phosphate vs nitrate

[vipermako]

between phosphate and nitrate, which one is more desirable to be kept near zero, in terms of benefits to corals?

[yikai]

phosphate definitely. above 0.03 ppm will kill corals. phosphate prevents calcification of corals and will kill them.

nitrates, even at 100ppm, corals will still be fine, although abit stressed. have kept nice and successfu reef tanks with 50-100ppm of nitrates.

however, such high nitrates are no good for SPS. it might kill them or turn them brown. for LPS and soft corals, it's fine.

of course, best not to hit such high levels of nitrates. for normal LPS and softies, 10-15ppm is fine.

SPS, maybe go less than 5ppm

[vipermako]

good. thanks.

tested with salifert, phosphate was near zero [solution transparent with no visible blue], but nitrate was between 25~50 [cannot really interpolate the shade of pink]. Should be ok for my Euphyllia, but will try to reduce further.

[vipermako]

Read that

"Nitrate increases zooxanthellae population density and reduces skeletogenesis in corals"

"the population density of the zooxanthellae will actually increase significantly with increased nitrate concentration."

"Maximum gross photosynthesis normalized to surface area was enhanced by nitrate addition, reflecting the increase in algal population density"

"It is concluded that enhanced nitrate levels in tropical coastal waters will have a hitherto unrecognized effect on the growth rate of tropical coral reefs."

F. Marubini1 and P. S. Davies

[vipermako]

and this from About.com ....

"In reef systems even a minor level of nitrate can cause damage as well as death to delicate corals, anemones and other invertebrates, as well as some crustaceans. The acceptable range of nitrate for reef tanks is 0.25 ppm, but not more than 5 ppm."

do they mean Phosphate?

[yikai]

and this from About.com ....

"In reef systems even a minor level of nitrate can cause damage as well as death to delicate corals, anemones and other invertebrates, as well as some crustaceans. The acceptable range of nitrate for reef tanks is 0.25 ppm, but not more than 5 ppm."

do they mean Phosphate?

this is nonsence. about.com is not a reliable site for reef info.

this is untrue for nitrates.

even more untrue for phosphates. refer to my first post.

[vipermako]

ya, i also think so.

small amt of nitrate should be still fine i think.

I will try to target mine at 10ppm, as suggested by you

[yikai]

if you are keeping SPS, try to get it as low as possible. below 5 is good i think.

for LPS and softies, nitrates are not a problem. even at 100ppm mine were flourishing. but it's not advised to go so high. 10-20 is still healthy range.