Anyone have high Mg levels?

[AMAYEU]

Over the course of last 6 months my parameters have been crazy, either from overdosing or inaccuracies with old kits.

Got a better test kit and have been doing a better job of monitoring as well as manually dosing according to the current parameters.

Currently I am at:
8.7 dkh
470 ca
1700 mg

Does anyone have concerns with my high mg? I have notice that a great reduction of green hair algae probably from a combination of the high mg and additional cuc of hermits/turbo snails.

I have read a good proportion should be the below:
alk - ca - mg
8 - 420 - 1260
9 - 440 - 1320
10 - 460 - 1380
11 - 480 - 1440

I am using Microbe-Lift Reef Salt with the below.
Parameters:
Alkalinity 2.90 meq or 8.12dkh
Boron (ppm) 2.9
Calcium (ppm) 450
Chloride (ppm) 17,000
Copper (ppm) 0.0003
Iodide (ppm) 0.08
Magnesium (ppm) 1,350
Molybdenum (ppm)0.113
pH @20.3 C 8.45
Potassium (ppm) 380
Sodium (ppm) 9,030
Strontium (ppm) 9.8
Sulfate (ppm) 2,180

I assume I with 10% weekly water changes that my mg will reduce with the 1350mg mixed sw.

I think I might need to start from square one, and test the water after a water change... test everyday/every other day... and test before the next water change, in order to get the actual change in parameter and effects of the water change, then see how much to dosing is really needed.

 

[Berkeleyaquaman]

I don't test anything. I do regular 30% water changes every 7-10 days and add brightwell buffer accordingly. I also top off evaporated water daily.


4 systems, over 1000 gallons out back

 

[northbay-reefer]

Mike, high mag like in the 1400 would be ok but if you get to 1500 and above then your sps will have burned tips simmilar to when you have an alk spike.

Berkleyaquaman, eventually your corals will grow at a high rate and start using up alk/cal/mag at a higher rate, you will need to test so you can dose to keep up. Water change is great but it won't be enough.

 

[Reef Bass]

I've run my mag at 1800+ accidentally and over 1500 intentionally to combat bryopsis without any ill effects. I do believe in 1300-1400 as an ideal. And I dose mag with a dosing pump (yes, I run 3 dosing pumps).

+1 for water changes not being enough to keep mag levels up when one has many fast growing sps.

 

[Berkeleyaquaman]

Sorry, I left out the SeaLab#28 for element replenishment. I have used this method for many years. Too much testing made me crazy! ,)

 

[coralfarmer]

I've run my mag at 1800+ accidentally and over 1500 intentionally to combat bryopsis without any ill effects. I do believe in 1300-1400 as an ideal. And I dose mag with a dosing pump (yes, I run 3 dosing pumps).

+1 for water changes not being enough to keep mag levels up when one has many fast growing sps.

How does it combat Bryopsis sp. that sounds like one of those crazy Internet myths correct me if I'm wrong. The whole process of photosynthesis starts with a photon of light hitting a magnesium ion. I would think algae would benefitfidom the magnesium.

 

[Reef Bass]

There seems to be something about high levels of mag chloride that causes bryopsis to thin and eventually perish. In my experience, mag sulfate did not achieve this but mag chloride did. I usually mix mag chloride to mag sulfate in a 5:3 ratio as recommended for my mag supplement.

When I first started dosing mag I used only Epsom salts (mag sulfate). Bryopsis was getting going. I read about accumulation of sulfates using mag sulfate only and how high levels of mag chloride could be used as a bryopsis counter measure. I switched over to using mag chloride to mix my mag supplement and brought my level up to 1500. Bryopsis started to thin and eventually disappeared. Then I began mixing mag chloride to mag sulfate at the desired 5:3 ratio.

I confess I don't know why it worked, only that it was successful for me.

 

[coralfarmer]

You probably could just let it drop naturally as it is used up in your tank. I don't have any experience with the microbe lift salt. But when things are out of balance I tend to do a water change to balance it back.

 

[coralfarmer]

Ken very interesting I'll have to look in to that. You have definatley peaked my interest. If I find anything else on it I'll make my own thread. Instead of bogarting this one.

 

[Nizz]

I have done the same thing in my old reef. Raised the mag to 1700 in hopes to get rid of bryosis. Which did work. I was using kent M product at the time.

 

[Grant W]

I thought it only worked with Tech M and there was some other element in Tech M that was responsible for the Bryopsis reduction.

 

[Berkeleyaquaman]

I do admit that I don't have a tank full of thriving and happy sps corals.

 

[coralfarmer]

Where did this info come from?? I'm really curious. It is all anecdotal reef hobbyist lore. or is there some more scientific basis for the info?

 

[Berkeleyaquaman]

I have also heard the there is a relationship between the bryopsis and alkalinity.

 

[bushnell]

Raising Mag to kill off bryopsis did not work for me. So I than tried Kent Tech Mag and it worked great. I needed alot of it to work but it did the trick. Apparentely there is something in the Kent product that kills off bryopsis. There's a pretty big thread on this already. Kinda old news.

 

[coralfarmer]

Yeah I followed the thread a couple of years ago. But I am curious about the science behind it.