HIGH phosphate levels

[eqbal9947]

waterbox 220.6 170 gallon tank
My phosphate levels are 2.50+ (Hanna checker)
I have a Diatom bloom which I’ve been trying to vacuum out and changing filter socks 2 to 3 times a day and blew the diatoms off the rocks with a baster.

I have 2 favias, hammer,frogspawn and 3x Zoanthids. All very small.
2x clowns, a hippo and watchman goby.
I’ve put in a bag of GFO, Chemipure (for silicates)
Media reactor has carbon and GFO.
And I have a small ball of chaeto with lights on at night for 7 hours

my other parameters
DKH: 9.95
Nitrate: 13.1
Calcium: 483
Mag:1430
PH: 8
Phosphate 2.5+
I’ve been slow dosing two little fishies Cbalance because my DK was tanking.

Any idea why everything isn’t dead. Everything looks fine but Goby was acting funny.
And does the diatom bloom skew the phosphate tests?

 

[Lavey29]

Are you confident the test is accurate? Did you get a second opinion? What are you dosing into your tank to cause that high number?

 

[Spare time]

Phosphate doesn't kill things. It just makes corals more brittle and possible slower growing. As the above said, I'd also double check the test kit results.

 

[gbroadbridge]

waterbox 220.6 170 gallon tank
My phosphate levels are 2.50+ (Hanna checker)
I have a Diatom bloom which I’ve been trying to vacuum out and changing filter socks 2 to 3 times a day and blew the diatoms off the rocks with a baster.

I have 2 favias, hammer,frogspawn and 3x Zoanthids. All very small.
2x clowns, a hippo and watchman goby.
I’ve put in a bag of GFO, Chemipure (for silicates)
Media reactor has carbon and GFO.
And I have a small ball of chaeto with lights on at night for 7 hours

my other parameters
DKH: 9.95
Nitrate: 13.1
Calcium: 483
Mag:1430
PH: 8
Phosphate 2.5+
I’ve been slow dosing two little fishies Cbalance because my DK was tanking.

Any idea why everything isn’t dead. Everything looks fine but Goby was acting funny.
And does the diatom bloom skew the phosphate tests?

Phosphate doesn't kill anything - not really an emergency.

Which phosphate test, becuase it sounds like a test error.

 

[ZombieEngineer]

Sounds like test error to me. You already have gfo, which is the best way to get phosphate levels down fairly quickly as long as you are replacing it as it gets exhausted.

 

[Fishy888]

^^^This. If you are using API tests, expect the results to be dubious at best. Of course no test kit is perfect. Pretty much any test kit is better than API however.

 

[eqbal9947]

I used Hanna checker twice
The colour turned very blue
I don’t have another test kit. Will get another tomorrow
I was also told phosphate would kill corals

 

[eqbal9947]

Are you confident the test is accurate? Did you get a second opinion? What are you dosing into your tank to cause that high number?

Nothing as far as I know.
I feed the fish and use reef roids
I do dose C balance for DKH. Phyto, and micobacter7

 

[Fishy888]

Well phosphates can interfere with skeletal growth of stony corals but as mentioned above phosphates won't outright kill them. They just slow down the growth rate and can cause corals to go brown. If you have soft corals then phosphate is even less of a factor.

 

[ZombieEngineer]

I used Hanna checker twice
The colour turned very blue
I don’t have another test kit. Will get another tomorrow
I was also told phosphate would kill corals

How often have you been changing GFO and how much were you putting in your reactor (cups)?

 

[Lavey29]

Nothing as far as I know.
I feed the fish and use reef roids
I do dose C balance for DKH. Phyto, and micobacter7

Reef roids will sky rocket phosphate

 

[ZombieEngineer]

Reef roids will sky rocket phosphate

Yep, phyto will too if it's from a source that fertilizes heavily and/or not actually live.

 

[gbroadbridge]

I used Hanna checker twice
The colour turned very blue
I don’t have another test kit. Will get another tomorrow
I was also told phosphate would kill corals

Okay,

Which Hanna Checker? Is it the Phosphate HR HI-717?

If so, and the test has shown 2.5 you need to bring phosphates down slowly so as to not shock the coral.

Using GFO or Phosguard is probably the best way, but not too much at a time.
I'd drop that number down over a month or so to below 0.2

Phosphate is not fatal to coral in the short term, but does stunt growth and can cause them to brown out due to excess nutrients.

If you've been feeding Reef Roids that is probably the cause, as you only need a tiny amount.

 

[eqbal9947]

Okay,

Which Hanna Checker? Is it the Phosphate HR HI-717?

If so, and the test has shown 2.5 you need to bring phosphates down slowly so as to not shock the coral.

Using GFO or Phosguard is probably the best way, but not too much at a time.
I'd drop that number down over a month or so to below 0.2

Phosphate is not fatal to coral in the short term, but does stunt growth and can cause them to brown out due to excess nutrients.

If you've been feeding Reef Roids that is probably the cause, as you only need a tiny amount.

it’s the HR and I used about a cup and half to two cups of GFO in total
Okay. That’s the route I’ll take
And I’ll stop reef roids and phyto for now

thanks for the help everyone. Much appreciated

 

[eqbal9947]

How often have you been changing GFO and how much were you putting in your reactor (cups)?

About a cup and a bit and have only used it as of 3 days ago as my phosphate was at 0 last week when I checked.

 

[fish farmer]

I had similar high numbers in my 29 gallon, softies didn't mind and my only frammer actually grew. I took several months with chaeto and wc, tried gfo but that dropped it quick. Even with the slow drop, my frammer still wasn't thrilled with the low numbers .

 

[MERKEY]

How old is your tank?

Did you start with dry rock?

Phosphate will get bound in the rocks and sand and release over time as well.

Removing it from the system where it is releasing can some times be a lengthy process.

Stopping reef roads is a good place to start.

You could also start rinsing your food before you feed.

If you do feed pellets, those sometimes uneaten will also release a lot of phos.

 

[BanjoBandito]

WELCOME TO THE HIGH PHOSPHATE CLUB, BY THE NUMBERS YOU ARE OUR NEW PRESIDENT!

 

[eqbal9947]

How old is your tank?

Did you start with dry rock?

Phosphate will get bound in the rocks and sand and release over time as well.

Removing it from the system where it is releasing can some times be a lengthy process.

Stopping reef roads is a good place to start.

You could also start rinsing your food before you feed.

If you do feed pellets, those sometimes uneaten will also release a lot of phos.

Tank is like 2 months old, fish for like 3 weeks in it and corals for like 2 weeks.
Dry Carib sea

WELCOME TO THE HIGH PHOSPHATE CLUB, BY THE NUMBERS YOU ARE OUR NEW PRESIDENT!

LOOOL

 

[BanjoBandito]

Tank is like 2 months old, fish for like 3 weeks in it and corals for like 2 weeks.
Dry Carib sea

LOOOL

I'm glad you can laugh about it - I would double check your tests, but don't panic too much and don't just try and lower it all in 24 hours. Go slow.