Hey is .30 phosphates too high???

[xxkenny90xx]

Maybe I should try Salifert. I don’t know why BRS and all these other companies all recommend Hanna checkers and claiming their the most accurate? Clearly their not accurate at all. But exactly how accurate is Salifert? I guess it’s mostly guesswork? If corals look happy and healthy then numbers are right?

Hanna checkers are pretty accurate, but you absolutely have to run the tests exactly right. One missed conversion, fingerprint, or vial washed in tap water will throw everything off

 

[Natescorals]

Hanna checkers are pretty accurate, but you absolutely have to run the tests exactly right. One missed conversion, fingerprint, or vial washed in tap water will throw everything off
[/QUOTE
I’ve been washing the vial in tap water since day 1. So how do you wash the vial???

 

[xxkenny90xx]

This is a common mistake. You have to wash them with 0tds distilled water (rodi usually will not even be clean enough). I can't remember if it's brs or Hanna but there are instructional videos for Hanna checkers. Check them out!

 

[fish farmer]

That's not necessarily true. My PO4 is consistently .5 ppm (yes, parts per million) and I have no trouble growing softies and LPS. It has been as high as .8. I use the Salifert test.

I don't have it at my fingertips, but there's a video on YouTube of a guy that's successfully kept reefs for years with phosphates at 1.

My softy tank was 1pmm or was it 2pmm...it was very blue on a salifert test, weeds like colt, nepthia, mushrooms and some palys were fine. I even had my hammer growing extremely well around .5ppm. I did deal with a lot of algae issues..the nitrates were 30ppm.

 

[Natescorals]

Could it be possible that my chaeto is dying and that’s racking up my nitrates and phosphates? I have a very low nutrient system as it is.

 

[fish farmer]

Could it be possible that my chaeto is dying and that’s racking up my nitrates and phosphates? I have a very low nutrient system as it is.

Does it look like it's dieing, like falling apart? That would cause an elevation.

 

[Natescorals]

Does it look like it's dieing, like falling apart? That would cause an elevation.

No but there are a few white pieces. It also isn’t growing at all

 

[45ZoaGarden]

No but there are a few white pieces. It also isn’t growing at all

What kind of flow do you have on the cheato?

 

[Natescorals]

What kind of flow do you have on the cheato?

There is no flow at all. Does it need flow?

 

[reefiniteasy]

I just saw this and started laughing. Is .3 high, I was at .43 the other morning! I just made a post about phosphate levels too. The only issue I ever have.

 

[esther]

Right now I’m only running phosgaurd. And my phosphates stay in the .20 — .30 range. It doesn’t really ever get any lower than .20... is this too high for corals to grow? I learned that high phosphates can slow calcification. Does anyone recommend any other type of filter media like GFO? I am also running a skimmer and refugium with chaeto.

I can tell you that with experience... Absolutely not. In the last two months, my phosphate has been at .8 and it's currently (as of this morning at 10am) at .26. All of our fish are super healthy and we're seeing fantastic growth from our corals (check out my Instagram if you want to see photos). We're currently running Triton AL99 to reduce phosphate, but haven't been able to get it below .2. If it ain't broke, don't mess with it... As long as our tank mates are healthy, we'll keep doing what we're doing... Hoping that it drops soon, but if it doesn't, then I guess it's fine.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

It needs a little bit of flow, yes

There is no flow at all. Does it need flow?

 

[esther]

It needs a little bit of flow, yes

I have zero flow in my refugium and it's doing just fine.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

I have zero flow in my refugium and it's doing just fine.

It gets flow from water passing by. If it’s sitting in a stagnant container, it will die.

 

[esther]

It gets flow from water passing by. If it’s sitting in a stagnant container, it will die.

This is true. I was referring to "tumbling". Mine definitely doesn't tumble.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

Yeah, it doesn’t need to tumble at all. I usually say just enough flow to keep crap from building up on the surface

This is true. I was referring to "tumbling". Mine definitely doesn't tumble.

 

[Stigigemla]

All the Hanna checkers for Phosphourus or Phosphate use the same chemical process. That means that they all have the same phosphourus based blue colour as end product. But the content in the bags can be different to make the color change lower or faster. So they maybe can show different values.
I have one customer that bought 736 test bags but was having the 713 checker. He still had a few of the old bags so he did a test with each of them and got almost the same value. And decided to keep and use the 736 bags.

For the alumium based phosphate remover I sell I recommend to use 50 grams to 100 liters. Thats about 1 ounce to 15 gallons. And to hang the bag where there is good flow. The amount is not critical. A little more or less just will take up a little more or less of the phosphate. But dont use much more. A fast sinking value might risk to shock the corals.

Corals are different. And they are adaptable.
That means that some corals can do bad in 0.3 phosphate while others can react when a value of 1 is sinking.
They have adapted to the high value.
I generally recommend 0.06 to 0.1 in phosphate and 1 to 10 in nitrate.
If corals or algae dont grow it can depend on 4 different things.

1. Illumination. If they grew earlier in the same light it is not the light.

2. Circulation. If You are using the same pumps and the tank is not fully owergrown it is not the circulation.

3. Water values. The Main values is alcalinity, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphate and Nitrate. But they also need trace elements. If it is the trace elements the corals and algae will react on a water change. 10% water change can lift the value from zero to 1/10 of a good value. Thats a lift of several 1000%.

4. Chemical warfare. That will be diminshed if You hang up a sock with 1 ounce good active carbon to 15 gallons in a good flow. That can take a week until You see a difference. A water change will not show much difference here because if You shift 20% of the water You will still have 80% of the poison in the tank.

 

[Larry L]

You can use this calculator so that you don't have to do the math on your Hanna checker readings:

http://larryl.emailplus.org/fish/test-kit-calculators.html

 

[Wampatom]

I have SPS growing with phosphates of 2.0 ppm. Lower would be better. Still, no reason to panic.

 

[Sandy MH]

Ours is .9+ on the Hanna -- we've been fighting to get it down with Phosguard, now going to Brightwell. Feather star green coral is gorgeous, mushroom and zoanthids ok, lost carnation coral and bubble tip anemone over a month -- all other inhabitants very happy (clowns, imperator, flame, neon dottyback, blue and yellow tangs, panther grouper, Benggai cardinal, cleaner and peppermint shrimps and CUC). Sould we keep worrying? Just got back into this great hobby 6 mos ago after a 20 year hiatus. Thank you!!