measure PO4 or even have a test kit for it. I had a tang, a bunch or snails and some hermits which kept the tank algae free...god knows what the PO4 level was...My SPS had very good colours! And I didnt even need to work hard to get it, water changes, Kalk, Metal Halide and a bunch of fish was all thats needed.
Fast forward slightly and the ULNS craze started...
I took my GFO reactor offline a couple of weeks ago, and so far my PO4 is staying low...but has risen slightly to around 0.03ppm. I'd like to see what happens when it gets nearer to 0.1ppm.
I was spending more on GFO per month than on salt...
Ben
Do the results from aquarium water testing give you iron results?
I would be really curious to see if there is a connection between increased iron levels and higher phosphate causing increased algae growth
Here is a breakdown if what we know
They say if you have increased levels of phosphate. Sps growth will be stunted. Colors will brown and skeletons will become less dense
Every study done has also shown an increase in algae growth with increased po4
Obviously with all of the tanks out there running higher po4 levels that don't have extreme algae outbreaks the. The first statement in false
There has to be something else that is increasing with the p04 level that is causing the algae growth. Correct? Or everyone would see it. Algae is not fueled by Phos alone. And the IMO the next logical nutrient would be iron
So a combination of high iron and phosphate may contribute to the increase in algae
And ready for the good part. All of the studies done that show increase po4 levels note that it's not the phosphate that causes harm to the sps it is the increase on algae and filter feeders which in turn is causing the sps to starve and cause browning decreased growth and less dense skeletons
Thoughts?
Bob
Yup. After nearly starving my coral to death and overdosing GFO, I'm ready to toss my hanna hi736 in the trash.I have been pretty skeptical of the whole phosphate craze from the beginning. Maybe it's just because these hannas never seemed accurate to me or that I never had any dramatic results at either spectrum of any measurement.
I wouldn't try to get it anywhere... I would just ignore it and let it be what it be.Adam, thanks for jumping on the bandwagon.
Need to test my PO4 today or tomorrow, trying to get it around the 0.1/0.12.
Seeing too much results in SPS tanks doing so awesome with a PO4 higher than 0.1.