Is it really 0 nitrate??

missourimud

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4 month tank 75 gallon system.
Everything is going fairly well, I just need clarification.
Been running fine 15-20 NO3(salifert)and once i got the Hanna i saw .17 PO4. I brought PO4 down and I have been dosing lanathum chloride to keep levels less than .1 without bottoming out.
Now my NO3 is showing 0 last 2 weeks. I sent out an ICP and it also stated 0

I understand algae can consume it and give a false reading but does this apply to an ICP as well? My algae has diminished significantly but is not "gone" in fact i hope to clear it a little more.

I would like to clear off a little more but dont want to risk dinos is this enough algae to give me a false 0?
05484435-C504-420A-9BEC-2EFBB0E909AF.jpeg

thank you in advance
 

Jekyl

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Chasing numbers can get you in trouble. I would bring your nitrate up though.
 
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missourimud

missourimud

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Appreciate it,
dont want to do that. didnt want the algae to continue like it was either.
I have been feeding heavier, just dont know what to believe. Lots of posts say dont bottom out your nitrates.
Lots also say if there is algae there is NO3?
I was thinking my algae was in the process of starvation. Just dont know how long to wait before i consider NO3 to be a real 0?
 

Jekyl

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Algae consumes both of them. However no matter what you do the tank needs to go through the ugly phase. It's not a bad thing to have algae. It's a normal part of the process. Remove what you can by hand and don't let nutrients go crazy. However trying to starve the system will cause even worse issues.
 

PatW

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You might want to dose nitrate. If you feed extra, you will add both nitrate (which you need) and phosphate (which you do not need).


You could dose food grade sodium nitrate. I make a stock solution of .5 cup into 1 gallon of RODI. In your tank, a teaspoon of that should give you a small reading like .5 ppm.
 

blasterman

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0 nitrate is really, really bad for corals, especially softies. Also, having 0 nitrate vs having a bit if nitrate (around 5ish) doesn't make much difference to algae, but it makes a big difference in terms of soft coral health.
 

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