PLEASE help with water param....

Calcium 500
Alk 286.4 ppm
Phosphate 2.0
Nitrate 160
Please help fish look ok and even some corals look ok but I had a hammer die off ... I don't want anything else to go.. What should I do.. Water change, what additives could help.. Any help is greatly appreciated..

 

What test kit are you using?
Last water change?
Water source?
Are you currently dosing anything?

 

Many partial water changes. Verify those nitrates again, if you could.

How old is your tank and what do you have in it? How much and how often do you feed?

Alk. isn't too bad, what's you pH?

 

Water changes with RODI water for your salt mix.

Ca should be between 380 and 450.
Alk should be between 125 and 215.
PO4 should be below .05 and nitrate should be below 20.

 

Did you cycle the tank? Are you using rodi water?

 

Tank been going for a year .. Did 10 gallon water change 2 weeks ago, 3 small tangs , 1 clown, 1 eel, 2 banded shrimp, 1 green serpent.... I have toadstool, button polyps, greenstar polyps, mushrooms.. None look completely healthy, recently changed canister into wetdry, and lighting changed also... Its a 56 gallon aquarium.. Its a api reef master test kit

 

Never used rodi water EVER ... Always used tap with condition... Lfs told me it was ok...

 

LFS is wrong. The EPA considers 4ppm PO4 and 40ppm NO3 safe for human consumption. Natural salt water has about .03ppm PO4 and maybe 1ppm or 2 ppm NO3.

 

Moved to----Water Chemistry.

 

You will probably want to try and rehome the Tangs as there are no Tangs appropriate for your tank size IMO. You really should consider an rodi system or the purchase of rodi water or else your nutrient problem will continue to get worse especially with the Eel in the system. Doing water changes without the use of rodi water will not help.What type of fitration are you currently running? The addition of GFO will help control the Phosphate this in combination with RODI or premixed SW from an LFS will be the only way to keep your levels in the safe range.