what's next ?

[ReefTrigger]

Here's my water parameters

Jun 12, 2012





Temp 81
Salinity 24
Ph 8.6
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0
phosphates 0.25

Alkalinity 170 x.056 for dkH 9.52


My tank has been running for about a year, corals seem to be doing just avarage or below average..

lights are 6 bulb T5 over a 40G

how long should I be running my lights ?

how much water flow do I need ?

I have 3 sps frags

one or two lps frags

and some GSP





calcium 450
magnesium

 

[bongarone]

Your pH is on the high side, and your phosphates are through the roof, should be closer to 0.025. Definitely get some GFO and see if that improves.

Water flow is very important for SPS.

Are your SPS extending their polyps?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

If you are not dosing limewater or other high pH additives, don't worry about the pH. It is probably an error.

To avoid confusion, I'd suggest reporting your specific gravity as sg = 1.024. I presume you do not really mean the salinity is 24 ppt, which would correspond to a sg of about 1.018.

These may help:

Reef Aquarium Water Parameters
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.htm

The “How To” Guide to Reef Aquarium Chemistry for Beginners, Part 1: The Salt Water Itself
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-03/rhf/index.php

The “How To” Guide to Reef Aquarium Chemistry for Beginners, Part 2: What Chemicals Must be Supplemented
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-04/rhf/index.php

The "How To" Guide to Reef Aquarium Chemistry for Beginners, Part 3: pH
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-05/rhf/index.php

The “How To” Guide to Reef Aquarium Chemistry for Beginners,
Part 4: What Chemicals May Detrimentally Accumulate
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-09/rhf/index.php

 

[Dr. Reef]

like stated above. if sg is 24 u need to slowly bring it up to 35. if u meant 1.024 then still increase it to 1.025-26 range. doing so will slightly increase cal alk and mag levels too.
phos are high and need to be rid off.
u really need cal alk and mag levels in order to grow corals happily.
40gal tank with sps will require atleast 30 times the turn over. and lighting has to be strong type too with atleast 6-8 hrs time frame.

 

[ReefTrigger]

OK, I'm using an API test kit for phosphates. Here's a pic, It looked to me I was reading 0.25, if this is "through the roof" then I'm assuming I need to get a lower scale test kit.

can anyone recommend a test kit that will accurately read 0.025 ?

Also, if my Phosphates are truly that high, how exactly do I get rid of them ? what should I be doing ?

 

[Dr. Reef]

hanna checker for low phosphorus is ur best bet. cost $50 or so.
how to rid phos is either via algae in refugium or gfo reactor. and for a reef u need as close to zero as possible.

 

[TriggersAmuck]

OK, I'm using an API test kit for phosphates. Here's a pic, It looked to me I was reading 0.25, if this is "through the roof" then I'm assuming I need to get a lower scale test kit.

can anyone recommend a test kit that will accurately read 0.025 ?

Also, if my Phosphates are truly that high, how exactly do I get rid of them ? what should I be doing ?

Hanna makes some really good phosphate test kits. Somebody already recommended using GFO , but if you are not familiar with this, they are very fine iron shavings which bind very readily with phosphates to remove them from the water column. To deliver it, the best was is to use an acrylic cylinder with a small (maxijet 1200 or 900) power head and an adjustable flow control on the water intake so that you can slow down the flow to cause just the very surface of the iron to ripple very gently in the cylinder. Two Little Fishies makes a very popular Phosban Reactor (though I had some leaking issues), and Next Reef makes some high quality, rugged reactors that will last a lifetime (my preferred ones). Hope this helps.

When you use GFO, you will immediately see a good reduction in any red slime cyano bacteria you have in the tank, and you should only have to change it out every other month (maybe more frequently initially if high levels have built up).

 

[ReefTrigger]

So the concensious is I need GFO ? I read about gfo a few months ago via googling and read mixed reviews.

Does anyone disagree with gfo?

Is there another way?

If not, then I will order the Hanna checker and the gfo doser.

 

[keithhays]

Definitely get a GFO reactor, but how do you have lots of phosphate and zero nitrates?
There technically isn't a connection, but this is extremely unlikely; I would look at a better or new test kit for nitrates.
I would get the PH double checked.

 

[ReefTrigger]

Thanks, what do you use for nitrates? Hanna checker? Or.. ...

My nitrates have always read 0 with the API test kit, which I'm thinking might not be all that accurate.

What else should I do?

 

[TriggersAmuck]

Thanks, what do you use for nitrates? Hanna checker? Or.. ...

My nitrates have always read 0 with the API test kit, which I'm thinking might not be all that accurate.

What else should I do?

LaMotte makes one of the most sensitive NO3 test kits, and it will often show a reading where other kits will not (when you are at the lower end). The other good thing about it is that the company sells refill chemicals at a much lower price than the whole kit, so you can save money that way over the long term.

 

[bertoni]

Having high phosphate and low nitrate levels in a tank is fairly common. Commercial food products seem to run higher in phosphate:nitrogen ratio than the typical tank exports.

 

[ReefTrigger]

As for my phosphates ? what's the cause for it being so high ?

How about the egg crate at the bottom of my sump ?

Or I have a PLASTIC cave from a freshwater tank in there ? Is there any truth to plastic leaking phosphates like crazy ?

I use RODI water and do water changes every week ..

 

[Dr. Reef]

rocks specially dry rock is a big common source along with everyfood u put in the tank being the second worst source of phos.

 

[keithhays]

Having high phosphate and low nitrate levels in a tank is fairly common. Commercial food products seem to run higher in phosphate:nitrogen ratio than the typical tank exports.

The thing I noticed was not low nitrates, but zero nitrates.



Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

The thing I noticed was not low nitrates, but zero nitrates.



Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android

FWIW, hobby test kits cannot distinguish low nitrate from very low nitrate and we never have zero (0.0000000000000000 ppm) nitrate in a reef tank.

 

[keithhays]

Thanks, what do you use for nitrates? Hanna checker? Or.. ...

My nitrates have always read 0 with the API test kit, which I'm thinking might not be all that accurate.

What else should I do?

i am currently using redsea pro which is good, but i have a hanna on order. api is not a bad system, but the tests on all brands only last so long. i recently had an outdated ammonia kit read zero with a 3ppm solution and it stayed way after adding a drop of 10% ammonia to the vial just before testing.


Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android

 

[keithhays]

Thanks, what do you use for nitrates? Hanna checker? Or.. ...

My nitrates have always read 0 with the API test kit, which I'm thinking might not be all that accurate.

What else should I do?

Ignore Posted to wrong thread



Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android

 

[keithhays]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReefTrigger

Thanks, what do you use for nitrates? Hanna checker? Or.. ...

My nitrates have always read 0 with the API test kit, which I'm thinking might not be all that accurate.

What else should I do?

also keep in mind that my primary concern is not that your test kit is not accurate, but if it is that you have zero nitates on a 12 week old tank, you have not cycled at all.



Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android

correction 1 year old tank; i have two nitrate conversations happening.



Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android

 

[ReefTrigger]

ok sounds good, I"m going to order the Hanna checker for phosphates, and the GFO reactor from bulkreefsupply I think. ..

anything else ?