anybody have a phosphate meter?

[CeeGee]

I really need to figure out what is going on in my tank but I don't have the $ to buy one of the hannah meters at the moment ( Saving for a ATB skimmer ). I was hoping someone might be able to help me out by doing a test for me.

Long story short is my last tank was overrun with some kind of clearish "ghost" looking algae. I cooked some of the rock for a very long time and it was clean as clean can be when I set up my new tank. That rock is experiencing a slight outbreak of that same "ghost" algae and I know that the nutrients in the tank are low although I am unsure about the phosphate. It should be practically non existent.

After being setup for two months the tanks water is still a little cloudy and I don't know why. New corals have lost some color (from the frag swap) and the old corals still look like crap even after being in what I believe to be a low nutrient environment for two months. There is only one fish in the tank (royal gramma) and I have been feeding him sparingly.

Frogspawns are still retracted and a little bleached, Candy Cane heads a barely hanging in there and really small, and the Old SPS are just bleached looking. As far as I can tell I am doing everything right but the animals just aren't responding. It is very frustrating. I just want a nice tank!

 

[NeveSSL]

What are your current levels?

If nothing else, take a water sample to one of the LFSs and have them check for phosphates.

Brandon

 

[CeeGee]

Without a colorometer (sp?) phosphate tests are useless.

As far as my levels

salinity 1.026
temp 78-80
ammonia 0
nitrite 0
nitrate 0 Brand New LaMotte kit
Phosphate unknown as test kits are useless
Alk 8.5 DKH Brand New LaMotte kit
Calcium 420 New Seachem Kit
Magnesium 1350 Salifert kit (new Elos should be here today)

 

[Angela Short]

I am with ya and feel your pain, I have this weird gost alage also... like a fine faint white, clear filmy flowy coating you can only see if the light hits it at the right angle...real short but there. I do have phoshates and they are high even though I ran phosgaurd to try to get the P04 out from filling with tap but have done all top off and water changes with RO/DI and still have a so so looking tank.
All my SPS are struggling, hanging in there just not looking really good and having a little bit of ST'ing at the base. My ALk got real low is probably the cause and I am working on correcting all my params. But not to hijack I just wanted to tell ya you are not alone. I just want a nice pretty tank and it seems like its unataniable. Think you are doing everything you can just to get Ho Hum results is frustrating.

I think a skimmer is a must for a clear tank also. I had mine off line for 4 days while I tore my sump room apart to re-do the floor waterproofing system (yes another leak and the never ending, when is this thing ever gonna be a joy pile of crap laying all over the kitchen again) Anyways, the tank was skimmerless for those days and the tank got real cloudy and had a nast film on the surface. I was amazed at how much disolved organics the tank had produced in a few days to the point of an oil slick on the water surface. I had just did the fish mush meet and fed heavy 2-3 days the real oily foods and dosed oyster egg oily stuff but that had been 2 days prior to turning off the skimmer. ANyways the skimmer is back on line and the tank is still cloudy looking after 12 hours but the skimmer cup is filling up with a nice stinky junk from the tank so I know its helping!

Good luck getting the tank to awsomeness! Sounds like you are well on your way to doing it right! I think my salifert P04 kit is pretty good, better than not knowing nothing at all on your phoshate level.
Oh, Have you looked real real close for bugs? I had super tiny bugs on my LPS once that looked EXACTLY like red bugs but were clear whiteish. They are so so tiny and you had to kinda focus your eyes like at one of those majic paintings then they just "apperaed" when you trained your eye to see them. They were sucking all the life from the corals, especially the LPS.. a frogspawn in particular. I did the heartworm med and erradicated them and treat all new corals before putting in the tank now. Get a magnifying glass and look real close at the corals. Good luck!

 

[Angela Short]

I see you have a ASM G3.. mine worked like a beast, loved it so if its still on line you should have no problems. My ASM skimmed as good as my H&S which was WAY more $ IMO. I may have a buyer for your ASM if you sell it also. A freind is looking for a cheaper skimmer for her 120 we are setting up.

 

[NeveSSL]

If she's looking for a cheaper skimmer for a 120, check out the Octopus DNW 110 (rated for a 125g) or the 150 (rated for a 180g). Sean can hook ya up. Octopus recently lowered their MAP, so the 110 is $175 and the 150 is around $260 I think. Great stuff!

Brandon

 

[NeveSSL]

Sorry to hijack.

Brandon

 

[CeeGee]

Thanks for the replies. I am sorry to hear that you are having problems too Angela. I saw your tank and my jaw hit the floor. It is beautiful.

