I hate this test please help.

[Treenk]

I agree, and with po4 at .25, I'd want it even higher than that (closer to 35ish but I know that number even scares people that like some no3 haha).

I dont want either lol

 

[hyprc]

I dont want either lol

The balance is more important than the number . But trust me when I say nitrates at 10-15 are no problem at all.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

The balance is more important than the number . But trust me when I say nitrates at 10-15 are no problem at all.

Hugh nitrates are fine with low phosphates. My phosphates at .1 and I’m fine with nitrates up to 15 ppm...

 

[Phildago]

There is some level of frustration with every color test for me. I just recently switched to Hana for calcium and am very happy with it. Soon I'll be switching to Hana alk as well.

The salifert alk test drives me crazy, it's never a single drop transition, it's always 3... Which ends up giving me a 0.7 range of uncertainty that I don't like.

 

[KrisReef]

I dont want either lol

My nitrates and phosphates were in check with just live rock for a long time. Then my wife started feeding the fish (she is a soft touch and I feed "prison-camp-light"). The tank nitrates and phosphates have been out of (my) control for months. I gave up on keeping nice SPS colors and just try to keep them alive. That problem aside,
The Hanna ULR Phosphorus test reads in parts per billion, and there is a conversion to figure out parts per million Phosphate that we normally use when measuring nutrients in our tanks. Nothing in the hobby works like Hanna ULR for knowing what PO4 levels are in the water column.

If you are having nitrates and phosphate levels that are creeping up, cutting down on feeding corals and fish may solve your nutrient issue. You can measure that change with the ULR tester. They come with 6 test reagents and you will probably need at least 25 more reagents to figure out what is going on with the PO4 levels in your tank over a good testing month.

Adding more live rock might make sense, for sure in a larger system but in a small tank you may already have an abundance of surface area for nutrient processing, but it is likely that too much input is the source of your issue. More frequent water changes could help as well as feeding less.

 

[hyprc]

Hugh nitrates are fine with low phosphates. My phosphates at .1 and I’m fine with nitrates up to 15 ppm...

What I meant was higher nitrates = higher phosphates. Ideally, no3 should be around 10 to 15 with a po4 of around .03 to .05. You can go higher with either but ideally, they should rise together and fall together.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

What I meant was higher nitrates = higher phosphates. Ideally, no3 should be around 10 to 15 with a po4 of around .03 to .05. You can go higher with either but ideally, they should rise together and fall together.

Yes, for a new tank. Established systems tend to be fine running much higher phosphates