Continued from page 2Conclusion
Various methods to lower phosphate levels were described. All have their advantages and disadvantages. Selecting one method over another is probably not the better manner in dealing with phosphate concentration management. More than likely you will want to use a combination of all of these methods to arrive at a water quality that is low in phosphates and prevents undesirable algae from growing.
Addendum
I have not dealt with the sources of phosphate yet but will do so in another article. Let me just briefly mention a few though:
- Carbon that is high in phosphate and transfers them to the water
- Frozen foods (especially the liquid after the food has been thawed)
- The water you use
- Certain additives you dose the tank with
- Lower quality salt
- Overpopulation
- Over feeding
- and so on
As you can see there are plenty of reasons why the concentration of phosphates can rise in the tank. Note that the list above is not complete. They are just a few examples of the obvious ones.
Thiel recently postulated that phosphate that accumulates in the plenum may find its way back into the aquarium water by osmosis. This is certainly a possibility but I have not seen any evidence of it, mostly because I had not given it any thought. If the levels are indeed as high as he indicates then such osmosis could very well take place and plague our tanks with continuous additions of small amounts of phosphate. I guess in this area more will become known as time goes on.
Martina Rodacks
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