Nutrients, lets hear what you do

[BoneXriffic]

Any and all. I would.like to know where you keep your po4, if you even check, and why you do it how you do it.

I know there will be many thoughts and ideas here, I hope everyone gets involved! Consider it a learning process for me

 

[cromag27 Verified Sponsor]

<.05
Sps dom tank
Proper husbandry and sometimes gfo.

 

[Pepcrylic]

less than .05
A 5' LifeReef skimmer, 5' X 30'' fuge full of Chaeto
Test once a month, and dont over feed

 

[BoneXriffic]

Bump, anyone else want to add to this census? =)

 

[BoneXriffic]

<.05
Sps dom tank
Proper husbandry and sometimes gfo.

less than .05
A 5' LifeReef skimmer, 5' X 30'' fuge full of Chaeto
Test once a month, and dont over feed

Do you guys have a number which is too low, or is undetectable good with you?

 

[Epicreefster]

My turf scrubber has kept PO4 undetectable with a Hanna checker all but a few tests in the last 9 months, nitrates are near or at zero as well. I have fed from 1/4 cube mysis to 2 cubes daily with no significant change, high input high output. My montipora are fairly happy with this but I think could use a little more nutrients. When I stir up the sand and get readable levels I can practically watch them gro. My lps do best when the skimmer is off or overflows for a weekend indicating they want more nutrients. Will probably set up my apex to turn the skimmer off one or two days a week from now on.

 

[Holy_makerel]

Older thread but i'll throw some info in.

I'm fairly new to the hobby 6ish months and I inherited a 29 gal biocube which had been ignored for quite a while.

I run a mixed reef with zoas, mushrooms, LPS, and SPS.

NO3 started out around 50ppm and pO4 was at 0.6ppm. After moving the tank and it went through a mini cycle with cyano and hair algae.

After tons of research i pulled most of the coral rubble out of the AIO compartments in the back and only kept about 1/4of it which i put into media bags to keep it organized. Added a fuge light in the middle compartment and grow a lot of cheato as well as added a protien skimmer in the first compartment as well as purigen, phosguard, and carbon in the third compartment before the return pump. I use filter floss after feedings amd after i blow detritus off rocks until water cleans up then i remove it.

As of last night my parameters are:
NO3- 5ppm
PO4- 0.2ppm

It has stayed pretty stable there since i added the refugium section of the tank.

 

[brandon429]

this is my ten year plan:

own no nutrient test kits, hand guide out all algae in the beginning by force not water actions, change water vs detail

plate the surfaces with coral and coralline to exclude its return, and never know nutrients nor a chase nor concern for them.


IMO

we keep nutrients at the levels corals need, not at a custom level for algae starvation

use grazers and hand guiding for algae, use nutrient chasing to match coral req params.

 

[Salty1962]

I have a large skimmer and run BPs. I also have fuge with macro algae. I test weekly and my No3 is @5 ppm and Po4 is @.o25 ppm. I use Hana testers.

 

[ReefBum]

My P04 varies in the .02 to .05 range. At one point a while ago it was at 0 and my SPS were not happy campers

 

[jsker]

I run GFO and a bio pellets reactor, skimmer, and make sure the filter socks are clean.