Hanna Phosphate checker RESULTS?

[theyangman]

So I did my weekly testing runs, and I was surprised to see my phosphates back at .10 (Up from 0.08) last week.

Anyways I was wandering around on reef central and came across some suggestions to do a baseline test on my RO/DI water.

To my surprise my RO/DI water is 0.07???? What is going on? The containers that the RO/DI is stored in is completely food safe Norwesco water holding tank.

Is there a way to re-calibrate a hanna checker with pure water?

 

[Salty Cracker]

So I did my weekly testing runs, and I was surprised to see my phosphates back at .10 (Up from 0.08) last week.

Anyways I was wandering around on reef central and came across some suggestions to do a baseline test on my RO/DI water.

To my surprise my RO/DI water is 0.07???? What is going on? The containers that the RO/DI is stored in is completely food safe Norwesco water holding tank.

Is there a way to re-calibrate a hanna checker with pure water?

Easier to test your water with another hanna checker.

 

[theyangman]

Come on over glen

 

[TORX]

Do a water test straight from the unit. Let your RO/DI run for a few minutes,  then poor the fresh RO/DI straight into a glass (not from your barrel). Test that water. Also,  just because it is' food safe'  doesn't mean it wont leach. That water is still perfectly safe for human consumption,  even if it sat there.

Sent from my SGH-T989D using Tapatalk 4

 

[TORX]

The above of coarse will answer some questions. If the test is lower, then your tester is okay and your RO/DI unit is okay, it is the barrel that is leaching. If testing the same, then it is either your RO/DI unit that is faulty, or your tester. Have someone else test your RO/DI water, or try another hanna.

On a side note, 0.07 in a top off unit is not that high. An established system will eat that up and be there would be nothing to worry about.

 

[Duke]

when i was trying to get my levels low i was using the phosphorus checker and the biggest noticeable reduction came from a simple 10-20% increase in flow through the gfo reactor, this change was noticeable in a 24hr period and dropped me from around .08 to .02 or somewhere around there.. since then i keep my gfo tumbling at that speed and its been stable and really low since then.

 

[theyangman]

It is just frustrating as this is the last parameter to fall into line for me and im close! It has been steadily dropping over the last month and now it is hanging (I changed my gfo two days ago) hopefully things come around.

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[Petercar (RIP Dec 2017)]

do yu have a heater or powerhead in the container ? holong eo yu leave that water in container?....there was a whole thread back about this. ...will have to find it

 

[jroovers]

It is just frustrating as this is the last parameter to fall into line for me and im close! It has been steadily dropping over the last month and now it is hanging (I changed my gfo two days ago) hopefully things come around.

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How long has your system been running for in total?  Eventually it will come down... strong skimming, biopellets, and rowaphos will get it there, unless you have an unexplained source of phosphates (live rock that is leaching phosphates, DSB that has gone bad, shallow sand bed in display that isn't being vacuumed and is releasing phosphates).  Typically these are issues with an established system though, not a new one, unless your source of live rock was less than ideal, had a major die off, was in a system chalk full of phosphates, etc. (if you used live rock).  Also, what are you feeding and how much are you feeding?  Don't go too crazy with the GFO, if you put a new batch online and use significantly more than you have previously, it is a good way to bring down the phosphates too quickly and cause paling, rtn/stn, or base recession.  You are going to have to be patient and observant, the fact that you are doing lots of testing is good.  In the meantime though you should strive to get your RO/DI down to 0 ppm.  Again like a few of us have said, hold off on the temptation to add any more SPS until things are for sure stabilized. 

 

[Salty Cracker]

I know when I was "fixing" the tank, I went from .8 down to .05 relatively quick, BUT it would jump back up to .1 as soon as the gfo exhausted, and it was frustrating.  It did turn out it was my water tub leeching shitloads of phosphate (it was reading 1.5 or something insane like that).  I thought it was leeching out of the rocks. 

Good idea though, test the water from the RO unit, and if it's reading 0 (and it should, london water is almost 0.00 phosphate right from the tap), then it's the storage tubs. 

 

[theyangman]

My system in total has been up and running for about 8 months now. Shallow sand bed (maybe 2" at the thickest points) and I try and stir it from time to time the best I can. There are areas I can simply not reach due to the rock work.

