No reason to run a scrubber IMO, if he finally is those kind of numbers. Only 6 weeks in, and he's not even using the recommended amount.
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Yesterday's water testing indicated that I'm finally at 0 phosphates, which surprised me. I'm even seeing some of the caluerpa in my system dying off, so I knew something was working. I've also noticed that the skimmate the system is generating absolutely stinks; more so than it has in a long, long time.
The only other variable is that I added a clam I got from Dr. Mac at the swap. I know they help with water quality, but I don't think it's been long enough for it to make that much of a difference.That's great news Scott! I just cleaned out the skimmate eariler today and for the first time ever I noticed the smell was real bad, sounds like it's a good sign.
No reason to run a scrubber IMO, if he finally is those kind of numbers. Only 6 weeks in, and he's not even using the recommended amount.
... and po4 is .14 today *sigh*.
Shelly
Are you using a Hanna Phos Checker?
Once you get to the C2 mode and add the reagent are you holding the button down til you get the 3 min. Countdown?
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Do you test at both the output of the GFO reactor and the tank water proper? I do that to make sure the GFO is still working (it should read lower). I haven't re-tested, but need to do so to see if I get a repeatable reading from this past weekend.Absolutely! I definately know how to use the Hanna checker ... seeing I check 3-5 times a week for three months now. In the beginning I watched a youtube video on it too to get all the 'tricks' (seeing c2 only waits 2-3 minutes for you to shake the reagent in the water tube).
After the po4 read .14 I then checked my saltwater mix and it read .00 (because I noticed a film in my saltwater mix standing water - and I do keep it covered and clean water change buckets thoroughly after use and clean lids, heathers, powerheads weekly).
Thanks for the info. I did add some more EB yesterday, but not much. I live by the mantra that nothing good happens fast in a reef tank, and have for many years. I re-tested PO4 this weekend, and it's back down to zero (both in-tank and at the output of the GFO reactor). I couldn't figure out the PO4 blip last week until I went back through my aquarium log, which I've diligently kept since re-starting my 75 gallon reef last Spring. I dosed phyto a short while before testing last week (new clam; lots of sponges and other filter feeders), and think that's the culprit after reading up on how the stuff is cultured. Amazing how little changes can show up in water chemistry fairly quickly. So I think that my Hanna checker is working fairly well, but that my feeding gave me a temporary rise in PO4. Water is absolutely crystal clear; the clearest it's been in a long time, and the tank has a "beach" smell to it now (having grown up on the water in Fla, it's unmistakeable, but hard to explain, and it's not that "low tide" smell either).The faster the tumbling of the pellets, the more aggressive the stripping of phos and nitrates. You need to be careful not to tumble too much or too fast so to speak, this can cause things to happen to fast and your corals might not like it. When you add more pellets it will tumble even more evenly as well. So just keep an eye on your parameters once you add more pellets, so they dont go down too fast. And make sure skimmer is capable of handling what is being sloughed off. One way you will know is if you begin to see cyano.