I agree that if you siphon stuff out, the water changes are a lot more effective for nutrient reduction. 
New article of mine on phosphate
- Thread starter Randy Holmes-Farley
- Start date
edandsandy
Active member
This is a GREAT article Randy...Thank you so much.
Now, who has a reciepe for home made food...:lol:
Now, who has a reciepe for home made food...:lol:
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Thanks Randy,
Outstanding article. I guess my fuge with Cheaeto(leave lights on 24/7) and GFO(Changed every 90 days, but I use about 4 cups at a time) is doing the job.
I feed 3 cubes of Mysis, 3 cubes of Blood worms, Nori, and either a cube of rotifers/cyclops daily and rarely have Phosphates detectable with a Hanna Checker with minimal algae in my display tank. My readings are normally zero, rarely over .02ppm and occasionally as high as .04ppm
I was surprised my system is capable of absorbing so much phosphates. After reading this article I am going to stop rinsing my food and see what happens.
Thanks again, your research is just so helpful.
Outstanding article. I guess my fuge with Cheaeto(leave lights on 24/7) and GFO(Changed every 90 days, but I use about 4 cups at a time) is doing the job.
I feed 3 cubes of Mysis, 3 cubes of Blood worms, Nori, and either a cube of rotifers/cyclops daily and rarely have Phosphates detectable with a Hanna Checker with minimal algae in my display tank. My readings are normally zero, rarely over .02ppm and occasionally as high as .04ppm
I was surprised my system is capable of absorbing so much phosphates. After reading this article I am going to stop rinsing my food and see what happens.
Thanks again, your research is just so helpful.
JHawlz9989
New member
Excellent article, Randy. Have you always bypassed rinsing your frozen food, or is that a habit that has changed recently?
Josh
Josh
Thanks, folks.
I rinsed it once or twice in the past, but not most of the time.
I rinsed it once or twice in the past, but not most of the time.
randy i know im not supposed to look at orp anymore esp sice i took off the ozone, which btw the tangs thankyou very much lol i mean they are growing back!! and anyone who saw this would definitely not use ozone and carbon anymore>>> which then gets into a whole another debate on which was the culprit or was it the combo..... anyway.... heres the question why is my orp down 20 ticks from 310 to 285 from removal of gfo or vodka vinegar dosing ?? i have less nitrate and phosphate measures almost zero anyway and tank looks clearer
I'm not sure exactly what you are asking, but human serum inorganic phosphate levels are what physicians focus on, and it is much higher than reef aquaria (maybe 120 ppm phosphate).
As Jonathan mentions, Hach has a total phosphate kit, if you are interested, but it is tedious to use, involving a digestions step converting many organic forms into inorganic forms for detection.
I'm not sure, but adding organics drives bacterial growth which, IMO, could reduce ORP.
Incorrect entry in article:
Shrimp seem to be a standout in terms of a low protein to phosphorus ratio for grocery store foods.
More accurate:
Shrimp is a high protein, low phosphorus food".
Is this correct? I believe it is but want to make sure as this point is a key issue and others may ask as well.
Thanks Randy for a great article. With Hannah Phosphate checkers out now, we are all finding that we have more phosphate in our tanks than previously thought. This article is very helpful.
MadBeach
Shrimp seem to be a standout in terms of a low protein to phosphorus ratio for grocery store foods.
More accurate:
Shrimp is a high protein, low phosphorus food".
Is this correct? I believe it is but want to make sure as this point is a key issue and others may ask as well.
Thanks Randy for a great article. With Hannah Phosphate checkers out now, we are all finding that we have more phosphate in our tanks than previously thought. This article is very helpful.
MadBeach
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Lavoisier
Premium Member
I hope the following thoughts are not way out in left field. I am considering not using a DSB in my new build because of the anecdotal evidence of many experienced reefers regarding old tank syndrome--though Schmick's article (and other empirical studies) on DSB is still tilting me towards the value of this reef component.
I am wondering if one of the advantages of a DSB might be introducing a significant number of organisms (assuming we are "refreshing" our sand beds annually or semi-annually with infusions of new detrivores) that will utilize some percentage of PO4 which without the organisms would be available to the algae harmful to coral growth. Your article demonstrates that most PO4 passes through to the water column and is available to organisms inimical to our purposes. Is it possible the DSB and accompanying detrivores will help with PO4 control?
I am wondering if one of the advantages of a DSB might be introducing a significant number of organisms (assuming we are "refreshing" our sand beds annually or semi-annually with infusions of new detrivores) that will utilize some percentage of PO4 which without the organisms would be available to the algae harmful to coral growth. Your article demonstrates that most PO4 passes through to the water column and is available to organisms inimical to our purposes. Is it possible the DSB and accompanying detrivores will help with PO4 control?
Psyops
Still Learning
thank you Randy for the article. Very good read. It makes sense now when I stopped feeding clams to my fish and just did frozen mysis.
Randy: Do you know anything on astaxanthin powder+ Schyzochitrium algae? These are the additives I use for my Seahorses with the frozen mysis. Do you know how much they would contribute to the phosphate levels. I don't have a phosphate problem, but am just curious.
Thanks
Alex
Randy: Do you know anything on astaxanthin powder+ Schyzochitrium algae? These are the additives I use for my Seahorses with the frozen mysis. Do you know how much they would contribute to the phosphate levels. I don't have a phosphate problem, but am just curious.
Thanks
Alex
brandon429
Active member
Imo its takes plants, not animals, to bind phosphate or we can utilize precipitations to make it unavailable to algae, but dsb animals won't impact phosphates in the way we want. awaiting input from Randy....
Yes, that sentence about shrimp was a typo. It's a good protein source for many animals. I'd suggest using whole, uncleaned shrimp in general, though, since that's similar to what the animals would be eating in nature.
I ran two DSBs for more than 10 years with no signs of problems. When I had to tear them down, the sand was still fine. How much filtration a DSB can provide is unknown, but it's likely of secondary importance. I liked watching the DSB animals, personally. A DSB might be able to process some phosphate via bacteria, but processing detritus is more commonly quoted as a useful capability.
Astaxanthin doesn't contain any phosphorus. Algae generally contains some, but not much per unit volume. I don't know what the nutritional profile of that particular genus might be.
I ran two DSBs for more than 10 years with no signs of problems. When I had to tear them down, the sand was still fine. How much filtration a DSB can provide is unknown, but it's likely of secondary importance. I liked watching the DSB animals, personally. A DSB might be able to process some phosphate via bacteria, but processing detritus is more commonly quoted as a useful capability.
Astaxanthin doesn't contain any phosphorus. Algae generally contains some, but not much per unit volume. I don't know what the nutritional profile of that particular genus might be.
