Gfo reactor

[DarthRaiderBob]

So, I fired up my gfo reactor last night. Put 1 cup of gfo in it, running on a 80 gallon tank due to phosphate at .87, is it worth it to check my phosphate tonight or should I wait until Friday or so to gauge it's effectiveness?

 

[FishTruck]

Both, ideally. The reaction happens pretty fast.

It may bottom out (tonight), then drift back up (tomorrow or in the next few days) depending on what's in the rocks. With trial and error and careful monitoring you will figure out how much you can use without making the Phosphate go to zero, and when is the best time to measure the effect.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

1 cup of gfo is a lot. I would check it now, might need to remove some of that. I would have suggested to start with half the suggested dose, that stuff is extremely effective.,

 

[FishLvR]

Yeah a cup is CRAZY for 80 gallons my man.

 

[DarthRaiderBob]

I'll check it when I get home later.

Yeah a cup is CRAZY for 80 gallons my man.

 

[DarthRaiderBob]

Yeah a cup is CRAZY for 80 gallons my man.

1 tablespoon per 4 gallons is recommended 80 gallons÷4 is 20, 1 cup is only 16 tablespoons, under the recommended starting point per brs.

 

[DarthRaiderBob]

Both, ideally. The reaction happens pretty fast.

It may bottom out (tonight), then drift back up (tomorrow or in the next few days) depending on what's in the rocks. With trial and error and careful monitoring you will figure out how much you can use without making the Phosphate go to zero, and when is the best time to measure the effect.

Thanks @FishTruck, I will check it when I get home later.

 

[DarthRaiderBob]

1 cup of gfo is a lot. I would check it now, might need to remove some of that. I would have suggested to start with half the suggested dose, that stuff is extremely effective.,

Thank you, I will check it when I get home later.

 

[Miami Reef]

A cup is fine IMO. There’s a ton loaded in those rocks, and they will unbind as the GFO adsorbs the PO4 from the water.

Don’t bother testing now; you can check in 2-3 days. Ensure the GFO is gently tumbling in the reactor.

 

[DarthRaiderBob]

A cup is fine IMO. There’s a ton loaded in those rocks, and they will unbind as the GFO adsorbs the PO4 from the water.

Don’t bother testing now; you can check in 2-3 days. Ensure the GFO is gently tumbling in the reactor.

Thanks Miami, I figured at .87 I needed to get things moving in the right direction.

 

[FishTruck]

So... what measurements did you get?

The way it worked for me with LC and GFO would be - big drop, bounce back up, big drop, bounce back up... for a random number of repetitions... until suddenly... no bounce back up. GL!

 

[DarthRaiderBob]

So night 1 went from .87 to .38, shut off for 12 hours back up to .45 running last night and today, will check when I get home later. New to me algae scrubber should be here when I get home from work.

 

[Bart817]

So night 1 went from .87 to .38, shut off for 12 hours back up to .45 running last night and today, will check when I get home later. New to me algae scrubber should be here when I get home from work.

How are things working out for you? I had .7 until I did some cleaning in the sump and mulm from my overflows. Which brought me down to .4 and I cnt get much lower than that.

Ordered the deluxe reactor from brs. It'll be in next week. Im real curious as to your results. I tried to avoid gfo, but believe my rocks prevent me from dropping much lower. So gfo here I come. The plan is to do about half the recommended dose or less and monitor. Until I can equalize the phosphate in the rocks and water column.

 

[DarthRaiderBob]

How are things working out for you? I had .7 until I did some cleaning in the sump and mulm from my overflows. Which brought me down to .4 and I cnt get much lower than that.

Ordered the deluxe reactor from brs. It'll be in next week. Im real curious as to your results. I tried to avoid gfo, but believe my rocks prevent me from dropping much lower. So gfo here I come. The plan is to do about half the recommended dose or less and monitor. Until I can equalize the phosphate in the rocks and water

I've been as low as .1, that's as far as I've gotten it down. But, I probably need to clean my sump and overflows.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

My phosphate target range is 0.1 to 0.3 ppm. I won’t use a binder unless phosphate gets very high:

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/randy’s-thoughts-on-nutrient-target-ranges.1087/
What targets seem reasonable? Of course, that depends on all the other factors at play, such as types of corals, availability of ammonia, particulate foods, etc. However, for a mature mixed reef, this would be how I personally would run it:

• Let nitrate float between 5 ppm and 50 ppm. I’d use gentle export in this range, such as growing macroalgae.
• Above 50 ppm, I’d begin to focus more on reducing it, by organic carbon dosing, turf or macroalgae, etc.
• Below 5 ppm, I’d begin to dose ammonia or feed more. The target level might drop lower if dosing ammonia, just like the heavy in/heavy out scenario where nitrate may not be as needed.
• Let phosphate float between about 0.06 ppm and 0.3 ppm. This range is higher than I’ve recommended in the past. I’d use gentle export in this range, such as growing macroalgae.
• Above about 0.3 ppm, I’d begin to focus more on reducing it, by turf or macroalgae, or a binder such as GFO or lanthanum (has its own risks to tangs). If a binder: GO SLOW. Turf and macroalgae will typically be slow enough.
• Below 0.06 ppm, I’d begin to dose sodium phosphate or feed more to get the level up.

 

[gbroadbridge]

Thanks Miami, I figured at .87 I needed to get things moving in the right direction.

Be careful dropping too fast.

It can upset some coral.