Though natural sea water has a major constituent of phosphates, they are of no good in a closed reef aquarium setting. Even if phosphate is present in a reef tank in low concentration, they can spur algae growth and slow coral calcification. If by chance their concentration increases in a reef tank, algae can enormously capture the aquarium and corals can virtually stop growing, and even start to recede. When you are shedding bucks on getting algae removed from tank, it is important that you check on the reason behind their growth. It is most probable that you tank has phosphates that are inviting the algae to dominate your tank.
Phosphates are a good fuel for algae and are consumed by algae for their growth. With increase in phosphate concentration in reef tank, algae blooms will start growing vigorously and cover the surfaces of the corals in thick layers. This will prevent light from reaching the corals and they might cease to grow without the essential factor of good lighting. The coral won’t be able to make food by photosynthesis in the absence of light and start to fade. When the coral becomes weak, the algae attach itself to the coral skeleton making healing less likely.
Other than promoting algae bloom, phosphates can hinder the uptake of calcium by calcifying corals which is a bad news for aquarists who have a lot of hard corals in their reef tanks. With the increase in concentration of phosphate, the growth of corals will considerably slow down. Some corals may even begin to die or have tissue recession. The latter part is obviously an acute case, but it can take place when phosphates attain higher concentrations. A slowed calcification not only means slow growth, but slow repair when damaged by fragging or any other means. Definitely keeping a check on the phosphate content in your tank is important.
The main problem is that phosphates can enter your tank from a wide variety of sources. They can come in fish and coral foods, fish waste, decaying or uneaten food, aquarium salts, pH and kH buffers, filter media, the water used in the aquarium, and even the sand. And with every use of these products, you introduce a little bit more phosphate into the system. It is advised that you check the composition of these products at the time of purchase and if in any of them, the composition is not written, avoid it. To get rid of phosphate issues you have to consider the whole list of these things you add to your tank and then find out which of them is contributing to the phosphate content.
The best way to get rid of phosphates is to go for regular large water change. This will drain off all the wasted in the tank. Also you must always go for pure water and not the tap water. Also check if the salt mix you are adding to the tank has phosphates. There are products and devices used for getting rid of these in case they are inevitable but above all your own concern is required. These are some of the effective phosphate removers for your reef tanks:
Seachem Purigen 100ml– $8.44
Two Little Fishies Phosban Phosphate Removal Media 150 g
But treatment is possible only when you know there is phosphate in your tank leading towards nuisance of algae or weakening of corals. The common test kits often overlook phosphate contents while concentrating on nitrates, nitrites and ammonia. Below are some of the test kits that will effectively test the phosphate content too.
API REEF MASTER TEST KIT– $24.24
API FW/SW PHOSPHATE TEST KIT– $12.59
