PO4 problems with SPS

[Moonlightreef]

Hello reefers
Like the topic says im having problems with PO4 .The tank is been running for about year and couple of months . Its 55g tank and 20 g sump . Every time i check my PO4 with Hanna checker it reads zer0 and i know there is PO4 in the water just i cant get reading . Every time i run Rowphos i get burn tips on my acros even if i put one Tsp with super low flow and this is not the first time this been happening , cuz of that i stopped running GFO for almost a month and half .The tank is low nutrient tank with PO3 at 3pp according to salifert test kit . I have a heavy bioload with 11 fishes . 3 tangs , 4 wrasses ,2 anthias and 2 dart fishes , i feed about 3 times a day .Also run very large skimmer (Bubble Magus NAC7 ) Now the reason why i want to run GFO is cuz im having some green algea problems on the sand bed and it getting worst and worst . I do 10% WC every monday since the day the tanks been setup . I dont know what else to do to get this algae of the sand bed . If anyone can help me i would greatly appreciate it .

Here is more tank info

ALK 8.2 very stable
CA 420
Mag 1350
NO3. 3ppm

two OR T247 Led lights
two Jeboa wp25
Jeboa DC9000 for return pump

I also dose 4 drops of coral vitalizer every day , 15 ml of Reef plus a week , 15 ml of Seacham Trace week and 10 drops of Phyto Feast every day after the lights are off .
After WC i put 5ml of microbacter 7


Here is a problem

 

[Moonlightreef]

anyone ?

 

[afamousjohnson]

What about make up water for wc? Tds? Could be a factor

 

[afamousjohnson]

Have you ever syphoned the sand bed? With that bio load I would think po4 would be around. Have you done any double checking on your meter - with say against a friends or a local shops

 

[gpwdr]

I would use a sand sifting goby or install a macro algae refugium as part of the system. The algae will grow in the refugium and not in the DT.

Gene

 

[mike007]

In order to have nuisance algae there has to be excess nutrients in order for algae to grow. With that bio load and the 3 a day feeding may be causing these issues. Many times test results can be inaccurate due to algae could be consuming the phosphate. You might want to reduce feeding and have your water tested by another source. I do not add any type of coral foods myself they only get what they need when I feed the fish and the lighting.

 

[Moonlightreef]

Have you ever syphoned the sand bed? With that bio load I would think po4 would be around. Have you done any double checking on your meter - with say against a friends or a local shops

yes we test my friends tank and go reading every single time

 

[Moonlightreef]

What about make up water for wc? Tds? Could be a factor

TDS showing 0 and i use tropic Marin salt

 

[Moonlightreef]

In order to have nuisance algae there has to be excess nutrients in order for algae to grow. With that bio load and the 3 a day feeding may be causing these issues. Many times test results can be inaccurate due to algae could be consuming the phosphate. You might want to reduce feeding and have your water tested by another source. I do not add any type of coral foods myself they only get what they need when I feed the fish and the lighting.

i think this start happening when i start using phyto phest , im gonna stop feeding the corals and use only amino acid and feed the fishes 2 times a day . I think whats happening is that the algae is using the PO4 and when i use GFO it completely strips the water , can this happen ?

 

[mike007]

i think this start happening when i start using phyto phest , im gonna stop feeding the corals and use only amino acid and feed the fishes 2 times a day .

I think whats happening is that the algae is using the PO4 and when i use GFO it completely strips the water , can this happen ?

I have quit using aminos and all coral foods as I was getting cyano. Since I have stopped this has gone away. I am using gfo without any issues. If you are are using too much gfo or too much flow that can cause issues. Also have you tested for other parameters such as potassium etc.?

 

[Moonlightreef]

I have quit using aminos and all coral foods as I was getting cyano. Since I have stopped this has gone away. I am using gfo without any issues. If you are are using too much gfo or too much flow that can cause issues. Also have you tested for other parameters such as potassium etc.?

I have some cyano in my sump witch also a battle on the side as well . So i should completely stop using any coral food for now ? i only put 1 tsp two days ago in the reactor with super low flow , should i stop using GFO until the algae problem goes away ? i only test for basic stuff cuz i does trace element witch works great for me ,. Here is some picture of the colors in the tank
Thanks everyone for help me out , will always do the same for anyone [emoji106]