Phosphate Levels Off Of The Scale!

[alanchown]

I have been testing my Phosphate levels using a Nutrafin test kit, and it has been registering 1ppm, all well and good.
I have just complted a 3 day blackout period, and have done a 50% water change in preparartion for starting EI. I tested my tank water and phosphates were off of the scale >5ppm. The instructions suggest a water change is the way to go, but I thought it wise to test my tap water first, and it appears that it is the tap water that is >5ppm!
I guess before the blackout that the plants were using this excess phosphate. Is this high level of tap water a problem! Instead of a 50% once a week would changing 25% of the water twice a week make more sense!

CO2 via 2 x Nutrafin
100 L tank

2.5w per US gallon lighting
London tap water


Thanks

Alan

 

[Themuleous]

5ppm PO4 in the tank, especailly a fully planted tank shoudln't cause you any problems. As you say your plants will use it up. TBH its probably something of a blessing in disguise because you may find you never have to add PO4 to the tank during the week as the weekly water change will add enough for you! Bonus!

The great thing about EI is that there are no fixed rules, the key thing is to get your plants growing as much as possible, that will keep the algae at bay for you and the presence of 'excess' nutrients then isnt a problem. There was another thread on here a few weeks back about this, so might be worth using the search button to find it, it'll probably have more info on it, but hopefully the above is help too.

Sam

EDIT - if you going EI then stick to the 50% weekly water change

 

[alanchown]

5ppm PO4 in the tank, especailly a fully planted tank shoudln't cause you any problems. As you say your plants will use it up. TBH its probably something of a blessing in disguise because you may find you never have to add PO4 to the tank during the week as the weekly water change will add enough for you! Bonus!

The great thing about EI is that there are no fixed rules, the key thing is to get your plants growing as much as possible, that will keep the algae at bay for you and the presence of 'excess' nutrients then isnt a problem. There was another thread on here a few weeks back about this, so might be worth using the search button to find it, it'll probably have more info on it, but hopefully the above is help too.

Sam

EDIT - if you going EI then stick to the 50% weekly water change

I found that link, and it would appear that I'm not alone, and that it is not a problem.
Trying to gradually raise my nitrates now, which read pretty much zero-doing it gradually as recommended elsewhere I think, by Zig. Don't want to raise it too quick, although I don't seem to be raising it much at all at the moment!

 

[Bloo]

I'm in London and have the same "problem". Though I find the least my PO4 drops down to is 2.

But how on earth is your Nitrate so low. Thames Water is often around 40ppm from tap but the very least i've found it drop in my tanks are 10 ppm (and that's at the end of the week just before a 50% water change). Do you have a Nitrate remover in your tank ?

 

[soggyhome]

Hi achown as you have seen my tapwater has a reading of +3 however 3 days after doing a water change the tank levels are at 2 so the plants are using it and it means I dont have to dose B)

I've been adding Seachem Flourish Nitrogen to up my Nitrates as they were showing 0ppm now they are stable at 10ppm, so should see an improvement in my plants

 

[alanchown]

I'm in London and have the same "problem". Though I find the least my PO4 drops down to is 2.

But how on earth is your Nitrate so low. Thames Water is often around 40ppm from tap but the very least i've found it drop in my tanks are 10 ppm (and that's at the end of the week just before a 50% water change). Do you have a Nitrate remover in your tank ?

No idea-all though I have started adding nitrates from yesterday. The tank is heavily planted-so perhaps the plants have been using it all! My water supplier is Essex and Suffolk, although i doubt that makes much difference.
I'll test my tap water now-0
and my tank water -0
Pottasium Nitrate solution-0!!!!!!

Something up with my Nutrafin test kit-it's well within date. Anyone else had problems with these kits?

ALan

 

[alanchown]

I'm in London and have the same "problem". Though I find the least my PO4 drops down to is 2.

But how on earth is your Nitrate so low. Thames Water is often around 40ppm from tap but the very least i've found it drop in my tanks are 10 ppm (and that's at the end of the week just before a 50% water change). Do you have a Nitrate remover in your tank ?

No idea-all though I have started adding nitrates from yesterday. The tank is heavily planted-so perhaps the plants have been using it all! My water supplier is Essex and Suffolk, although i doubt that makes much difference.
I'll test my tap water now-0
and my tank water -0
Pottasium Nitrate solution-0!!!!!!

Something up with my Nutrafin test kit-it's well within date. Anyone else had problems with these kits?

ALan

Just been down the shops and got an API kit-Nitrate somewhere around 20ppm. The colours on this kit are a bit difficult to read-but it's more than 10 and less than 40!

Alan

 

[Bloo]

API is a very good range and results are usually very accurate (or as accurate as you'll get from over the counter test kits). So in essence you really don't have to add Nitrates then if you are reading between 10 - 40ppm. I know that it's almost impossible to distinguish anything over 20ppm ! But that goes for most Nitrate test kits. Keep an eye on your Nitrate over the week and see how much gets used. Mine hardly ever drops below 10.

 

[alanchown]

API is a very good range and results are usually very accurate (or as accurate as you'll get from over the counter test kits). So in essence you really don't have to add Nitrates then if you are reading between 10 - 40ppm. I know that it's almost impossible to distinguish anything over 20ppm ! But that goes for most Nitrate test kits. Keep an eye on your Nitrate over the week and see how much gets used. Mine hardly ever drops below 10.

Thanks for the help-it prompted me in to testing the test kit! I'll monitor things over the next few weeks to see how things go-I had a bit of a filter problem so my levels at the moment may not be typical of anything.

Alan