I wanted to start a thread about my new tank but it has gone so badly thus far I don't have the will power. When I get the ATB (when I sell my soul to afford it) I will definitely be selling the ASM. I don't like the ASM as I feel the sedra pump is not as well made as the eheim.

My sedra is also a tad bit damaged on the plastic plate on the front of the pump. It works fine but the plastic cracked. Had to replace the impeller as it swelled up over the years. Seems to be common according to the replies on marine depot.

This algae (not even sure if it is algae or not) is evil. It sounds like the same thing you have. Snails don't eat it and it is difficult to even scrub off with a brush. It is gummy and really holds to the surfaces it attaches to. It also lives in low nutrient environments. I have never had the first detectable bit of nitrate in either tank. I am going to keep at it and hope for the best.

I wish Chris Ray was still in town so he could come over and give me some pointers. That guy knows his stuff.

Between perfect parameters that equal to unhealthy corals and fish from LFS that won't last two days and add in losing a perfectly healthy fairy wrasse that I had for 3 years just because I switched tanks, I feel like giving up. There is something wrong and I need to find out what it is. I have too much money, time and elbow grease involved to have such a crappy looking tank.

I feel like a complete noob even though I have kept saltwater tanks for 21 years.

 

[poolkeeper1]

I also can feel your pain, I had a 120 that I had similar problems with. Fish and Coral dying on a wholesale level when everything tested fine but could not even keep snails alive. I don't think you want to hear my solution but here goes! I finally sold all the rock back to who I got it from, Brought all the livestock in for store credit ( which was better than losing it ) then all Equipment that I kept was soaked in bleach, The tank was sold and I started from scratch!!! Today I laugh about but at the time I was gonna give it up, My new tank now 2yrs old is doing fine but never did know what was the reason for the failure tank was.

 

[NeveSSL]

Sorry to hear you're having so many problems, CeeGee. Keep us updated if you find a solution. Sounds like the solution may have to be dramatic.

Yeah, I wish Chris was still around, too. Both of them. He's on the boards quite a bit, though (I think he's the 47th all time poster with over 11,000 posts... :lol: ), so I'm sure you could message him and he'd reply. fishdoc11 I think is his RC name FWIW.

Oh, and just FWIW, it kinda sounds like your problem with fish may not be the source but what ever this is in your tank... ya know?

Brandon

 

[CeeGee]

I can keep things alive. I am not getting good growth or color though. I did lose a few corals in the tank switch though.

As far as fish dying the never even make it to the display. They are dying in quarantine which is fully cycled and houses a 10 year old clown that is doing just fine while the specimens from the LFS drop like flies. It isn't aggression though as I have the clown separated. It is definitely the quality/health of the fish. Every fish that I have obtained through online sources have made it through quarantine and have lasted at least 6 months to a year (or longer). That to me says a lot about the quality of fish the LFS around here are bringing in. It saddens me to no end. Liveaquaria quarantines and guarantees their fish to ensure you get healthy specimens I applaud them. Shame on LFS for not doing the same. I will be ordering some additional specimens from LA in a few weeks. I am going to give the new carpenter wrasse from ebay time to settle in. He is doing well so far.

Which brings me to the point where I need to eradicate internal parasites. I have lost several fairies and flashers over the course of a year where they starve to death although they eat like pigs. It has to be internal parasites although all specimens have been treated with prazi-pro. I need to get a better handle on this.

 

[MVlk]

Not that this will help much... My tank is still very new. About 30 days in I added a few new pieces of dry lace rock to the tank. A few days after adding the new rock, it became covered in the clear looking algae you describe.

This condition cleared up on its own in about 2 weeks. I do not have a Protein Skimmer running yet and have a fairly normal cleanup crew of snails and crabs. My Diamond Goby seemed to pick at it, but can not definitively say he cleaned it up.

My parameters were OK, but nothing to write home about... probably even high by most standards but fine till I get the new sump/skimmer up as I am currently FOWLR.

Hope yours magically clears up as well!

 

[CeeGee]

that is kinda funny. As I think back this algae appeared after I added some lace rock to my tank. I don't remember it ever being there before. As for going away.....that is the reason that I cooked the rock and it still has come back. I scrubbed them all down last night but I doubt it will do much good. I scrubbed the heck out of them and still missed spots because you can't see it when it isn't in the tank + the fact that it doesn't want to come off.

Calgon take me away!

 

[ReefingMadness]

I am not sure if this is the same thing or not. I have read about about carbon source dosing. It seems that will create the same type of clear white stringy filaments. So maybe a carbon overdosage? Just a thought.

 

[CeeGee]

I used carbon dosing to try and clear this stuff up. It was helping but not quickly enough. I decided to cook the rocks. I will post a pic later. I have to change carbon and GFO tonight