Tired of fighting phosphates. About to call it quits.

[bakbay]

I use PhosphateRx on all my tanks - 6-10 drops given your tank size will do wonders! Make sure you have some 5-10 micron socks. Read the instructions. I've done GFO/Rowaphos/carbon dosing but this one is fast & effective. I only dose every ~6mos and I don't do any WCs on my tanks.

Phosphate Rx

Phosphate Rx is an amazingly simple and effective product that has revolutionized the way phosphates are removed from saltwater and freshwater aquariums. When added, the lanthanum-chloride formula rapidly binds to phosphate molecules making them inactive and easily filtered out. Regular use of...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[Tyrone]

I feed my clown fish the same food but only 1or 2 pellets every other day. You said your feeding your fish a pinch of pellets. Are your fish eating it all or is some of it sinking to the bottom?

 

[QuinnLee512]

Yes hair algae all over. I have tuxedo urchin, hermits, turbos to try and combat it. If phosphates are bound to the rocks, should I get new rock after breaking down?

 

[QuinnLee512]

I use PhosphateRx on all my tanks - 6-10 drops given your tank size will do wonders! Make sure you have some 5-10 micron socks. Read the instructions. I've done GFO/Rowaphos/carbon dosing but this one is fast & effective. I only dose every ~6mos and I don't do any WCs on my tanks.

Phosphate Rx

Phosphate Rx is an amazingly simple and effective product that has revolutionized the way phosphates are removed from saltwater and freshwater aquariums. When added, the lanthanum-chloride formula rapidly binds to phosphate molecules making them inactive and easily filtered out. Regular use of...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

I have used this as well. I believe phosphate e and elimi phos is the same stuff. Lanthanum chloride

 

[bakbay]

I have good news: 0.4ppm PO4 will NOT kill corals. Yes, you heard that correctly!

The corals are retracted and dying from some other reason.

Agreed - my nem tank was at 0.36 and no dead corals. I'm bringing that down to 0.10 with PhosphateRx to fight cyanos.

 

[QuinnLee512]

I feed my clown fish the same food but only 1or 2 pellets every other day. You said your feeding your fish a pinch of pellets. Are your fish eating it all or is some of it sinking to the bottom?

Oh only a couple of pellets? I don't think they're eating it all.

 

[Widdlyscudds]

If your aren't already you could put a protein skimmer on your system that for sure helps with managing organics in the water, you can also pre wash the pellets before feeding to help remove some of the phosphates before adding it to the tank.

 

[bakbay]

I have used this as well. I believe phosphate e and elimi phos is the same stuff. Lanthanum chloride

Yes, same stuff. I'm really surprised why yours didn't go down from 0.4 -- check your test kit? I've seen an immediate effect (24+ hrs) on all my tanks though. Been using this for years...

 

[QuinnLee512]

Well even if .4 is not killing corals, all the hair algae is a problem.

 

[Tired]

There are people running around with tanks at 1-2ppm phosphates, and yes that's 1-2ppm, no decimal. Some corals won't like that, but it won't kill inverts or fish, and plenty of corals like or tolerate it.

Your problem isn't phosphates. If you're having invert and coral deaths, I'd look into an ICP test, and also consider whether you might have dinos. Figure out what's killing those, and you'll be able to add cleaners to get rid of the hair algae.

 

[Miami Reef]

Yes hair algae all over. I have tuxedo urchin, hermits, turbos to try and combat it. If phosphates are bound to the rocks, should I get new rock after breaking down?

No. Phosphate will bind and unbind rocks and sand to reach equilibrium to the bulk water.

If you want to remove phosphates, I’d suggest using GFO. Lanthanum chloride is tricky stuff because it is recommended to skim and filter out the particulates. Some people had fish deaths from lanthanum. Not worth the risk in a small nano.

Use a reactor with GFO. However, note that reducing phosphates won’t make any difference to the algae growth. They will still grow with very little nutrients. You need herbivores to consume the algae.

 

[saltypepper]

Oh only a couple of pellets? I don't think they're eating it all.

Sounds like you maybe over feeding the system.

 

[FUNGI]

I use PhosphateRx on all my tanks - 6-10 drops given your tank size will do wonders! Make sure you have some 5-10 micron socks. Read the instructions. I've done GFO/Rowaphos/carbon dosing but this one is fast & effective. I only dose every ~6mos and I don't do any WCs on my tanks.

Phosphate Rx

Phosphate Rx is an amazingly simple and effective product that has revolutionized the way phosphates are removed from saltwater and freshwater aquariums. When added, the lanthanum-chloride formula rapidly binds to phosphate molecules making them inactive and easily filtered out. Regular use of...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

This is great stuff!!!! But use caution.

 

[Spare time]

Yes hair algae all over. I have tuxedo urchin, hermits, turbos to try and combat it. If phosphates are bound to the rocks, should I get new rock after breaking down?

You can try flux rx to wipe the hair algae out.

You can try and swap the sand first (keep some so you don't lose the microfauna) and then continue to run GFO. I would replace the rocks as a last resort.


PS phosphate being high doesn't kill inverts

 

[aSaltyKlown]

You said you had high PO4 in your 75, this could certainly point to the water, what is the TDS out of the DI? When was the last time you changed the membrane or DI? Would def make sure to check that. If that is all good, this is what I would do If that was my tank.

I'd remove 3/4 of the water and put the water into at least two buckets. Manually remove the GHA on the back wall, pull the rocks and scrub the GHA off in one bucket, rinse in the other and put the rock back in, and refill the tank. I'd then step back, smile and say, "dang, that looks good". Then I'd put some Phosguard in and test PO4 2-3 days later. If PO4 is still high, I'd leave the Phosguard in until it is .1 to .06. Once below .1, I'd pull the Phosguard. Now that the tank is looking good and PO4 at a good spot, I'd feed very lightly every other day and do 10% water changes every week, monitoring the PO4. If it goes up more than 5/6 points in a week, it could be coming from the sand/rocks, so I'd put the PG back in for a couple days and re-test. It may leach from the sand/rock for a while, so I'd repeat this until the PO4 was steady or at least not shooting up. If it doesn't go up much, after initially bringing the PO4 down, I'd tell myself, I was feeding too much.

TLDR - Need to get the algae out, and numbers to acceptable levels. Then feed less and keep up on WC and monitor.

 

[Tyrone]

Oh only a couple of pellets? I don't think they're eating it all.

Only feed as much as they can eat. I would feed them like 2 pellets each every other day.

 

[UMALUM]

Simple, throw that rock in the trash and order some live rock. Time is money!

 

[Tired]

Only feed as much as they can eat. I would feed them like 2 pellets each every other day.

The majority of reef aquarium fish, particularly juveniles, need to eat a minimum of once daily. You never want to reduce feeding to reduce nutrients- eliminate overfeeding if present, then increase export if needed. Like how you shouldn't try feeding your dog less in order to clean up less poo.

Now, in a mature tank, fish may be able to hunt their own food and will therefore not need to be /fed/ daily in order to eat well on a daily basis. But it's best to assume that they aren't getting more than snacks from the tank, and to feed accordingly. Once daily at minimum, ideally smaller portions multiple times a day.

 

[paintman]

Let’s back up: What test kit are you using?

Finaly someone with a good response!

 

[bakbay]

Finaly someone with a good response!

Believe the OP already responded — Hanna