What is killing my reef?!?!!
- Thread starter essop3
- Start date
firefish2020
New member
I think it was more the byproduct of phosban plus the addition of phosphates from your R/O. It basically demonstrates a serious complex cascading imbalance in the system caused by one simple fluctuation of an unknown factor 
If I am correct your system should find natural balance within a very short time now as long as you do not change anything else except the removal of the subsequent PO4. In time the reef (what was left of it) would have adjusted and in fact Im sure it has started to adjust, so be patient while the system comes into balance and try not to interfere to much at this point.
Just a theory
If I am correct your system should find natural balance within a very short time now as long as you do not change anything else except the removal of the subsequent PO4. In time the reef (what was left of it) would have adjusted and in fact Im sure it has started to adjust, so be patient while the system comes into balance and try not to interfere to much at this point.
Just a theory
firefish2020
New member
Good plan, should all be fine after that
essop3
New member
GRRRRRRRRRR
I got the new filters & membrane today. After I put the membrane in its housing I noticed a little piece inside the housing was broken (the part that goes into the membrane). I figured oh well, I can get a new housing easy. So I tried to pull out the membrane and broke it!!!!
I gave up and ordered a new R/O-D/I tonight. The old one was a cheap made one, had leaks, auto shut off didn't work, lots of problems (trying to convince myself)
God I hate this hobby.
I got the new filters & membrane today. After I put the membrane in its housing I noticed a little piece inside the housing was broken (the part that goes into the membrane). I figured oh well, I can get a new housing easy. So I tried to pull out the membrane and broke it!!!!
I gave up and ordered a new R/O-D/I tonight. The old one was a cheap made one, had leaks, auto shut off didn't work, lots of problems (trying to convince myself)
God I hate this hobby.
Is it too late to take a tds reading of your makeup water?. I was going to suggest this but see that you may have found the problem. If you can do this it may help some of us out in the future. My feeling is that tds would probably be high but if they are low with that kind of phosphate I would be surprised.
I've had similiar problems and though with good intention I've done water changes like mad, the more I changed the worst it got.
Glad you found the issue.
Albert
I've had similiar problems and though with good intention I've done water changes like mad, the more I changed the worst it got.
Glad you found the issue.
Albert
firefish2020
New member
<center>PART I</center>
Remember what I have said about no two tanks ever being the same? That means each system is tuned differently and in theory requires more or less maintenance than another would. It is common practice to do 10-15% every two weeks, or 5-10% every week Or still yet 25% per month. All of this is dependent on the size, filtration, skim production, livestock load, livestock type, feeding conditions, the list goes on with more variables than humanly possible to list here. I have seen systems that have been set up for years that get water changes every 2-3 months or less! and still they do fine or better than a new one that gets changed every week. I'm sure by now you know why the older system does better than the newer one.
Basically it goes like this, the newer our systems are the more nutrient export we need to compensate for the increase in waste production. As the system ages (usually about 1 year) the water chemistry levels within the system are balanced far better than they were when the tank was much younger. Now the systems true biological filtration has started to really work and the entire tank has become a living biotope. It is at this stage that where everything is looking great that the aquarist will do one of two things. He/she will likely cut back on maintenance a bit here and there or will continues with religious water changes as in the past....I have to go now but I will finish this later today
TO BE CONTINUED
planted tank
New member
On my 75gal sw tank, I do 20% every two weeks. On my 150gal planted tank I do 20% to 30% maybe once a month. Pictures comming soon!
planted tank
New member
Sorry for getting off the subject of the reef problem, how often is the substrate cleaned?
firefish2020
New member
Ok back...
<center>PART II</center>
First I don't ever clean my substrate I let my cuke and snails do that for me. In the event of cyano or severe algae I recommend a siphoning of the upper layer of substrate but carefully.
Ok As I was saying earlier today...
If our tanks begin to adjust slowly to the lack in water changes on a regular basis then they simply get used to coping with the nutrient import/export problem. Now this is not suggesting that you stop doing water changes on your old tanks. It only means that if you have stopped doing those frequent changes slowly and have noticed that your tank is doing just as good now as it did when you were doing them your tank has reached What??
