Phosphate down from 2.0 to .6 - any other ideas?

[JMG718]

I purchased an established reef and have been having trouble with my phosphate levels. I have addressed all of the issues I could find.

Phosphate was at a steady 2.0.... yup 2.0!! From what I read its a miracle that I did not lose any livestock or corals with such high phosphate.

My question is over the last two weeks, i've fixed some major issues and my phosphate has gone from 2.00 to .6 (still very high...but steadily declining)

Is this swing too drastic?


How I dropped my phosphate:

• invested in a hanna checker
• beefed up my clean up crew
• dosing nopox per instructions
• purchased a better rodi system and new filters (membrane to come)
• previous red sea 250 owner did not tell me about the custom media rack in rear sump, only told me to change top chemipure pouch. There were some additional items in rack that looked like they had not been changed in years.
  
• more frequent water changes

Only thing I have not tested is if the rocks are leeching. If I can not get the phosphate into an acceptable range I will put a rock into a bucket of rodi water and test for phosphate after a week or so.

Please let me know if I am missing anything, or approaching this wrong. Thanks!

 

[WillB]

If you put a rock in a bucket of RODI won’t everything on it die and cause a high phosphate reeding? Also do salt water phosphate tests work in fresh water?

 

[JMG718]

If you put a rock in a bucket of RODI won’t everything on it die and cause a high phosphate reeding? Also do salt water phosphate tests work in fresh water?

good point, not too sure.

 

[SPR1968]

If the rockwork is leeching phosphate you could start using a GFO (rhowaphos for example) in a reactor until it gets under control, it’s just means regular changes of the GFO and this will work.

The ideal target is around 0.03 ppm for phosphate and depending on corals etc go slowly with the reduction as they may have got used to the higher levels.

Nopox will have little effect on phosphate levels although it’s very good at Nitrate control

 

[Sherman]

How you drop PO4 from 2 to 0.6?

 

[ckalupa]

If you don’t want to go all the way to a GFO reactor buy a Phosnet bag and put it in your tank sock. Basically it is gfo but not as aggressive. Replace when needed but I find it is pretty gentle on how it reduces phos.

 

[JMG718]

How you drop PO4 from 2 to 0.6?

How I dropped my phosphate:

• invested in a hanna checker
• beefed up my clean up crew
• dosing nopox per instructions
• purchased a better rodi system and new filters (membrane to come)
• previous red sea 250 owner did not tell me about the custom media rack in rear sump, only told me to change top chemipure pouch. There were some additional items in rack that looked like they had not been changed in years.
  
• more frequent water changes

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

0.6 ppm phosphate is not am emergency, so relax and take it slow.

Some great tanks have 1 ppm phosphate.