Give me advice on my ICP TEST RESULTS - help me interpret

[ZoWhat]

@Randy Holmes-Farley

Got my Triton ICP results back

MY TANK ENVIRONMENT
* 6ft 180g DT
* 220ish gal total water volume
* 20% WC on the 1st and 15th of each month using Fritz RPM Blue Box

* AM dose 10ml of Tropic Marin BactoBalance
* AM dose 5ml of Tropic Marin A- Elements
* Tropic Marin says their BactoBalance has the same elements as their K+ product and adding A- to the regiment is a great choice, great compliment

* AM dose 1ml of ESV Potassium Iodine
* AM dose 2 droplets of Lugols Iodine
* I dose so much iodine bc my 6ft tank is dominated with zoanthid. Felt iodine dosing would spur growth

* PM dose 8ozs of Tetra Phyto (home brewed)
* PM dose 8ozs of Nanno Phyto (home brewed)
* PM dose 8ozs of Iso Phyto (home brewed)
* 200micron filter sock changed 3x a week
* Skimmer rinsed out 1x a week

ICP HIGHLIGHTS:

UNWANTED HEAVY METALS
* Aluminum Al = 7 µg/L, micrograms per liter = 0-60 µg/L acceptable range

* Copper Cu = 10 µg/L, micrograms per liter = put me slightly in the yellow cautious range, barely

I-GROUP
Iodine I = 718 µg/L, micrograms per liter = 30-90 µg/L acceptable range [WOW YIKES!]

NUTRIENT-GROUP
Phosphorus P = 77 µg/L, micrograms per liter
Phosphate PO4 = 0.23562 mg/l

MY TAKE-AWAYS
* Absolutely STOP dosing any Iodine/Iodide supplement. NOT sure how to reduce Iodine in my water but thru WCs

* A little confused about Copper in my system but the tank has been running since 2012. I have NO CLUE where the Copper came from. I could try the Triton DETOX I have on hand

* Not sure if my high phosphorous/po4 numbers are coming from the amount of phyto I dose from home brewing. I use the f/2 fertilizer which is a concoction of nitrates and phosphates

What's your take?

 

[Miami Reef]

Following!

@Randy Holmes-Farley

 

[Miami Reef]

@zoa what

Please explain all the issues you are experiencing. If I remember correctly, you said most of your zoanthid growth has stopped, and a couple have melted/died? Is that right?

Is there other issues you are experiencing?

Are any of the trace elements undetectable? Do you have a lot of algae growth?

 

[ZoWhat]

@zoa what

Please explain all the issues you are experiencing. If I remember correctly, you said most of your zoanthid growth has stopped, and a couple have melted/died? Is that right?

Is there other issues you are experiencing?

Are any of the trace elements undetectable? Do you have a lot of algae growth?

Zoas have in fact slowed way down on growth. I now know I've been choking them with 6x the iodine that is acceptable (eyeballs rolling on myself)

My ICP results for unwanted elements are all ZERO except for a little Aluminum, a little Copper, as listed. The Copper is a mystery to me

Algae? Very little bc the 3 strains of phyto outcompete any nuisance algae. Btwn Tangs and urchins, LR and tank virtually algae free. Front glass gets an algae film I clean off 1x a week...which is very light

.

 

[DaveC]

Have a look at Reef Moonshiners

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I'd certainly stop iodine dosing and let it decline on its own.

I'd probably keep doing the other things if I felt they were generally useful, and briefly double check for copper things in the water (like a bit of wire that fell in), but 10 ug/L is not necessarily cause for great concern. When I measured my tank years ago it was higher than that and seemed OK.

 

[Miami Reef]

I'd certainly stop iodine dosing and let it decline on its own.

I'd probably keep doing the other things if I felt they were generally useful, and briefly double check for copper things in the water (like a bit of wire that fell in), but 10 ug/L is not necessarily cause for great concern. When I measured my tank years ago it was higher than that and seemed OK.

