High TDS Readings and Phosphate Issues

[walleyebum]

I was wondering if my TDS reading of 8 could be the reason for the high phosphate readings in the display tank. In the tank it reads 3.0 on api test kit. I was looking to upgrade to a better rodi unit if that is cause and help reduce it down to zero. The income on the tds reaches 500-600 also

 

[walleyebum]

Was looking to get the spectrapure Chloramine Removal 90-GPD RO/DI System if that is a good choice

 

[reefwars]

It would take a lot of phosphates from your ro to lead up to that high . I'd get a better test API is notoriously inaccurate for phosphates. The small amount you would get from an ro unit is but a blip on the radar compared to the phosphate addition one feeding does in comparison so look into exporting the phosphates more aggressively

 

[walleyebum]

I cut back on feedings and have not seen a drop yet in readings. The only thing I can think of thats leading the phosphates is the TDS, or aquamaxx 150lbs of dry rock that I added and the 300 lbs of live rock I transferred from my old tank. But with that transfer I noticed alot of algae that died that was on those rocks since being in my new tank.

 

[reefwars]

I cut back on feedings and have not seen a drop yet in readings. The only thing I can think of thats leading the phosphates is the TDS, or aquamaxx 150lbs of dry rock that I added and the 300 lbs of live rock I transferred from my old tank. But with that transfer I noticed alot of algae that died that was on those rocks since being in my new tank.

I would look at the dryrock as more a contributor than the ro unit , there's only so much po4 that can leach so you need to get on exporting it from the system all together .....preferably at a rate equal to or faster than it leaches. How are you exporting phosphates?

 

[CStrickland]

Why not just test a sample of freshly salted before you add it to the tank?

 

[walleyebum]

I just hooked up a gfo reactor today to see if that will help.

 

[SVTour]

I just hooked up a gfo reactor today to see if that will help.

Probably your best bet, hopefully you'll see some results soon. A reading of 3.0 though...that's really high if accurate.

If spending the money on a new test kit - those Hanna units are really nice, and it's probably only 2X the cost of a decent test kit. It's just that the digital readout takes out all that guess work.

 

[reefwars]

I just hooked up a gfo reactor today to see if that will help.

Yes this will help for sure but your first few batches will exhaust very quickly , if there are corals in the tank though be sure not to drop to fast

 

[Matthias7]

I had this same issue recently. My phospates were lower @ 1.12. I started up some some GFO at about half the recommended dose. I checked my ro unit and was getting a TDS reading of 9 (cheap handheld unit). I then tested the ro/di output for phosphates and it read zero. After 2 weeks my phosphates are now 0.03.

 

[walleyebum]

How fast should I change out the gfo?