Is zero nutrients ever acceptable?

[TWYOUNG]

Once your nutrients die out, your chaeto will stop growing and turn to mush. Then dino will come along. After that, you fight to get nutrients back into the tank, and it will be hell on earth.

Already been there. Just worried about feeding nuisance algae with my constant additions of nitrate and phosphate. I would refer you back to the original post.

 

[brandon429]

I'm amazed that reefers accept their test kits as accurate and make changes based on the reading approximations

In my opinion mis testing and response factors heavily in these threads but isn't discussed because by training if someone states a parameter, we accept it as fact. It's truly a factor I've never seen any posted consistency between hobby nitrate and po4 kits. Running any other name brand kit on the sample yields new results in the vast majority of comparison threads.

 

[TWYOUNG]

I'm amazed that reefers accept their test kits as accurate and make changes based on the reading approximations

In my opinion mis testing and response factors heavily in these threads but isn't discussed because by training if someone states a parameter, we accept it as fact. It's truly a factor I've never seen any posted consistency between hobby nitrate and po4 kits. Running any other name brand kit on the sample yields new results in the vast majority of comparison threads.

I realize there is a variance between different brands and hobby grade kits have their limits. That said I use mostly Hanna, follow directions precisely, and have results that are reasonably close to ATI. My last results, Nitrate, Hanna(15.6), ATI(18.78), Phosphate, Hanna(0.12), ATI(0.14), Alk, Hanna(9.5), ATI(9.49), Calcium, Hanna(440), ATI(387.9) and Red sea Magnesium(1300), ATI(1307). I trust these tests to tell me if I'm getting significantly outside of desired parameters.

 

[Semper.Reefing]

OP how’s your situation since posting this? I’m battling Ostreopsis Dino’s and GHA right now. Got a UV run I bc for the Dino’s but I’ve been dealing with the gha for what feels like ages.

 

[TWYOUNG]

OP how’s your situation since posting this? I’m battling Ostreopsis Dino’s and GHA right now. Got a UV run I bc for the Dino’s but I’ve been dealing with the gha for what feels like ages.

No dinos at present but I'm still pumping sodium phosphate into the tank to maintain measurable levels which I fear is feeding nuisance algal growth. Pics are what is growing on my sand at 400x magnification.