Red Sea carbon reduce nutrients?

[ReeferDad93]

I’ve been using the Red Sea reef spec for the past month. Water clarity is great but my nutrients have been extremely low. Nitrate .75-1 and Phos .01. Has anyone had any experience with using that carbon and seeing super low nutrients? Also seeing some tissue recession on some corals.

 

[ying yang]

My tank 14 months old and use same carbon in a bag in high flow area of sump and my nitrates around 40 and p04 0.25 so defo not reducing mine lol
But I feed clams/ oysters/scallops as main food and some algae sheets few times a week and hardly ever pellets ( like once a month) and feed 2-3 times a day so .....

Lots things can affect nitrates like what's in tank using it,dsb,live rock,dintrification deep inside your rock plus much more.

Pretty sure activated carbon doesn't reduce nitrates or p04 though.
Water changes will reduce nitrates also.

So if want your nutrients higher,maybe feed some more or less water changes ,but if using water changes to replenish elements then keep eye on them and see how much your tank is using and dose if nessasary.

Some foods will higher nitrates and some higher p04

 

[Dan_P]

I’ve been using the Red Sea reef spec for the past month. Water clarity is great but my nutrients have been extremely low. Nitrate .75-1 and Phos .01. Has anyone had any experience with using that carbon and seeing super low nutrients? Also seeing some tissue recession on some corals.

Reef Spec is GAC, activated carbon, right? If it is, this would not be the cause of low nitrate and phosphate.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I agree. It binds organics, and might have a very small effect on nitrate and phosphate by binding organics before they break down, but that effect is quite small.