reducing phosphates

I have a 26g fully planted tank. Phosphate readings of my tap water
is .25-.5 ppm. My tank registers close to 2.0 I do weekly water
changes(25%), clean exposed gravel and feed the fish once daily.
Lighting is 55w on for about 10-12 hours/day. I use fertilizer once a
week, potassium twice weekly and have a diy CO2.

I think I should be lowering the PO4. Some algae buildup is showing
on my plants. Other than more water changes should I be using
something I saw at my LFS. It was a white sack with some type of
granules in it. Claims to reduce PO4 and is good for 3 montshs. Put
in filter or in tank. Is this charcoal? I've heard people using
this but never knew for what purpose. I don't have room IN my filter
so would have to slip it into the back of my tank behind plants.

Your advice?
(also posted to rec.aquaria.freshwater,misc.)

Larry

"Larry" wrote in message
...
I have a 26g fully planted tank. Phosphate readings of my tap water
is .25-.5 ppm. My tank registers close to 2.0 I do weekly water
changes(25%), clean exposed gravel and feed the fish once daily.
Lighting is 55w on for about 10-12 hours/day. I use fertilizer once a
week, potassium twice weekly and have a diy CO2.

Any idea what's in your 'fertilizer'?

2 ppm is a little high, but not outrageous. Larger water changes would help
or maybe some algae eaters for the algae.


I think I should be lowering the PO4. Some algae buildup is showing
on my plants. Other than more water changes should I be using
something I saw at my LFS. It was a white sack with some type of
granules in it. Claims to reduce PO4 and is good for 3 montshs. Put
in filter or in tank. Is this charcoal? I've heard people using
this but never knew for what purpose. I don't have room IN my filter
so would have to slip it into the back of my tank behind plants.

Likely not charcoal, but some kind of resin. Most carbon actually contains
Phospahtes.


Your advice?
(also posted to rec.aquaria.freshwater,misc.)

Larry

Hi there Larry,

I'm no expert at this, but I have found two ways of lowering my PO4... One
fast and wastes your ferts, one a bit slower and is my preferred method...

The fast way is to perform 50% water changes for a couple of weeks with
reduced feeding (a lot of ppl overfeed their fish anyways) and this will
bring the PO4 - and all other nutrients in the tank down...

the second method, which is the one I use, is to increase your potassium and
nitrate levels, bringing them into balance with the PO4. I have found that
if I have high PO4, it is normally because I don't have enought nitrate or
potassium in the water... It normally takes about 3-4 weeks to bring it
down, but the plants benefit because they were lacking something to start
with, thus the reason they were not using the PO4...

If you choose the first method, you will possibly have to increase your
trace element additions to keep your Fe and other traces at the correct
levels as the increased water changes will drop those levels as well... If
you choose the second method, do it slowly, don't put in enought potassium
nitrate to take your tank to 10ppm in one go...

Hope this helps.
Justin.


"Bill Stock" wrote in message
...

"Larry" wrote in message
...
I have a 26g fully planted tank. Phosphate readings of my tap water
is .25-.5 ppm. My tank registers close to 2.0 I do weekly water
changes(25%), clean exposed gravel and feed the fish once daily.
Lighting is 55w on for about 10-12 hours/day. I use fertilizer once a
week, potassium twice weekly and have a diy CO2.

Any idea what's in your 'fertilizer'?

2 ppm is a little high, but not outrageous. Larger water changes would
help or maybe some algae eaters for the algae.


I think I should be lowering the PO4. Some algae buildup is showing
on my plants. Other than more water changes should I be using
something I saw at my LFS. It was a white sack with some type of
granules in it. Claims to reduce PO4 and is good for 3 montshs. Put
in filter or in tank. Is this charcoal? I've heard people using
this but never knew for what purpose. I don't have room IN my filter
so would have to slip it into the back of my tank behind plants.

Likely not charcoal, but some kind of resin. Most carbon actually contains
Phospahtes.


Your advice?
(also posted to rec.aquaria.freshwater,misc.)

Larry

Bottom posted.

--
You can find my public key at https://keyserver1.pgp.com
"Larry" wrote in message
...
I have a 26g fully planted tank. Phosphate readings of my tap water
is .25-.5 ppm. My tank registers close to 2.0 I do weekly water
changes(25%), clean exposed gravel and feed the fish once daily.
Lighting is 55w on for about 10-12 hours/day. I use fertilizer once a
week, potassium twice weekly and have a diy CO2.

I think I should be lowering the PO4. Some algae buildup is showing
on my plants. Other than more water changes should I be using
something I saw at my LFS. It was a white sack with some type of
granules in it. Claims to reduce PO4 and is good for 3 montshs. Put
in filter or in tank. Is this charcoal? I've heard people using
this but never knew for what purpose. I don't have room IN my filter
so would have to slip it into the back of my tank behind plants.

Your advice?
(also posted to rec.aquaria.freshwater,misc.)

Larry

There are tons of products out there that reduce phosphates. Try checking
out www.thatpetplace.com and look for phosphate removers, or chemical filter
pads, or phosphate reactors, and / or look under filter media. OR check out
other web stores that sell aquarium products. And if you have to use your
local library computer to look these things up. Phosban is one product
listed under phosphate reactors - do be careful as I am not sure if this
particular product needs to be in an actual phosphate reactor or not. And if
you do order / visit your local lfs pick up a cheap $01.00 or better nylon
(or better) pull string filter bag, and do your research on how effective
the product in question is when not specifically in a filter (i.e. find out
if you can just put a bag of whatever it is in front of your filter out
take). Good luck and later!

The white phosphate removing product is an activated alumina granule
derived from bauxite. It is used widely for phosphate removal and is
very effective. Activated carbon does not remove phosphate, and in
fact, most carbon adds phosphate.

Charcoal is something you use in your grill

I think I should be lowering the PO4. Some algae buildup is showing
on my plants. Other than more water changes should I be using
something I saw at my LFS. It was a white sack with some type of
granules in it. Claims to reduce PO4 and is good for 3 montshs. Put
in filter or in tank. Is this charcoal? I've heard people using
this but never knew for what purpose. I don't have room IN my filter
so would have to slip it into the back of my tank behind plants.
Sounds like a bag of Phos-Zorb. See he http://tinyurl.com/9dbe4

--
Bill H. [my "reply to" address is real]
www.necka.net
Molon Labe!