Elevated phosphates

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

LPS Corals naturally like higher phosphates, I'm trying to lower mine right now, but all me LPS are thriving. My phosphates are sitting around 2. I would say don't get any SPS, as it will die pretty quickly, and Soft corals just wont grow. Fish might also die.

Seems like a lot of unwarranted speculation there. Have you seen any evidence that any fish or corals die at the 0.6 ppm phosphate that the person you are responding to has?

I’ve certainly seen the opposite, that some fabulous tanks have phosphate higher than 0.6 ppm.

 

[areefer01]

LPS Corals naturally like higher phosphates, I'm trying to lower mine right now, but all me LPS are thriving. My phosphates are sitting around 2. I would say don't get any SPS, as it will die pretty quickly, and Soft corals just wont grow. Fish might also die.

You may, nor may not, be aware but there are some of us who have very high nutrients and grow SPS colonies just fine.

Not saying that one shouldn't care or be aware, but I am saying it is not a death sentence.

 

[larrysaltisfun]

LPS Corals naturally like higher phosphates, I'm trying to lower mine right now, but all me LPS are thriving. My phosphates are sitting around 2. I would say don't get any SPS, as it will die pretty quickly, and Soft corals just wont grow. Fish might also die.

Seems like a lot of unwarranted speculation there. Have you seen any evidence that any fish or corals die at the 0.6 ppm phosphate that the person you are responding to has?

I’ve certainly seen the opposite, that some fabulous tanks have phosphate higher than 0.6 ppm.

Hi Randy, respectfully you are clearly the resident expert on this subject and I value and want your opinion.. to briefly summarize again and prefacing with my question.

What would you do? (i.e. what should I do?)

Phosphate has essentially gone from zero to .6 over five months I speculate due to largely overfeeding because I started with a FOWLR

And I wasn’t concerned about phosphate

However, I wanted to start a small reef and have been gradually adding softies and a couple of LPS

Fish are fabulously, fat, and healthy but I believe it is now correct to cut their feeds down and I have changed their diet

I did start aluminum oxide in a reactor to run short term, and I have since read your post and concerns about tumbling aluminum oxide

I have also seen lots of suggestions here including to add Chaeto to the skimmer side of my sump caging it in egg crate.

I have been doing 20 gallon (10% water changes, )religiously q week the LFS guy suggested possibly doing a 50% water change once a month to get the PO4 values down but as I said above, I would value your opinion


I have six very small colonies of Zoas a trumpet coral and a hammer all look great right now so maybe I am overreacting?

Eager to take your advice and as many other reefers here have chimed in with anecdotal/very thoughtful comments. I truly respect your credentials and your experience in this matter.

I might sound like a bit of a brown nose, but my wife is still reading your resume that was found on line and look forward to your reply

Thank you for your time. I want a happy reef want to start doing things correctly and enjoy the corals as much as I have the fish

With that in mind, other parameters are specific gravity of 1.026 temperature 77.5 nitrates 18.4 no ammonia calcium at 450 DKA 10 magnesium 1200

 

[StartingATank]

Seems like a lot of unwarranted speculation there. Have you seen any evidence that any fish or corals die at the 0.6 ppm phosphate that the person you are responding to has?

I’ve certainly seen the opposite, that some fabulous tanks have phosphate higher than 0.6 ppm.

I guess I didn't have much information. My tank is currently running at 2 ppm phosphates, I am trying to lower them. However, before the big bloom I had, they were at about .08. But once they increases, my LPS corals looked great, where they were dying before. I just figured that they prefer higher phosphates. And with the fish, I got a fish I was acclimating to the water, while it was at high phosphates, I'm not completely sure how it died but in the timeline and the fact there were no signs of diseases I assumed it was acclimation problems.

You may, nor may not, be aware but there are some of us who have very high nutrients and grow SPS colonies just fine.

Not saying that one shouldn't care or be aware, but I am saying it is not a death sentence.

I guess I shouldn't have assumed that SPS would die, I have just seen some cases of people having SPS die whenever phosphates are higher, where they were ok before. I just assumed that they wouldn't thrive. I guess I should have specified more.