New Hanna checker NEED to correct phosphates ideas on how.

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I have a salifert test kit i will use and then do another hanna test and see if it’s elevated according to those. I’m just confused why it would jump once I add gfo and it’s purpose is to lower it.

Coincidence or test error, unless you used someone else’s old used GFO. New GFO cannot boost phosphate.

 

[ajremington68]

So 6/20 I tested and phosphate was 0.72 and nitrate was 20. Now 6/23 I test, phosphate is 0.64, and nitrate is close to if not 0. Have not changed skimming no water changes no increase or decrease in feedings just added GFO. Can GFO strip nitrate that fast? Though it was more of a phosphate remover supplement.

Off this information am I on track because phosphate is going down but I don't want 0 nitrates. @Randy Holmes-Farley

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

GFO has no effect on nitrate. If additional testing suggests none, I’d look to dose N, maybe preferably with food grade ammonium chloride or bicarbonate. There’s a recipe thread if you need it.

 

[ajremington68]

GFO has no effect on nitrate. If additional testing suggests none, I’d look to dose N, maybe preferably with food grade ammonium chloride or bicarbonate. There’s a recipe thread if you need it.

Which do you prefer ammonium chloride or bicarbonate? Also do you have a write up about your favorite and a recipe, if so and you have extra time could you link it? Please and thank you good sir

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Which do you prefer ammonium chloride or bicarbonate? Also do you have a write up about your favorite and a recipe, if so and you have extra time could you link it? Please and thank you good sir

I’d pick ammonium bicarbonate to avoid any alkalinity effects.

DIY Ammonia dosing for low nitrate systems

Some reef aquaria have chronic low nitrogen availability. One indicator is very low nitrate. Nitrate dosing is a fine remedy, but it is possible that ammonia dosing may be more beneficial for some organisms since ammonia can be energetically easier to assimilate than is nitrate. For this...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[ajremington68]

I’d pick ammonium bicarbonate to avoid any alkalinity effects.

DIY Ammonia dosing for low nitrate systems

Some reef aquaria have chronic low nitrogen availability. One indicator is very low nitrate. Nitrate dosing is a fine remedy, but it is possible that ammonia dosing may be more beneficial for some organisms since ammonia can be energetically easier to assimilate than is nitrate. For this...

www.reef2reef.com

So after reading I am thinking same as you said ammonia bicarbonate. Now I have 1 spare doser head avaliable, but I did had 2 but I’m playing around with dosing small amount of kalkwasser at night and seeing how my tank reacts. But before this I planned on using my Neptune dos to dose a phyto and acropower. From my small understanding acro power and ab+ just dose a type of nitrate for super low nitrate aquariums. My question is could I dose the ammonia bicarbonate and if I decide to stop dosing kalkwasser and get phyto, dose phyto and ammonia bicarbonate side by side? Like would I be losing anything by not dosing acropower? Or would it be better and cheaper to dose ammonia instead or should I dose ammonia and acropower?

Also what type of baking ammonia do you recommend there are lots of options on Amazon and not sure what to pick. If possible could you check Amazon pick your best choice and post it so I can buy it and mix and start dosing?

Thanks for all your help you’re amazing!

 

[Solo McReefer]

I think a vast majority of experienced folks would recommend GFO first. Its the safest most conservative approach and will work fine for your levels. Why risk it with a tang in there?

That's what I was thinking

 

[ajremington68]

I’d pick ammonium bicarbonate to avoid any alkalinity effects.

DIY Ammonia dosing for low nitrate systems

Some reef aquaria have chronic low nitrogen availability. One indicator is very low nitrate. Nitrate dosing is a fine remedy, but it is possible that ammonia dosing may be more beneficial for some organisms since ammonia can be energetically easier to assimilate than is nitrate. For this...

www.reef2reef.com

Is this a good choice to buy to mix to make ammonia bicarbonate?

Amazon.com

 

[kenchilada]

3. I think the tang thing stems from a youtube video where a dude went to a pool store to get it on the cheap and it prob had so much other crap in it it fried his tangs.

Wrong. Come over for a beer and I can demonstrate it for you on my sailfin any time. He is very sensitive. My other 5 tangs are fine.

 

[ajremington68]

Wrong. Come over for a beer and I can demonstrate it for you on my sailfin any time. He is very sensitive. My other 5 tangs are fine.

What kinda ya got? Trying to get a dejardini from a tank break down, or to big for someone’s tank for my 180 that is new.

 

[Seansea]

Wrong. Come over for a beer and I can demonstrate it for you on my sailfin any time. He is very sensitive. My other 5 tangs are fine.

What kind u got? Beer that is. Lol. What kind of lanthum u dosing and what happens to him? I have been dosing tropic marin ephos for a year and never seen 1 problem. Just great phos reduction.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Is this a good choice to buy to mix to make ammonia bicarbonate?

