What's everyone's Nitrate to phosphate ratio?

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Sure

Tank is a 75 gallon that has been up for 2 years since i upgraded from a 45 gallon.

Tank was doing fine for awhile. The only changes I think were made was

1. All for reef doser was clogged for a few days. Alk went from 8,5 to 7.5
2. I removed a few media blocks that I thought could be leaching metals.
3. Sold a bunch congrats off at one point. I think this quickly reduced the consumption requirements for my corals

A month ago I noticed my torches firsts. They all started shrinking. Then I started losing acros one at a times seemed like it told a few days for one. Then another would start stn’ing. Now I’m down to probably 5 acros from 12 ish. Down to 2 torches from 9 ish.

Meanwhile monti, Duncan’s, fungi, Goni, acans are all doing well.

Icp test was done. No heavy metal issues. Low trace elements reported

Meanwhile I’ve been doing no weekly water changes to try to get the tank in balance.

Alk has been tested nearly daily. Only between 8.8-9.3

Nitrates are very low. I don t have lager fish colony. Usually nitrates are 5-3 but I have to dose multiple times a weekZ

Phosphates are consistently .20. Months back I had them lower around .05-.10. Not sure what changed as I feed even less now I think.

Your low nutrients might be the reason your corals are dying... Especially the LPS.

 

[Cbones1979]

Your low nutrients might be the reason your corals are dying... Especially the LPS.

Is .20 considered low for phosphates?

Everything looked better months ago when I was around 5 nitrates and .10 phosphates

 

[Magic031707]

Is .20 considered low for phosphates?

Everything looked better months ago when I was around 5 nitrates and .10 phosphates

Good question. In my tank when my phosphates get up around that mark my torches and most lps thrives like crazy but I have some acans that don't like it. They prefer in that .10ppm range. So I'm trying to find that balance. Nitrates are hovering around 15-20ppm.

 

[Cbones1979]

Good question. In my tank when my phosphates get up around that mark my torches and most lps thrives like crazy but I have some acans that don't like it. They prefer in that .10ppm range. So I'm trying to find that balance. Nitrates are hovering around 15-20ppm.

I have no algae in my tank either. I could use the nutrients

Maybe I should turn the scrubber down

 

[Magic031707]

I have no algae in my tank either. I could use the nutrients

Maybe I should turn the scrubber down

I'm also using Ats and running it 12hrs opposite of my dt lights. I have to clean it about every 10-12 days. I do feed 4-5 times a day.

 

[Cbones1979]

I'm also using Ats and running it 12hrs opposite of my dt lights. I have to clean it about every 10-12 days. I do feed 4-5 times a day.

See if feed more but always worried about laying my nutrients

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Is .20 considered low for phosphates?

Everything looked better months ago when I was around 5 nitrates and .10 phosphates

No, but less than 1 ppm nitrate may be if the other sources of N are low. These include ammonia and some organics..

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Your low nutrients might be the reason your corals are dying... Especially the LPS.

Not necessarily, but your nitrates seem low... If you weren't having problems I wouldn't have commented on the levels, but you're looking for reasons the coral is dying... Not getting enough nutrients could be the problem.
And, yes, if you are trying to raise nutrients, reduce the amount of nutrient export you're currently running, otherwise you're fighting a real uphill battle.

 

[PotatoPig]

Nitrates typically hold steady at about 30 ish

Phosphates are always climbing, I think partly because I ran the tank as a FOWLR for a year with probably way high nutrients so they absorbed into the rock and are slowly unbinding.

Dosing Tropic Marin Elimi Phos Rapid in a steady slow drip dose keeps them in the 0.25-0.35 range. Working to dial in the dose to stabilize it a bit more but everything seems happy.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[Cbones1979]

Not necessarily, but your nitrates seem low... If you weren't having problems I wouldn't have commented on the levels, but you're looking for reasons the coral is dying... Not getting enough nutrients could be the problem.
And, yes, if you are trying to raise nutrients, reduce the amount of nutrient export you're currently running, otherwise you're fighting a real uphill battle.

So retested today and phosphates jumped to .31 meanwhile nitrates did jump to 7.7.

All I did was turn the scrubber down a bit.

Still seeing hammer polyp bailout and torch brown jelly.

 

[tgray9937]

Phos .03-.1 and nitrates 5-10 for me.

Thats were I like to get my nutritients. But my macroalgae started dying back and I was getting crazy swings. I had to remove the pompom algae. Hopefully it will stabilize. I have some weird algae growing in its place. Not really sure what it is, it's vibrant green and is covering some glass and the biomedia blocks. It doesnt look like green hair algae, I dose phytoplankton. The color is like the bright green phyto color and it's granular in texture. I would like to go to a ats since strange algae is growing in my sump and macroalgae wont but they are expensive. Do they increase ph like a refugium?

 

[GSPClown94]

I haven’t been actively trying to maintain any kind of ratio between the two but I do dose to keep them from hitting zero.

 

[Dburr1014]

My n/p is 0/.1

 

[JayinToronto]

Regarding phosphates that can get bound to the rock and sand, how much are we talking about? Is it double or triple that in my water column? Is it 100x? I ask this as my 20% water changes aren't really touching my phosphates. How long will it take to "unbind" all the phosphate in my rock and sand? Is it futile to try to do it with water changes?

 

[Unstoppable]

Not possible clearly, that's 825:1 (N)
Edit, I love the smiley face when doing P, lol.

Y'all are making me wonder. The highest my NO3 has been in the last 6 months is 2.53 and PO4 was .19 Lows were NO3 .022, PO4 .018. 70 gal mixed reef with 20 gal sump/refugium.

 

[MrGisonni]

My last tests 15.4 NO3. .03 Phosphate on my mixed reef. FWIW

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Regarding phosphates that can get bound to the rock and sand, how much are we talking about? Is it double or triple that in my water column? Is it 100x? I ask this as my 20% water changes aren't really touching my phosphates. How long will it take to "unbind" all the phosphate in my rock and sand? Is it futile to try to do it with water changes?

It of course depends on how much bare rock and sand surface area you have, but in a case where it was all new bare rock, we are talking over 100x, and 20% water changes are not very useful for that purpose. You need something that constantly removes it.

 

[JayinToronto]

It of course depends on how much bare rock and sand surface area you have, but in a case where it was all new bare rock, we are talking over 100x, and 20% water changes are not very useful for that purpose. You need something that constantly removes it.

Thanks for your response.
A couple of follow up questions / comments.
My current setup is a move (see my tank thread). I kept all the rock from my previous aquarium (15 year old system) but added all new sand. I assume this is where all the phosphate is bound up.
I'm very weary to add a phosphate binding medium as I screwed up with it in the past, plummeted my phosphates and nearly wiped out everything with a dino bloom, but according to what you just said, there isn't really another way around it if I really want to lower my phosphate level.
If I use a phosphate media like rowaphos will there come a time where all the excess phosphate is no longer bound to the new sand and I can stop using the media?
I've used rowaphos in the past, is there another one that you would recommend?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

If I use a phosphate media like rowaphos will there come a time where all the excess phosphate is no longer bound to the new sand and I can stop using the media?
I've used rowaphos in the past, is there another one that you would recommend?

Yes, if you export enough it will drop to the point where the sand and rock is net neutral and isn't binding or releasing.

Rowaphos is just a brand of GFO, which IMO, are largely the same. GFO is a fine but expensive way to go if phosphate is very high and you want to lower it.

 

[Jesse Sunday]

What's everyone's nitrate to phosphate ratio? Mine has always been around 100:1 - Was just curious if everyone else's ratios.

My heavily fed 32g runs 40 : .28 routinely.