Alkalinity precipitation

[Djbeasley05]

I'm new to dosing so pardon the potential obvious answer.

Magnesium- 1320
Alkalinity- 6.4
Calcium- 420
Ph- 8.2
Salinity- 1.026

Questions:
1. Normal water changes are keeping up with calcium use but not alkalinity. Is this normal?
2. Is it normal for alkalinity to precipitate when dosing?






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[mpderksen]

That Alk level is a concern only if you have SPS or LPS. The rest looks awesome. I'll ask a few follow up questions:
1. What are you using to raise Alk? Depending on your tank size and needs, I feel that Soda Ash from BRS is an excellent option. You make it up into a liquid, and pour it into the flow of the tank, slowly. Another very solid option is B-Ionic 2-part, but I don't like that you can't purchase separately. I have no experience with Kalk, but you will get lots of excellent advice on using that as well. None of these should precipitate at typical aquarium levels (Kalk is a saturated solution, and there WILL be sediment on the bottom of that container, but again, I admit to ZERO experience there).
2. Some general tank information might be helpful, like size, AGE of the system, what's in it, how big and often are the water changes and what salt mix you are using.
3. What test kits/method are you using, and how are you dosing? Pump on a timer? Test, measure in a graduated cylinder and pour in nightly?

 

[tkeracer619]

Yes it is normal, to a point.

I had one system that dosing just didn't work. I had to go to a calcium reactor for it to be stable. If you have a lot of growth and not much water it can suck the alk down rapidly and appear to be precip.

 

[Djbeasley05]

That Alk level is a concern only if you have SPS or LPS. The rest looks awesome. I'll ask a few follow up questions:
1. What are you using to raise Alk? Depending on your tank size and needs, I feel that Soda Ash from BRS is an excellent option. You make it up into a liquid, and pour it into the flow of the tank, slowly. Another very solid option is B-Ionic 2-part, but I don't like that you can't purchase separately. I have no experience with Kalk, but you will get lots of excellent advice on using that as well. None of these should precipitate at typical aquarium levels (Kalk is a saturated solution, and there WILL be sediment on the bottom of that container, but again, I admit to ZERO experience there).
2. Some general tank information might be helpful, like size, AGE of the system, what's in it, how big and often are the water changes and what salt mix you are using.
3. What test kits/method are you using, and how are you dosing? Pump on a timer? Test, measure in a graduated cylinder and pour in nightly?

It is a mixed reef so there is lps and sps involved.

I'm using the Red Sea foundation kit to dose calc alk and mag separately.

Tank is little over a year
60 gallon dt
40 gallon sump
Stock- softys, lps, sps, two clowns, rbta,

I'm dosing manually and testing with Red Sea test kits and verifying with api.


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[der_wille_zur_macht]

What makes you think alkalinity is precipitating? Are you assuming that because the level drops quickly, or do you see actual precipitate? How are you determining the amount you're dosing?

 

[Djbeasley05]

What makes you think alkalinity is precipitating? Are you assuming that because the level drops quickly, or do you see actual precipitate? How are you determining the amount you're dosing?

As I'm dosing it creates a white cloud in the tank. I'm still trying to get levels where I want them before I figure out the daily usage. I've been attempting to raise dkh one per day.


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[mpderksen]

The white cloud is totally normal. So you're fine there. It should disperse pretty quickly.
Add, wait a bit, retest. 24 hours later, test. Use an online calculator so you know how much is being used each day. Then, add that much each day. Pretty easy once you do the math.
Frequent, small doses are best, which is why a pump with a timer is generally preferred. Try what I recommend and share the numbers.


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