Is nitrates & phos at 0 a problem ?

[Lesely]

I have been using nopox for about 6 weeks now. I have no algae left and corals are all looking great.and anemones growing too fast ! But I have been told that nitrates & phos both reading 0.00 is a problem ?
Is this true ?
Why is this an issue. ?
Some people say they aim for this reading and other say not too ?
I feed my corals with Reef energy A & B every 2nd day and target feed twice a week ?
I have a mixed reef tank with about 30 different corals and medium fish load.

 

[emmett0122]

some nitrates are good for corals as they have algae living inside them from what i have read around 5ppm is good for nitrates phos you can get 0 and i think that is fine

 

[salt_for_brains]

IME, running a mixed reef you need a little balance. LPS can generally tolerate a little dirtier water when SPS doesn't like it as much. I like my nitrate to be just above 0 and no more than 5. By doing this I seem to get a deeper and richer color out of SPS and LPS as well as better growth. Phosphates I try keep at .02 or less. Hope this helps a little.

 

[Lesely]

if I am feeding corals is 0 on both going to be an issue ? Do the fish need either ? How do I slightly raise both if I need too ?

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

Your readings are close but not really at 0. Keep them there and continue doing what you're doing. If you want more color, dose iron to achieve coloration if food isn't giving what you want. There isn't a clean tank out there, unless you have 0 biosystem

 

[Lesely]

Your readings are close but not really at 0. Keep them there and continue doing what you're doing. If you want more color, dose iron to achieve coloration if food isn't giving what you want. There isn't a clean tank out there, unless you have 0 biosystem

so what you are saying is that although readings are 0 they are probably very low. Too low to actually detect with test kits ?
If you have fish and food you must have some sort of reading ?
Makes sense !

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

Correct.

 

[Kelz88]

If you have algae then your nitrates are not zero, its a false negative

 

[Lesely]

If you have algae then your nitrates are not zero, its a false negative

I have no algae ! So assuming readings are fairly accurate ?

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

I promise you, dose a little to much iron and you will see rapid algae growth.