What should I do to correct my levels ?

[Armani]

Lfs tested using Red Sea and this is what it came up to be. I’ve been using api and nitrates and phosphates said 0. I knew something was wrong my coral are closed but yet still growing which is amazing somehow. What do you recommend. I was given Red Sea nopox to treat but I really don’t want to add it and mess up my tank more. I’ve done multiple water changes already what can i add to my filter. I know phosguard and gfo are common but what else? Here’s some pics.. even tho it’s night in the pictures they have been the same thought the day as well for about 2 weeks now.

 

[James M]

I would get a new test kit,The API test kits are inaccurate. For now I would do water changes

 

[kaceyo]

I use API for Nitrate and Ammonia but that's about it. Def not for phosphate, mine always shows 0 which I know isn't right.

 

[Brett S]

Those numbers really don’t look bad. Certainly nothing to start panicking about and trying to make quick changes... that’s going to cause more problems than any of those levels.

On a side note, did your LFS really charge you $19 for one set of tests? That strikes me as terribly expensive.

 

[Skynyrd Fish]

Only thing I see is no3 and po4 maybe lowered with water changes. Everything else looks good. And those levels maybe fine for your corals. Your tank seems to be doing ok.

 

[lapin]

Lfs tested using Red Sea and this is what it came up to be. I’ve been using api and nitrates and phosphates said 0. I knew something was wrong my coral are closed but yet still growing which is amazing somehow. What do you recommend. I was given Red Sea nopox to treat but I really don’t want to add it and mess up my tank more. I’ve done multiple water changes already what can i add to my filter. I know phosguard and gfo are common but what else? Here’s some pics.. even tho it’s night in the pictures they have been the same thought the day as well for about 2 weeks now.

Water changes, water changes, and more water changes. Vacuuming the sand bed, blowing off the rocks along with water changes. Once tired of that, then running GFO, Phosguard or dosing NoPox for phosphate reduction is an option. The other is to stop feeding as much. If you cant do that then adding some algae in a sump or an algae scrubber can help.
If you cant or dont want to do that then you can make your own nutrient reducer. Instead of dosing NoPox you can use vinegar and vodka. It will reduce both N and P. A little research will tell you amounts of vinegar and vodka to start with, per tank volume. I would start with 1/2 of that and dose both. You slowly up the dose amounts each week. At about week 3 or 4 you should see N and P start to come down as the bacteria grows. You dont want to go to fast or you could risk a bacterial bloom which will cloud your water. Once reduction happens and you drop to target levels, you go to a maintaince dose. A little for the tank and a little for the tank keeper.
Get yourself a Hanna Ultra low phosphate checker and the RedSea Nitrate Pro test kit
PS: Your numbers are not really that bad. Many tanks run in that range. Since you have high alk you need more nutrients, cal and mag to keep your coral alive.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

Those numbers really don’t look bad. Certainly nothing to start panicking about and trying to make quick changes... that’s going to cause more problems than any of those levels.

On a side note, did your LFS really charge you $19 for one set of tests? That strikes me as terribly expensive.

Was wondering the same thing....

You would be money way ahead after buying some quality kits and using them a few times

 

[Armani]

Water changes, water changes, and more water changes. Vacuuming the sand bed, blowing off the rocks along with water changes. Once tired of that, then running GFO, Phosguard or dosing NoPox for phosphate reduction is an option. The other is to stop feeding as much. If you cant do that then adding some algae in a sump or an algae scrubber can help.
If you cant or dont want to do that then you can make your own nutrient reducer. Instead of dosing NoPox you can use vinegar and vodka. It will reduce both N and P. A little research will tell you amounts of vinegar and vodka to start with, per tank volume. I would start with 1/2 of that and dose both. You slowly up the dose amounts each week. At about week 3 or 4 you should see N and P start to come down as the bacteria grows. You dont want to go to fast or you could risk a bacterial bloom which will cloud your water. Once reduction happens and you drop to target levels, you go to a maintaince dose. A little for the tank and a little for the tank keeper.
Get yourself a Hanna Ultra low phosphate checker and the RedSea Nitrate Pro test kit
PS: Your numbers are not really that bad. Many tanks run in that range. Since you have high alk you need more nutrients, cal and mag to keep your coral alive.

