0 tds but still phosphates?

Need some advice.....I've recently been dealing with a hair algae outbreak, which is something I've never had before, and it's frustrating! My phosphates constantly read 0.03 on my Hanna meter, dispute the use of a phosphate reactor running rowaphos.   I'm assuming phosphates are the cause. So after weeks of feeding light, cleaning out the tank, I finally decided to test my RO/DI water. The unit is only a few months old, it's a 5 stage from BRS. My TDS meter reads 0, but the phosphates are 0.03, same as my tank! Doesn't a tds of 0 usually mean 0 phosphates too? Like I said the unit is only a few months old so I know it's not my filters.

What are my options to get the phosphates in my RO/DI to read 0? Add a second DI resin chamber? I'm tired of burning through GFO! Thanks

Edited by kellerexpress - December 18 2011 at 2:58am

I agree with MadReeer that you may be seeing the meters need for calibration, but consider this > All meters and test kits have ranges of deviation usually expressed as +/- a value. It may look like this "+/- .001 ppm" meaning that the reading will be off by as much as .001 ppm above, to .001 ppm below, the actual true value. In this case you are looking at two meters so the error is compounded. Also, the deviation is going to be more pronounced when trying to find values close to zero. That's just the physics and statistics of it.

kellerexpress wrote: I've recently been dealing with a hair algae outbreak...   I'm assuming phosphates are the cause.

From what you have told us, I believe the PO4 in your system is within acceptable limits. PO4 exists in all systems and is a very necessary component. The Zooxanthellae algae living in the coral tissue need PO4 to live. Without it they and their host coral die.

The key to keeping algae under control is a little complicated. As you may know, algae cleans the water, mostly by eating the polluting N and P compounds. In fact, everything in our aquarium is eating something.

If we want to stop an organism from growing we must look at where it's getting the energy to grow. You mentioned food and light. Unfortunately, it's often the nuisance algae that respond to light spectrum and that eat temporary extra food. Even something as unnoticeable as the accidental death of a strain of bacteria can lead to extra nutrients in the system. You seem to be on top of keeping extra nutrients from entering the system, so the next paragraph may hold a bigger part of the answer.

The other aspect of algae control is to remove it. Long ago I gave up trying to manually remove algae. That's no good for a lazy reefer like me. It's so much easier to stock the aquarium with the right herbivores. That is is how I killed the Ugly Green Haired Mermaid. Each herbivore has it's favorite algae. I've found that knowing which herbivore and how many to use to keep a specific algae under control is a very important bit of knowledge.

thanks for the reply.  I recently added more hermits to my tank, but they usually seem more interested in killing my snails, which is why I tend to stay away from them.  My t-5's are about 9 months old, do you think they could have shifted spectrum?

kellerexpress wrote: thanks for the reply.  I recently added more hermits to my tank, but they usually seem more interested in killing my snails, which is why I tend to stay away from them.  My t-5's are about 9 months old, do you think they could have shifted spectrum?

What fan setting are you using on your Sunpower and what bulbs?

I would start replacing a couple of the blue bulbs right now and then change out a couple more bulbs in a month. Properly cooled T5s seem to last 10-12 months.

Ryan Thompson wrote: kellerexpress wrote: thanks for the reply.  I recently added more hermits to my tank, but they usually seem more interested in killing my snails, which is why I tend to stay away from them.  My t-5's are about 9 months old, do you think they could have shifted spectrum? What fan setting are you using on your Sunpower and what bulbs? I would start replacing a couple of the blue bulbs right now and then change out a couple more bulbs in a month. Properly cooled T5s seem to last 10-12 months.

full strength hydrogen peroxide or diluted?

Im assuming I have to be careful to not get this stuff on corals right?  I really dont want to tear apart my tank unless I get desperate.

jmw wrote: Hydrogen Peroxide will kill your coral as fast as it kills hair algae. BE CAREFUL if you decide to go that route.

This isn't true. I've soaked corals in hydrogen peroxide for about 5 minutes with little issue. It was a dilluted mix and things went just fine.

You just need to research what you are doing.

Thanks for the info. I've thought about trying carbon dosing, in fact I've got some ecobak pellets and a reactor sitting in my garage, I just need to get it hooked up.