Phosphate and reactor help please.

[K9Fish]

I’ve been fighting elevated phosphates and I’m looking for recommendations now that I’ve added a new reactor. My question is do I leave the reactor off for another day to try and stay at these levels and not drop any faster? My thought is to leave it off until tonight or tomorrow morning and then run it at 50%. Thoughts and recommendations please. Thank you.

June 8th - 6:30pm Phosphate 0.35ppm

June 8th - 6:45pm BRS Single reactor started with BRS standard GFO and ROX 0.8 carbon mixed together.

June 9th - 6:30am (12 hours after reactor installed) Phosphate 0.14ppm

June 9th - 6:45am reactor turned OFF.

June 9th - 12:30pm Phosphate 0.13ppm (6hours after reactor turned off).

June 10th - 6:30am Phosphate 0.15ppm

 

[glb]

I’ve been fighting elevated phosphates and I’m looking for recommendations now that I’ve added a new reactor. My question is do I leave the reactor off for another day to try and stay at these levels and not drop any faster? My thought is to leave it off until tonight or tomorrow morning and then run it at 50%. Thoughts and recommendations please. Thank you.

June 8th - 6:30pm Phosphate 0.35ppm

June 8th - 6:45pm BRS Single reactor started with BRS standard GFO and ROX 0.8 carbon mixed together.

June 9th - 6:30am (12 hours after reactor installed) Phosphate 0.14ppm

June 9th - 6:45am reactor turned OFF.

June 9th - 12:30pm Phosphate 0.13ppm (6hours after reactor turned off).

June 10th - 6:30am Phosphate 0.15ppm

Fwiw, I’d run it with the GFO until your phosphates are the level you want, then remove the GFO and just run the carbon. GFO can strip the water of phosphates pretty fast, and you don’t want zero phosphates in your tank. Good luck!

 

[K9Fish]

Fwiw, I’d run it with the GFO until your phosphates are the level you want, then remove the GFO and just run the carbon. GFO can strip the water of phosphates pretty fast, and you don’t want zero phosphates in your tank. Good luck!

That was my initial plan BUT I did not anticipate a drop like this in just 12 hours. I would like to try not to shock my system too much and have a gradual decline. I’m also thinking about running the reactor on a timer maybe 6 hours a day. You’re right on the GFO stripping the phosphates fast.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

The drop will get smaller and smaller as you use the same media more. IMO, you can lower it now or wait for it to rise again.

Be careful starting and stopping a reactor because nonflowing water left inside of pumps, tubing, etc. can stagnate and produce toxic hydrogen sulfide.