Amazon.com

That one seems a good choice.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

So after reading I am thinking same as you said ammonia bicarbonate. Now I have 1 spare doser head avaliable, but I did had 2 but I’m playing around with dosing small amount of kalkwasser at night and seeing how my tank reacts. But before this I planned on using my Neptune dos to dose a phyto and acropower. From my small understanding acro power and ab+ just dose a type of nitrate for super low nitrate aquariums. My question is could I dose the ammonia bicarbonate and if I decide to stop dosing kalkwasser and get phyto, dose phyto and ammonia bicarbonate side by side? Like would I be losing anything by not dosing acropower? Or would it be better and cheaper to dose ammonia instead or should I dose ammonia and acropower?

Also what type of baking ammonia do you recommend there are lots of options on Amazon and not sure what to pick. If possible could you check Amazon pick your best choice and post it so I can buy it and mix and start dosing?

Thanks for all your help you’re amazing!

Acropower and ammonium dosing do some similar and some different things. I think you’ll have to experiment to see which is best.

 

[Solo McReefer]

Acropower and ammonium dosing do some similar and some different things. I think you’ll have to experiment to see which is best.

Have you done a writeup on Acropower?

Would love the link, if so

 

[kenchilada]

What kind u got? Beer that is. Lol. What kind of lanthum u dosing and what happens to him? I have been dosing tropic marin ephos for a year and never seen 1 problem. Just great phos reduction.

Brightwell Phosphat-E, but I tried several brands and they all had the same effect. He starts chugging like a train, high gill beats.

I tried TONS of variations on dosing it, I have a thread about it in the chem forum somewhere. I tried dripping into various sock sizes down to 1 micron.

What did work the best (by far) is simply dripping it into my skimmer body (Deltec 1000iX). I can dose a small amount this way without irritating him too much.

I think socks do virtually nothing because unreacted lanthanum diffuses out of the sock. The sock did prevent clouding so I suspect the unreacted LC is more likely the irritant than “the dust in their gills” you hear about.

I still don’t think it is the scary chemical people make it out to be. Just start slow and see what is tolerated. I dosed up to 80mL in 250G and didn’t kill him.

All of this is anecdotal, but the one fact I can demonstrate is lanthanum-based phosphate removers cause distressed breathing in my 5 year old sailfin tang.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Have you done a writeup on Acropower?

Would love the link, if so

No. I have commented in the past on possible benefits of certain amino acids beyond being a simple source of N. This mostly applies to aspartic acid, but in the years since Ivpisted this hypothesis, I’ve not seen direct evidence of utility:

Interestingly, the apparently large need for a particular amino acid (aspartic acid) to synthesize these proteins is satisfied by external sources, not by either the coral itself or the zooxanthellae. For this reason, it might be interesting to see what added aspartic acid does to calcification rates in reef tanks.

 

[ajremington68]

@Randy Holmes-Farley I just got in the baking ammonia off Amazon today and am using the "ammonia bicarbonate" style of dosing. I mixed 16tsp in a little under 1 gallon of water in a cleaned-out old milk jug. How long does one have to let it sit before starting to dose?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

@Randy Holmes-Farley I just got in the baking ammonia off Amazon today and am using the "ammonia bicarbonate" style of dosing. I mixed 16tsp in a little under 1 gallon of water in a cleaned-out old milk jug. How long does one have to let it sit before starting to dose?

As soon as you dissolve it, it is good to go.

 

[PotatoPig]

I use Elim phos from tropic marin which is essentially the same thing as you have. LANTHUM CHLORIDE.

You can def use it just half the dose of what it recommends over a few weeks time to get it where you want it. It is potent. I hand dose about 3ml every 3 days non my 75g tank and it keeps my phos right around .1-.2.

This is basically word for word my tank and use of it and target range.

Only thing I’ll add is, at least IME, phosphates didn’t seem particularly detrimental to soft corals. I never really paid attention to them until I wanted to add stony corals and when I got a proper test done found they were 1.87, with zoas and so on doing fine.

When I’ve been less diligent about monitoring them since they’ve occasionally gotten up to about 0.4, with no obvious ill effects on the corals (stony and soft).

 

[ajremington68]

This is basically word for word my tank and use of it and target range.

Only thing I’ll add is, at least IME, phosphates didn’t seem particularly detrimental to soft corals. I never really paid attention to them until I wanted to add stony corals and when I got a proper test done found they were 1.87, with zoas and so on doing fine.

When I’ve been less diligent about monitoring them since they’ve occasionally gotten up to about 0.4, with no obvious ill effects on the corals (stony and soft).

Wait do you got sps thriving with nice colors at 0.4 phosphate? What are you nitrates and how are you delivering them. And how do your phosphate sit higher do you feed a coral food or fish food that is boosting it or nori or are you dosing? Just curious