need help with mt ICP results

[Ssteve]

So I have had some issues with gha over the last few months, prior to that it was diatoms. Parameters stable, nitrates at 2, phosphates at .2. I hav also had several sps rtn on me.

I run no gfo and some carbon very sporadically. I didn't run either and when I put some carbon online again recently everything started looking a lot better.

So I sent a water sample to icp-analysis in hopes of figuring it out. Well a couple things come back with poor levels but all its done is give me a whole bunch of questions. So this is what I am looking to try and solve.

Si-silicone -0.50
Ce-cerium -0.01
Pb-Lead -0.01
Rb-Rubidium -0.42
Tl-Thallium -0.03

Those levels were all listed as "Beyond detection limits of 10 parts per billion".

Other numbers I am not sure about are as follows:
Bromine 105.84
Gallium 0.57
lithium 0.43


Seems to me the "silicon" level (which I assume is whats commonly called silicates?) could be a huge contributor to my algae issues? I ran my rodi for a year without maintenance so I am hopeful that could be it, but also skeptical of the cheapo 32g garbage cans I got from the local hardware store as I make and store water in them and they are not the traditionally hard plastic like rubbermaid cans are. That or I started my tank with old sand and rock so maybe its leaching it?

I really have no idea what the other elements even are really so any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[river2reef2024]

Probably the sand and rock. So time for cheato or ats

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[bertoni]

Silicon could be present as silicate. If so, it might feed diatoms, but snails are happy to eat diatoms. What kinds of algae are causing problems? With those phosphate and nitrate levels, there's plenty of food for them to grow. I wouldn't worry about the trace element analysis. First of all, the hobbyist ICP tests are known to have problems, and nothing can live on silicate alone. All organisms require phosphorus, nitrogen, and carbon, the macronutrients for life.

 

[Ssteve]

The only alagae that I have is green hair algae. But I have a fair amount of it. Thankfully not much around corals or on rocks but a ton that grows on my overflows.

 

[bertoni]

Green hair algae doesn't require any significant amount of silicate to grow, if it requires any at all. Phosphorus and fixed nitrogen are all the bulk nutrients it's going to need from the tank. It can get carbon from the air.