I would invite anyone over who is willing to come test my water with a full test run (phos, alk, cal, mag, rates, and salinity) and I will provide the pizza and alcohol! It would be good to see a solid comparison of my testing vs. someone elses.

 

[Salty Cracker]

I'm def a fan of the DSB and limited stirring, but that's me.  Lots of good bacteria in the DSB just like the ocean

I'd volunteer to come by, but I'm stiffed for time, tore a lat muscle last week and have been laid up, pool not closed, yard is on fire, neglecting clients, tenants moving out, etc etc....

 

[theyangman]

I'm def a fan of the DSB and limited stirring, but that's me.  Lots of good bacteria in the DSB just like the ocean

I'd volunteer to come by, but I'm stiffed for time, tore a lat muscle last week and have been laid up, pool not closed, yard is on fire, neglecting clients, tenants moving out, etc etc....

I have whiskey!

 

[pulpfiction1]

I too am a big fan of a DSB. Both of my overflows have 6 inch DSB's. Maybe you might consider a five gallon remote one underneath your tank somewhere

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[theyangman]

Having a dsb remotely would be the only way I would consider adding one. There is way too much rock work to remove down the road if I were to attempt to clean it out down the road. I would almost consider going bare bottom with a remote DSB if I had the space....

 

[pulpfiction1]

I would never use it as the floor in my display tank again

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[Salty Cracker]

[quote author=Salty Cracker link=topic=6368.msg61884#msg61884 date=1380124793]
I'm def a fan of the DSB and limited stirring, but that's me.  Lots of good bacteria in the DSB just like the ocean

I'd volunteer to come by, but I'm stiffed for time, tore a lat muscle last week and have been laid up, pool not closed, yard is on fire, neglecting clients, tenants moving out, etc etc....

I have whiskey!

[/quote]

Oddly enough that's the only booze I am banned from drinking by my wife.  I'm one of those unfortunates that LOVE whiskey, but just am not a good person on it.  Had I discovered that earlier in life I would have saved myself (and others) a lot of grief!  Don't be an enabler!

 

[curiousphil]

[quote author=theyangman link=topic=6368.msg61885#msg61885 date=1380124974]
[quote author=Salty Cracker link=topic=6368.msg61884#msg61884 date=1380124793]
I'm def a fan of the DSB and limited stirring, but that's me.  Lots of good bacteria in the DSB just like the ocean

I'd volunteer to come by, but I'm stiffed for time, tore a lat muscle last week and have been laid up, pool not closed, yard is on fire, neglecting clients, tenants moving out, etc etc....

I have whiskey!

[/quote]

Oddly enough that's the only booze I am banned from drinking by my wife.  I'm one of those unfortunates that LOVE whiskey, but just am not a good person on it.  Had I discovered that earlier in life I would have saved myself (and others) a lot of grief!  Don't be an enabler!
[/quote]

Lol I'm in the same club - but only banned from buying it and bringing it home!

That being said I'd love to come over sometime Tony, check out your setup, have a couple drinks, and run a whack of tests.

 

[theyangman]

[quote author=Salty Cracker link=topic=6368.msg61892#msg61892 date=1380126692]
[quote author=theyangman link=topic=6368.msg61885#msg61885 date=1380124974]
[quote author=Salty Cracker link=topic=6368.msg61884#msg61884 date=1380124793]
I'm def a fan of the DSB and limited stirring, but that's me.  Lots of good bacteria in the DSB just like the ocean

I'd volunteer to come by, but I'm stiffed for time, tore a lat muscle last week and have been laid up, pool not closed, yard is on fire, neglecting clients, tenants moving out, etc etc....

I have whiskey!

[/quote]

Oddly enough that's the only booze I am banned from drinking by my wife.  I'm one of those unfortunates that LOVE whiskey, but just am not a good person on it.  Had I discovered that earlier in life I would have saved myself (and others) a lot of grief!  Don't be an enabler!
[/quote]

Lol I'm in the same club - but only banned from buying it and bringing it home!

That being said I'd love to come over sometime Tony, check out your setup, have a couple drinks, and run a whack of tests.
[/quote]

I am home tonight after 8pm. If you wanna come on over. I have lots of crown. It is all I drink. I would need some coke though. I am all out of Cola.

 

[Reef Hero]

You should be reading 0 po4 from your rodi and even after you mix your salt.....