Need nitrate, Need less phosphate

JohnnyButt(Handsome)

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Hello my Nitrates have been a little low and slowly lowering 4.9 to 2.8 over about a month and my phosphates are a bit elevated at .28 and have stayed pretty consistent, ive started using chemi blue nano phosphate removal bags and it has brought phosphates down, I also dose 5ml AFR daily and 5ml Phyto planton(which ive recenly figured out can elevate phosphate so ive dropped it from 15 to 5ml daily) i just read a forum about dosing DIY Ammonium Bicarbonate to raise nitrate, just want to know if theres better solutions for both of my problems because I cant just feed more ofr nitrate because I will spike my phosphates which I have in the past!
Also this is in a Innovative marine 25 Lagoon if that helps at all.
 
Ammonia dosing is a cheap, easy, and safe way to give your corals what they actually need (nitrogen). You can theoretically dose nitrate, but corals have to reduce it back to ammonia which requires trace elements and energy, so they prefer to take up other nitrogen sources (like amino acids and ammonia).

You can find the DIY ammonia recipe here: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/diy-ammonia-dosing-for-low-nitrate-systems.987087/

Phytoplankton very likely won't raise your nutrient levels measurably:

For reducing phosphate I would stick to granular ferric oxide (GFO). It's arguably the most efficient way even though it takes a long time to get rid of phosphate because you not only have to deplete the phosphate that is currently dissolved in the water, but also phosphate that is dissolving from rockscape and substrate until the equilibrium between dissolved and precipitated phosphate in your tank is reached again.
 
Ammonia dosing is a cheap, easy, and safe way to give your corals what they actually need (nitrogen). You can theoretically dose nitrate, but corals have to reduce it back to ammonia which requires trace elements and energy, so they prefer to take up other nitrogen sources (like amino acids and ammonia).

You can find the DIY ammonia recipe here: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/diy-ammonia-dosing-for-low-nitrate-systems.987087/

Phytoplankton very likely won't raise your nutrient levels measurably:

For reducing phosphate I would stick to granular ferric oxide (GFO). It's arguably the most efficient way even though it takes a long time to get rid of phosphate because you not only have to deplete the phosphate that is currently dissolved in the water, but also phosphate that is dissolving from rockscape and substrate until the equilibrium between dissolved and precipitated phosphate in your tank is reached again.
dang you’re the goat, thank you very much for the advice!
 
Ammonia dosing is a cheap, easy, and safe way to give your corals what they actually need (nitrogen). You can theoretically dose nitrate, but corals have to reduce it back to ammonia which requires trace elements and energy, so they prefer to take up other nitrogen sources (like amino acids and ammonia).

You can find the DIY ammonia recipe here: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/diy-ammonia-dosing-for-low-nitrate-systems.987087/

Phytoplankton very likely won't raise your nutrient levels measurably:

For reducing phosphate I would stick to granular ferric oxide (GFO). It's arguably the most efficient way even though it takes a long time to get rid of phosphate because you not only have to deplete the phosphate that is currently dissolved in the water, but also phosphate that is dissolving from rockscape and substrate until the equilibrium between dissolved and precipitated phosphate in your tank is reached again.
What gfo would you recommend
 
What gfo would you recommend
I never really had issues with high phosphates so my experience with GFO is rather limited. I hope someone else can chime in to help you with an appropriate product choice. 🙂
Whatever you do, read the instructions because overdosing it can have some unwanted side effects. Dragging phosphate down slowly can be frustrating but it's the safest option.
 

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