Really appreciate the input thank you.

 

[Armani]

Only thing I see is no3 and po4 maybe lowered with water changes. Everything else looks good. And those levels maybe fine for your corals. Your tank seems to be doing ok.

All my coral were fully opened my torch was wavy but zoas were open wide. I’ve lost acans and a firefish due to these numbers and I’ve done multiple water changes for weeks now it’s a strange phenomenon with numbers like these. I’m assuming it was a big swing at some point.

 

[Armani]

Those numbers really don’t look bad. Certainly nothing to start panicking about and trying to make quick changes... that’s going to cause more problems than any of those levels.

On a side note, did your LFS really charge you $19 for one set of tests? That strikes me as terribly expensive.

Yup really got me there but I needed a second opinion so I just paid it. Def expensive. Def will buy Red Sea kit.

 

[Brett S]

All my coral were fully opened my torch was wavy but zoas were open wide. I’ve lost acans and a firefish due to these numbers and I’ve done multiple water changes for weeks now it’s a strange phenomenon with numbers like these. I’m assuming it was a big swing at some point.

As stated above, those numbers aren’t bad and I don’t see anything there that would cause the loss of a coral or a fish. I suspect there might be something else going on. Were those new additions or had they been in your tank for a while?

The thing to remember is that stability is key and even if the numbers aren’t perfect you can often do more harm by chasing numbers and trying to ‘correct’ things than would be done just by taking a step back and making sure everything is stable. Doing lots of frequent water changes, especially big water changes can cause a lot of stress if the water parameters like temperature, salinity, ph, and alkalinity don’t closely match the water in the tank.

 

[Armani]

As stated above, those numbers aren’t bad and I don’t see anything there that would cause the loss of a coral or a fish. I suspect there might be something else going on. Were those new additions or had they been in your tank for a while?

The thing to remember is that stability is key and even if the numbers aren’t perfect you can often do more harm by chasing numbers and trying to ‘correct’ things than would be done just by taking a step back and making sure everything is stable. Doing lots of frequent water changes, especially big water changes can cause a lot of stress if the water parameters like temperature, salinity, ph, and alkalinity don’t closely match the water in the tank.[/QUOTE..

so my fire fish was in there for 2yrs. Weird part with him was he was always on one side of the tank in his cave at home since the beginning and then about a week ago he started going to the other side of the tank and swimming at the top of the tank and very out in the open which he never did so I knew something was up but he was eating and no signs of him being sick really. So with that and my coral receding I thought my water was very wrong so i think my mistake was deciding to clean out my filters and do a big water change. With that I think the swing caused more harm to my coral and also killed him and Then that’s when I got these numbers. So now I’m just letting it stable and doing water changes to Lower nitrates.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

Yup really got me there but I needed a second opinion so I just paid it. Def expensive. Def will buy Red Sea kit.

I have the red sea kit which has been great but love my hannah dkh and po4 tester. Still use red sea for ca and mag. Salifert is a good option as well. Actually found the alk to be easier to read than the red sea

 

[Jdavison911]

All my coral were fully opened my torch was wavy but zoas were open wide. I’ve lost acans and a firefish due to these numbers and I’ve done multiple water changes for weeks now it’s a strange phenomenon with numbers like these. I’m assuming it was a big swing at some point.

I don't think the fish loss is related to your parameters. That was something completely unrelated. I would personally stick with doing weekly water changes maybe 15-20%, cut back on feeding a little bit, and maybe add a little cheato to your sump on reverse lighting of your main. Get a good test kit and keep a close eye on your no3 and po4 because dropping to fast will cause more problems than your dealing with now and don't let them get to zero. Zoa and most LPS like the higher nutrients and will open back up soon. My guess is something else has them upset.

 

[PatW]

Your phosphates and nitrates are high but not horribly so. Acropora coral would probably not like it. But most others should be fine. It wouldn’t bother fish. Levels like that may yield algae problems.

Your fish deaths are from something else.