Nitrates & Phosphates

[Iggy305]

Happy Holidays Fellow Reefers,

Here’s the skinny… I have a Coral/Invert QT with a few frags in it, nothing flashy, couple of smallish rocks, frags, and some snails. Nitrate & Phosphate are consistently reading 0, everything seems happy, save a temperamental Kenya, but otherwise good. My concern is, obviously, the potential for something like dinoflagellates. So I’m planning to start dosing nitrate & Phosphates. Based on what I’ve read it’s looking like Sodium Nitrate & Phosphate are pretty DIY friendly solutions, and the calculator is helpful as well.

My question is… Should I dose both solutions or start with Nitrate solution only and go from there?

Thanks in Advance!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I'd dose both, or add foods which will add more than N and P.

 

[ScottB]

Happy Holidays Fellow Reefers,

Here’s the skinny… I have a Coral/Invert QT with a few frags in it, nothing flashy, couple of smallish rocks, frags, and some snails. Nitrate & Phosphate are consistently reading 0, everything seems happy, save a temperamental Kenya, but otherwise good. My concern is, obviously, the potential for something like dinoflagellates. So I’m planning to start dosing nitrate & Phosphates. Based on what I’ve read it’s looking like Sodium Nitrate & Phosphate are pretty DIY friendly solutions, and the calculator is helpful as well.

My question is… Should I dose both solutions or start with Nitrate solution only and go from there?

Thanks in Advance!

Always start with PO4 first. It may take A LOT more dosing than you expect. The first liter or two (depending on volume of rock and sand) will bind with the aragonite before it starts leaching back into the water.

In a depleted system, adding NO3 first will crush whatever trace amounts of PO4 are there and all your corals will hate it.

 

[ScottB]

If you mix your own phosphate, be sure to get genuine trisodium phosphate and not a common substitute called TSP that will include detergents. I used this food grade version but there are others:

 

[X-37B]

A little food, maybe some pellets that the snails will eat would help raise nutrients and is simple to implement.

 

[Iggy305]

I'd dose both, or add foods which will add more than N and P.

Thanks!

I’ve been feeding quite a bit, almost every day, but still haven’t moved from 0.

 

[ScottB]

Are you measuring zero PO4 with a Hanna ULR?

 

[Iggy305]

Are you measuring zero PO4 with a Hanna ULR?

Highest reading I’ve seen is .01 on my Hanna. Salifert doesn’t register.

 

[PatW]

I run pretty low nutrients. I have found that I can have less than 1 ppm nitrates and 0 phosphates but with feeding and fish poo, my acropora, montipora and even my various LPS corals do fine. But I use chaeto for nutrient removal so it needs SOME nitrates and phosphates. I dose Sodium Nitrate (food grade) and keep nitrates at a measurable level and I dose phosphates (trisodium phosphate food grade or analytical grade) to hit a measurable level (Hanna phosphorous ULR).

 

[Iggy305]

I run pretty low nutrients. I have found that I can have less than 1 ppm nitrates and 0 phosphates but with feeding and fish poo, my acropora, montipora and even my various LPS corals do fine. But I use chaeto for nutrient removal so it needs SOME nitrates and phosphates. I dose Sodium Nitrate (food grade) and keep nitrates at a measurable level and I dose phosphates (trisodium phosphate food grade or analytical grade) to hit a measurable level (Hanna phosphorous ULR).

I appreciate your input.

 

[ScottB]

I certainly know some very accomplished reefers that run super low residuals like @jda , but they feed SUPER frequent and pretty heavy with a lot of fish. To me, that is a key but often overlooked feature of being successful with "lower" nutrient systems.

 

[jda]

Coral QT is hard since you have no fish. Feed the inverts... it will likely be enough. I keep peppermint shrimp and emerald crabs in mine and they get fed twice a day.

 

[yenniffer]

If you mix your own phosphate, be sure to get genuine trisodium phosphate and not a common substitute called TSP that will include detergents. I used this food grade version but there are others:

Hello, How do you mix this?

 

[ScottB]

Hello, How do you mix this?

This is a fairly diluted solution, but I had a cheap doser on a timer then.

2 grams per liter of RODI

IIRC, 25ml would add about .01 ppm to a 200G system but your mileage may vary. The first many doses will likely bind to your rock and sand until they saturate. I dosed a full liter of solution before I could hold >0 phosphate.

You must use one of the Hanna ultra low range checkers to measure.