All together now! B-A-L-A-N-C-E .
I figured this out through trial and error and after doing countless tests on various tanks over the past few years. The only way I could explain someone having a system that did great with very low maintenance was by narrowing down what they all had in common. Guess what it was? They all had owners who were once vigilant about maintenance but since every thing looked good physically they didn't do as many changes.
This was however bad news for a few who learned that no maintenance was a very BAD thing as slowly over time the nutrient levels began to rise beyond the capabilities of the biotope to compensate. By this point (3 years in this particular case), nitrate was off the charts and over 50% of the water had to be changed out. Guess what happened then? Yep I got blamed for killing all this guys animals and causing an algae bloom, all because I told him he had to do a water change, which he did. It took me a few years to figure it out but basically the algae that began in this case was the result of a new healthy balance being achieved. It took him about a year to get his tank back to normal and now he does his water changes regularly to avoid the inevitable accumulative effect of negligence. So to answer the initial question you do water changes as the tank system requires. Do you tests, Nitrates and Phosphates and watch your coral they are the best indicators that something is not quite right. If everything looks great do what you have been doing, if you are getting tired of weekly water changes cut back a bit. HOWEVER be warned of this: We do water changes more to replenish the trace elements that the coral pull out more than waste removal. If you slack on water changes you will need to add more trace elements to make up for the loss of a fresh supply IMO.
Has any of this helped anyone?
I hope so,
I'm finished for now though
<center>PART II</center>
First I don't ever clean my substrate I let my cuke and snails do that for me. In the event of cyano or severe algae I recommend a siphoning of the upper layer of substrate but carefully.
Ok As I was saying earlier today...
If our tanks begin to adjust slowly to the lack in water changes on a regular basis then they simply get used to coping with the nutrient import/export problem. Now this is not suggesting that you stop doing water changes on your old tanks. It only means that if you have stopped doing those frequent changes slowly and have noticed that your tank is doing just as good now as it did when you were doing them your tank has reached What??
All together now! B-A-L-A-N-C-E .
I figured this out through trial and error and after doing countless tests on various tanks over the past few years. The only way I could explain someone having a system that did great with very low maintenance was by narrowing down what they all had in common. Guess what it was? They all had owners who were once vigilant about maintenance but since every thing looked good physically they didn't do as many changes.
This was however bad news for a few who learned that no maintenance was a very BAD thing as slowly over time the nutrient levels began to rise beyond the capabilities of the biotope to compensate. By this point (3 years in this particular case), nitrate was off the charts and over 50% of the water had to be changed out. Guess what happened then? Yep I got blamed for killing all this guys animals and causing an algae bloom, all because I told him he had to do a water change, which he did. It took me a few years to figure it out but basically the algae that began in this case was the result of a new healthy balance being achieved. It took him about a year to get his tank back to normal and now he does his water changes regularly to avoid the inevitable accumulative effect of negligence. So to answer the initial question you do water changes as the tank system requires. Do you tests, Nitrates and Phosphates and watch your coral they are the best indicators that something is not quite right. If everything looks great do what you have been doing, if you are getting tired of weekly water changes cut back a bit. HOWEVER be warned of this: We do water changes more to replenish the trace elements that the coral pull out more than waste removal. If you slack on water changes you will need to add more trace elements to make up for the loss of a fresh supply IMO.
Has any of this helped anyone?
I hope so,
I'm finished for now though
luv my garden
New member
Which RODI system did you settle on?
I am shopping for my first and don't know them at all.
essop3
New member
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSAA:US:11&Item=4453936598
You really don't need 6 stages but it was the cheapest, well put together unit I could find.
I already have a tank for drinking water from my old unit. This guy has units with the tank and faucet for around $100 plus shipping.
You really don't need 6 stages but it was the cheapest, well put together unit I could find.
I already have a tank for drinking water from my old unit. This guy has units with the tank and faucet for around $100 plus shipping.
