What does ur Phosphate read in ur reef...

[LuckySingh]

I hvent checked my phosphate in quite sme times ..need to invest in better kit but any how what r ur all's phosphate level in ur reef tank...I dnt understand when people say u got to keep it 0 or mine is always 0...u got hve phosphate for the tissue growth...

I am dealing with sme hair algae problem from quite a while...all these years i hve been using that so called ro water from these water mills but recently purchased ro/di unit about two weeks ago...My system has a total volume roughly of 75 gln and mainly it is lps dominated tank with three small fishes...recently i hve acquired few sps and want more in future ...all my corals r in gud health and doin fine...lights r 300 watts of radium 7hr/day and filteration is mainly biological ,skimmer and filter sock..which gets replace and clean every two weeks..Water gets top off about 1gln to 1 1/2 gln every day and water changes 10 to 20gn biweekly...Fishes get fed frozen once a day sme days brine or rods orignal...
I hvent had enough time to get deep down to the problem and figure out whats happening ...Its not as bad as i should say but still there...Input should definately help as what should i need to do that i might not be doin???
thanks

[ShAgMaN]

Lucky, my phosphates run at 0 and I use tap water...but I also use PhosGuard by Sea Chem. Check all your parameters to pinpoint you problem. Also what temp do you keep the tank...any large swings? It appears your lighting isn't an issue. Good luck.

[LuckySingh]

My temp is steady at 76 to 77 most of time that i noticed..so that shoudnt be an issue..I never used chemicals but considering now to get a media reactor...

[tebstan]

What exactly is happening? Just hair algae or something else along with it?

You probably won't get a phosphate reading, no matter how fancy or expensive your test it. The phosphates are utilized, so you can tell what's there by your algae growth.

Phosphates, like other things, are needed in moderation. When we over feed processed foods or use low quality water, it exceeds the moderate amount and causes nuisance algae.

If you changed the source of the water you're using, you threw off a balance. Even if it's good water, it's still different.

When I used tap water, people freaked out. ("It's full of phosphates and silicates and nitrates! Oh my!") My tank still never had any nuisance algae. My macro grew like crazy and so did my sponges. When I switched to the water mill, I had some changes in the tank I wasn't happy with even though the water was better.

[LuckySingh]

When I switched to the water mill, I had some changes in the tank I wasn't happy with even though the water was better.
I agree with this bc ever since i switched to ro/di its got worst....

[tebstan]

I used to have this cool pink sponge growing all over the place under all my zoas. It's all but gone now. My ornamental sponge has started to show decline as well, to the point I need to just throw them away because they are a lost cause. When I used tap water the sponge was the coolest thing in my tank. If I switch back to tap I might take a whipping for it, but I might try it just to see what happens.

[Triggerman]

Do you ever run carbon?

[LuckySingh]

Do you ever run carbon?
nope

[Gseclipse02]

Try not using the rods food ive heard a lot of people say theve had issues with it just because everything doesnt get eaten