Redfield ratio question

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arvind

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I have been battling algae issues. It is a two year old tank. Currently the nitrate is 11.6 and phosphate is at 0.02. I have been dosing NoPox. It brought down the Phosphate numbers but is not making a dent on nitrates. I am wondering if I should dose Phosphates to match the nitrates as per Redfield ratio and then let Nopox do its thing to bring them down. Let me know if this is a viable strategy.
 
I would but I'd initially just start feeding fish more not dose phosphate. Keeping PO4 too low can negatively impact corals photobiology. This will make it harder or impossible fo rcorals to compete with algae for nutrients. Besides manual removal I would add urchins, sally lightfoot crabs and hermit crabs to help reduce algae. I'd also recommend reading Forest Rohwer's "COral Reefs in the Microbial Seas" (kindle ~$10, paperback ~$17). It's an excellent intrduction to the conflicting roles algae and corals have in reef ecosystems. Here's some of the research on phosphorus if you're intereseted as well as some videos you might find informative:

An Experimental Mesocosm for Longterm Studies of Reef Corals

Phosphate Deficiency:
Nutrient enrichment can increase the susceptibility of reef corals to bleaching:

Ultrastructural Biomarkers in Symbiotic Algae Reflect the Availability of Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients and Particulate Food to the Reef Coral Holobiont:

Phosphate deficiency promotes coral bleaching and is reflected by the ultrastructure of symbiotic dinoflagellates

Effects of phosphate on growth and skeletal density in the scleractinian coral Acropora muricata: A controlled experimental approach

High phosphate uptake requirements of the scleractinian coral Stylophora pistillata

Phosphorus metabolism of reef organisms with algal symbionts


Sponge symbionts and the marine P cycle

Phosphorus sequestration in the form of polyphosphate by microbial symbionts in marine sponges

"Coral Reefs in the Microbial Seas"

Changing Seas - Mysterious Microbes

Nitrogen cycling in hte coral holobiont

BActeria and Sponges

Maintenance of Coral Reef Health (refferences at the end)

Optical Feedback Loop in Colorful Coral Bleaching

Richard Ross What's up with phosphate"
 
The Redfield ratio is not, IMO, useful for setting target concentrations for nutrients.

As to your actual levels, they seem appropriate to me, and I'd suggest other ways to deal with algae than trying to starve out algae without starving corals. That most often fails to be successful.

I see no reason to try to raise ow lower your nitrate and phosphate levels.
 
The Redfield ratio is not, IMO, useful for setting target concentrations for nutrients.

As to your actual levels, they seem appropriate to me, and I'd suggest other ways to deal with algae than trying to starve out algae without starving corals. That most often fails to be successful.

I see no reason to try to raise ow lower your nitrate and phosphate levels.

This may seem like a dumb question but reading about nutrients the typical theme appears to be that nitrates are lower than phosphates. Even in this redfield ratio (just as an example). What happens if phosphates are actually higher than nitrates?

I have to dose Nitrates to keep them between 5 and 10 ppm. Phosphate on the other hand just keeps climbing. Well, seems to be holding at around .41 ppm (hanna). I've given up so just going to see how high it goes while I continue to assess the display.

With regards to the balance though and my question it always seems phosphate is lower with higher nitrates which isn't the came for me.
 
I have been battling algae issues. It is a two year old tank. Currently the nitrate is 11.6 and phosphate is at 0.02. I have been dosing NoPox. It brought down the Phosphate numbers but is not making a dent on nitrates. I am wondering if I should dose Phosphates to match the nitrates as per Redfield ratio and then let Nopox do its thing to bring them down. Let me know if this is a viable strategy.
Algae in a display tank is unlikely to be controlled by tweaking PO4 and NO3 concentrations, especially if you are keeping coral, which like algae, need these nutrients. Let the NOPOX do its thing, making sure it doesn’t deplete the nitrate and phosphate. I would use the decline in nitrate and visible bacteria growth as indications that NOPOX is “working”. This does not happen overnight. And considering your aquarium has been infested with algae for two years, be patient about deciding NOPOX does not work. You might be 6-12 months away from turning the corner.
 

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