Phosphates keep rising back!! - Page 2

homer1475 · 08/22/2018, 03:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan_P

I think Randy has moved over to Reef 2 Reef.

+1

He's a mod of the chemistry section.

tkeracer619 · 08/23/2018, 01:06 AM

Phosphate binds to calcum carbonate so all of your rock and sand holds much more than the water which can only hold a little in suspension.

Feeding likely isn't the cause, it simply is that over time export has not been greater than import and all of this excess phosphate has bound into the substrate. It could be that the rock is just leaching it and will always (within reason) leach it but that is rare.

You need to work on export and be patient as this will take a lot of time. I'd recommend looking into slowly dripping LaCl into a 5 or lower micron sock. This is the cheapest method. Just do the research and take your time, it's aggressive.

I've pulled tons of phosphate out of bins of curing rock and it can take a few months of work to get the levels in check. With a living reef you need to be careful, you do not want to remove the phosphate too fast.

CLM65 · 10/29/2018, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jabbar.reefer

And to my surprise when I checked a few weeks later for phosphates as the glass was getting algae more frequently it was sitting at 1.86 ppm!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jabbar.reefer

I’m using Hanna ULR Phospate Checker, the test tubes are fairly new as I have a whole bunch of them, and I tested me Fresh Salt Mix which read 0.00 so I know the test kit is fine.

Sorry to bring this thread back up, but I have a question about the Hanna ULR tester readings. I have recently purchased a similar tester (I'm assuming you meant ULR Phosphorous tester, not the LR phosphate tester). The upper limit of the ULR tester appears to be 200 ppb phosphorous, which converts to 0.6132 ppm phosphate if I'm doing this correctly. What did you do to get the higher readings? I'm also dealing with a phosphate issue and I'm not sure what exactly my readings currently are as I'm maxing out the ULR tester (200 ppb).

Jabbar.reefer · 10/29/2018, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CLM65

Sorry to bring this thread back up, but I have a question about the Hanna ULR tester readings. I have recently purchased a similar tester (I'm assuming you meant ULR Phosphorous tester, not the LR phosphate tester). The upper limit of the ULR tester appears to be 200 ppb phosphorous, which converts to 0.6132 ppm phosphate if I'm doing this correctly. What did you do to get the higher readings? I'm also dealing with a phosphate issue and I'm not sure what exactly my readings currently are as I'm maxing out the ULR tester (200 ppb).

Sorry for the confusion, I’ve been using the Hanna LR Phosphate kit. The ULR Phosphorus kit is too complicated to work with. I’d suggest you get an exchange.

CLM65 · 10/29/2018, 12:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jabbar.reefer

Sorry for the confusion, I’ve been using the Hanna LR Phosphate kit. The ULR Phosphorus kit is too complicated to work with. I’d suggest you get an exchange.

Well that explains it! Thanks for clarifying. Yeah, I probably should have gotten the phosphate tester, at least for now and until I get my phosphates under control. Maybe I'll look for a sale or a used one. I hope to eventually be in the lower end of the range where the ULR phosphorous tester would be beneficial.

08/23/2018, 01:06 AM	#27
tkeracer619 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Westminster, CO Posts: 17,289	Phosphate binds to calcum carbonate so all of your rock and sand holds much more than the water which can only hold a little in suspension. Feeding likely isn't the cause, it simply is that over time export has not been greater than import and all of this excess phosphate has bound into the substrate. It could be that the rock is just leaching it and will always (within reason) leach it but that is rare. You need to work on export and be patient as this will take a lot of time. I'd recommend looking into slowly dripping LaCl into a 5 or lower micron sock. This is the cheapest method. Just do the research and take your time, it's aggressive. I've pulled tons of phosphate out of bins of curing rock and it can take a few months of work to get the levels in check. With a living reef you need to be careful, you do not want to remove the phosphate too fast. __________________ Hobby Experience: 9200ish gallons, 26 skimmers, and a handful of Kent Scrapers. Current Tank: Vortech Powered 600G SPS Tank w/ 100gal frag tank & 100g Sump. RK2-RK10 Skimmer. ReefAngel. Radium 20k.