Can .2ppm phosphates slow zoanthids growth?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Can .2ppm phosphates slow zoanthids growth?

I do not think so, but I've never seen actual data.

 

[Miami Reef]

I do not think so, but I've never seen actual data.

Iodine overdose may certainly be causing the symptoms OP is experiencing, right?

 

[2una]

The Copper is a mystery to me

There's 4-5 ug/l copper in a standard salt mix so i wouldn't sweat it unless it continues rising.
Cuprisorb will take it down if you want to lower it.

Iodine will just drop once you stop dosing it.

Al at that level is next to nothing.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Iodine overdose may certainly be causing the symptoms OP is experiencing, right?

I do not know. Some folks have high levels and I've not seen associated reports of issues.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I would add the Lugols is not an inert iodine additive. It can impact other things, such as the speciation and bioavailability of trace metals by oxidizing them.

 

[ZoWhat]

I appreciate everyone's feedback... keep it coming.

I'm surely

stopping all iodine/iodide supplementation
Letting it fall thru Time and WCs


.

 

[rtparty]

Iodine will rapidly deplete once you stop dosing. Aluminum and copper are non starters. Those numbers aren't high enough to do anything. Copper is actually a vital trace element and you do want some. It is found in Tropic Marin's trace elements you are adding. Phosphate is higher than normally accepted. Whether that is causing issues, I have no idea. I don't think it is helping anything

 

[ZoWhat]

Yes... im still a lil concerned over my phosphorous numbers.

I think its all phyto I'm dosing to where the phyto still has uneaten Phosphate from the f/2 formula

Anyone have thoughts on that?

Phosphate -vs- Phyto?


.

 

[PeterC99]

Yes... im still a lil concerned over my phosphorous numbers.

I think its all phyto I'm dosing to where the phyto still has uneaten Phosphate from the f/2 formula

Anyone have thoughts on that?

Phosphate -vs- Phyto?


.

No - Phytoplankton doesn’t equal phosphates. I dose over a cup per day of homegrown phytoplankton and doesn’t impact phosphates.

 

[RGoltz]

Have a look at Reef Moonshiners

You beat me to it! I’ve commented on this before but an ICP is not that useful if you are not applying it as part of a system. And I feel like Moonshine is a pretty simple system to follow.

Moonshine levels with the rubidium split into daily doses will grow zoanthids for sure.

Just tonight I was refilling my little dropper bottle of iodide and looked at the standard dose on the bottle. Outrageous! The standard dose for my tank was like 4ml every other day. I dose 9 drops so something like 0.27ml daily.

 

[ZoWhat]

Here are my Apex test HISTORIES:

Iodine waaaaaaaaay too high. Shocked all my fish and zoas aren't dead...

Major major issues in September when I stopped Vodka dosing over the whole Summer. Now back to carbon dosing Tropic Marin BactoBalance

Phosphates been all over the board. I feed very lightly. But heavy feed phyto which still probably has a lot of uneaten f/2 fertilizer that's loaded with phosphorus

2x a year I readjust potassium thru dosing when it gets below 300. Potassium is a double edged sword... both extremes of high or low is reeeeeeally bad

..................

I'm really not seeing a dosing need. Doing 20% WCs on the 1st and 15th of every month. Lightly dose TM elements

I've immediately stopped all iodide and have put that iodine dosing product out-of-sight

I need to work on po4... but I feel 90% of my problems points directly at iodine overdosing


.....

 

[DaveC]

Reef Moonshiners takes your ICP test results and basically helps guide you to get your elements back in line.

BTW props for the Airplane reference, entire generations have no idea about that movie.

 

[RGoltz]

Yes, as @DaveC is saying Moonshine helps you apply your results. It also provides some guidelines on certain trace elements - such as iodide - and others that can be blind dosed. I will say that Zoanthids looks good with some rubidium in the water!