Very high phosphate

[OceanMinded]

Been dealing with super high phosphates and I’m not really sure for how long. Tank is 20g bare bottom. 3 years old. Just zoa’s and a few SPS and a torch. Snails, shrimp, and an emerald crab...no fish. I’ve been dealing with GHA for a really long time. Lately it seems to be going away. I dose 5ml of All For Reef daily and 5ml of AB+ daily (as of March 27th I haven’t been dosing anything) my on not filtration is a cheap nano skimmer and an older bag of purigen that needs to be removed probably.

On the 27th phosphates were at 0.67. I did a 5g water change and tested again the next day. They had dropped down to 0.37 (seems like a large drop for a water change?) on the 31st they were at 0.26.

Right now:

Phosphate: 0.29 (Hanna Checker)
Nitrate: 10
Ca: 460
Alk: 12.1
Mag:
Temp: 78.2
Salinity: 1.025

Only things I’ve noticed are a few of my zoa colonies have shrunken down a bit and one or two of them lost half the polys. My Red Planet acro is all green and lost its red.

Thoughts? I ordered NO3PO4-X

 

[nezw0001]

Have you tried GFO in a media bag?

 

[OceanMinded]

Have you tried GFO in a media bag?

I’m going to pick some up tomorrow. If it works I’ll have the n030x on hand I suppose.

im just wondering if the AB+ is what’s causing such high phosphates

 

[Psychotic Madman]

I feed my corals with AB+ and noticed my phos has gone up. Made the mistake of feeding proscribed dose every day, now feeding just 1/4 dose every 3 days.

 

[JuiceByCliff]

having that issue as well! My phosphates are 0.25 and I dose recc. About 2-3 times per week. I also alternate days with reef roids, so I I can’t definitively confirm who is the culprit. No one to blame but myself I suppose, haha.

 

[Mical]

having that issue as well! My phosphates are 0.25 and I dose recc. About 2-3 times per week. I also alternate days with reef roids, so I I can’t definitively confirm who is the culprit. No one to blame but myself I suppose, haha.

Both Reef Roids and AB add phosphates

 

[JuiceByCliff]

I know! I was hoping my fuge, skimmer, carbon, and polyfilter would keep them at bay. What’s the “go to” GFO media if I want to run it in a media bag (would replace a filter sock).

 

[Dilan Patel]

I perdsonally use LaCl to control my phospohates as I have greater control especially now with a dos which can dose down to the .x range

 

[ScottB]

I perdsonally use LaCl to control my phospohates as I have greater control especially now with a dos which can dose down to the .x range

I am so done with GFO. Lanthanum chloride is so much easier to dial in.