Phosphate v.s. Phosphorus
- Thread starter Chrisq0904
- Start date
Chrisq0904
New member
Don't you just love the forums lol.
I saw one video on YouTube and the guy literally does the phosphate and phosphorus test side by side and got different results when he converted over to ppm. I forget what the difference was but if I find the video again I'll post what the difference was.
ReEfErAdDiCt86
New member
Chrisq0904
New member
That would be the one!
Chrisq0904
New member
Well something came in the mail today!!
About to test my levels now
About to test my levels now
Chrisq0904
New member
Got a reading of 12. So multiply that by 3.0661 then divide by 1000... So my phosphate is .037 (rounded). I thought my Red Sea was giving me a reading of .08 it was kinda hard to determine the color since it did exactly match any of them.
AquamanE
Active member
So... after seeing that video a few times, and reading the comments on the youtube area.... can it be ASSUMED that the phosphorus reading will be 4 times the phosphate? Chemistry was not my forte in college but if he is right about the 4:1 ratio then when we get a 0.03 reading can we assume its 0.12, or a 0.06 reading be 0.24????
IUm going to post this in the chemistry forum and see what we get.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=22752360#post22752360
IUm going to post this in the chemistry forum and see what we get.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=22752360#post22752360
Last edited:
Chrisq0904
New member
I never read the comments of the YouTube video but I did post the same thing in the chemistry forum and was told to do the math I did above which I guess is close to what you were saying in regards to multiplying by 4. I'll be following the thread you started to see what is said about the matter.
Chrisq0904
New member
Well I guess the good thing is I didn't buy two testers...at the end of the day I still have a better more accurate way to test for phosphates so I'm still happy. At least there isn't a price difference between the two.
AquamanE
Active member
Well- Got mine in.
Tested regular Phosphate, then phosporus with same water.
Got:
0.06 for phosphate
11 for phosphorus. If I use the formula you guys are providing im at 0.0337.
This makes no sense. I thought Phosphorus would be higher? Where did this formula come from (*3.0661/1000). Its definately NOT in the manual.
What does 11 mean?. Dr. Thompson, Chrisq??
Tested regular Phosphate, then phosporus with same water.
Got:
0.06 for phosphate
11 for phosphorus. If I use the formula you guys are providing im at 0.0337.
This makes no sense. I thought Phosphorus would be higher? Where did this formula come from (*3.0661/1000). Its definately NOT in the manual.
What does 11 mean?. Dr. Thompson, Chrisq??
Chrisq0904
New member
According to Hanna in the sponsor forums phosphorous x 3.0661 = phosphate. Since the phosphorous checks gives a reading in ppb you divide by 1000 to get ppm
rovster
New member
Eddie, phosphorous is read in PPB. In the hobby, when someone refers to a phosphate reading its in PPM. The formula is there just to convert the reading into a meaningful number for us. There is no hidden math. It's a simple conversion, no different than converting inches to meters.....well slightly different, but the idea is the same.....
ravedood
Active member
Ok so I finally got around to playing with my phosphorus checker.
So I guess I grab my ppb readings, multiply them by 3.1 or 3.066 then divide by 1000 to get my readings in phosphate in ppm.
I got a phosphorus reading of 1 ppb from my RO/DI filter.
So if I did my math correctly I have a Phosphate reading of 0.003066 from my RO/DI.
I got a phosphorus reading of 5 ppb from display tank.
So if I did the math correctly I have a Phosphate reading of 0.01503 ppm in my tank.
Does this sound correct?
These levels should be good for a reef tank correct?
If so, I can't explain why I have green hair algae in my display tank. My nitrates are at 0 and my photo period is about 8 hours.
Can anyone please give me any tips on reducing this green hair algae?
So I guess I grab my ppb readings, multiply them by 3.1 or 3.066 then divide by 1000 to get my readings in phosphate in ppm.
I got a phosphorus reading of 1 ppb from my RO/DI filter.
So if I did my math correctly I have a Phosphate reading of 0.003066 from my RO/DI.
I got a phosphorus reading of 5 ppb from display tank.
So if I did the math correctly I have a Phosphate reading of 0.01503 ppm in my tank.
Does this sound correct?
These levels should be good for a reef tank correct?
If so, I can't explain why I have green hair algae in my display tank. My nitrates are at 0 and my photo period is about 8 hours.
Can anyone please give me any tips on reducing this green hair algae?
AquamanE
Active member
Ben- that reading for a DT is great. I try for 0.03-0.06 or so. When i gets higher, i change the GFO.
algae- remove it manually and keep up the good work. Your tank is young.
AquamanE
Active member
If thats the highest it reads, Ide say it is UL. Look at the reading ravedood got, 0.003, thats a very low reading.
