Phosphates

sh2000

sh2000

Member
I just did a check for Phosphates in my 80 gal. RT its been up almost 2 years now and I have a wet/dry and a super skimmer..
The test showed Phosphates were at 1.0
How can I bring them down to 0 ?
Is there anything else besides water changes I can do and if so how much and how many water changes to do ?
Will having high Phospahtes kill any fish or coral or inverts ?
 
N

nereef

Guest
throwing a bag of phosguard or phosban in your sump will soak em up. test for PO4 while doing this, and as soon as they drop, pull the media out.
there shouldn't be detectable phosphates. there must be an underlying issue. phosphates of that level won't kill fish or motile inverts. difficult corals might show some signs of stress though.
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
most test kits will not show accurate phosphate levels under 1.0
i use seachem's phosphate remover to get it down as low as possible, but chaeto is the best thing :) also, SOME phosphates are good for coral growth, not 1.0, but about .1
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
Originally Posted by SaltWaterNoob
http:///forum/post/2466662
do you feed your fish flakes? flakes raise phosphate levels
not necessarily true.
i feed sera flake with tidbits and have no phosphate problems.
feeding frozen brine, some mysid, and other prefrozen foods can also cause phosphate issues
 
sh2000

sh2000

Member
I feed frozen foods mysis brine squid 3-5 x a week...In between it's formula 1 pellets..been doing this for a year. Phosphates are at 1.0
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
well, it depends...
the BEST thing you can feed them is a seafood mixture you make yourself, including shrimp, scalops, crab, squid, and any other uncooked seafood product from your local seafood store, mixing in seaweed, cyclopeze, garlic, vitamins, etc
the second best is alternating between mysid shrimp (make sure you either get the type that has no phosphates or rinse the food first) and formula 1 and 2 foods.
personally, i feed Sera flake food with tidbits each morning, and alternate between all the above foods at night. zero testable phosphates, but yet again, it's almost impossible to test phosphates under 1ppm
 
sh2000

sh2000

Member
gets too messy and my roomate has a complex with her blender etc and kitchen items ..long story it's just easier for me to buy foods..It is too bad as I just bought 3 packs of mysis and brine and some sliver sides and squid...
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
erm... buy your own blender. they are like $15.
my wife wouldnt let me use hers either LOL. you can still use the squid--that should have no phosphates in it, check the ingredients. although, that's better for your anenome and any larger fish. take the brine back, did you save your receipt?
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
Originally Posted by SH2000
http:///forum/post/2466889
Nope
why is brine so popular if it has very little protein or vital nutrients in it ?
because everyone buys it...
problem is, brine only has a certain time frame that it IS nutritional. when it's a baby/just hatched it has an egg yolk. within a few hours/first day that egg yolk is consumed by the brine shrimp. the ONLY time it's worth while feeding is if you grow it yourself, then gut load the shrimp by soaking it in phytoplankton for 6-8 hrs after they hatch.
 
sh2000

sh2000

Member
These are frozen foods that come packaged that go in the freezer sometimes stay there for 2 months..
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
right, but those are just soaked in the phosphate enriched juices, they aren't gutloaded to make them worth feeding. if you want to feed brine, you have to raise it to be worth anything.
 
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