Hi,
I have a 180 gallon reef, primarily soft corals and fish.
I use the BRS 2 part bulk dosing chemicals (which is Randy's recipe #1 it looks like). I dose all 3 chemicals (why do they call it 2 part :hmm3
using dosing pumps controlled by my Reef Angel.
According to the guides I have found, I should dose 36 mL per day of the alk and calc and 5.6 ml per day of the Magnesium, which is what I started out doing.
The difficulty I have encountered is that when I do this, my calcium grows too high while my alkalinity drops. When I dosed using these values, after about a month, my calcium was at 525 and my alkalinity was at 7.3 dkh. Magnesium was 1330.
In order to keep the numbers closer to where I believe they should be, I have had to double the alkalinity to 70 mL / day and cut the calcium by 1/3 to 14 mL/day, amounting to a 6:1 ratio between them. This keeps the tank at around 420 calcium and 9.7 dkh. Magnesium still runs around 1350.
I have verified all of the dosing amounts by dosing into a measuring cup for a day.
Along with this, my pH always seems lower than it should be, with a daily cycle between 7.65 to 7.9. I have tried to increase gas exchange with surface aeration and also opened windows to the house, none of which seems to do much.
Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Phosphate are all all at 0. Specific Gravity (Refractometer) 1.022.
Soft Corals grow like crazy. My Long Tentacle Anemone is growing and always very extended. Clam is very happy and growing.
Hard corals don't do so well, Coraline algae growth on the glass and rocks are minimal.
The tank has a large protein skimmer, a refugium full of chaeto, and a bio-reactor with All in one tumbling in it. Water flow is provided by 2 Maxspect Gyre pumps alternating from end to end. I use BRS "ROX" carbon in a reactor, changed every 2 weeks.
Water is changed 1% per day using an auto water changer controlled by my Reef Angel. Top-off is with RO-DI water reading 0 TDS. I am currently using Red Sea Coral Pro salt.
I have validated all of my tests by using multiple brands of test kits:
Hanna Checker (Phosphate, Alkalinity, Calcium)
LaMotte (Nitrate, Nitrite, Ammonia)
Salifert (Alkalinity, Calcium, Magnesium)
Red Sea (Alkalinity, Calcium, Magnesium)
Hanna probe (pH)
Lighting is supplied by BuildMyLed leds, and at "high noon" I read a PAR of about 650 on the top of the reef, 350 on the sand.
So I am wondering if it is unusual to need such a huge unbalance between the 2 parts of the solution? What might I be doing wrong? Any suggestions for pH?
Thanks,
Don
I have a 180 gallon reef, primarily soft corals and fish.
I use the BRS 2 part bulk dosing chemicals (which is Randy's recipe #1 it looks like). I dose all 3 chemicals (why do they call it 2 part :hmm3
using dosing pumps controlled by my Reef Angel.According to the guides I have found, I should dose 36 mL per day of the alk and calc and 5.6 ml per day of the Magnesium, which is what I started out doing.
The difficulty I have encountered is that when I do this, my calcium grows too high while my alkalinity drops. When I dosed using these values, after about a month, my calcium was at 525 and my alkalinity was at 7.3 dkh. Magnesium was 1330.
In order to keep the numbers closer to where I believe they should be, I have had to double the alkalinity to 70 mL / day and cut the calcium by 1/3 to 14 mL/day, amounting to a 6:1 ratio between them. This keeps the tank at around 420 calcium and 9.7 dkh. Magnesium still runs around 1350.
I have verified all of the dosing amounts by dosing into a measuring cup for a day.
Along with this, my pH always seems lower than it should be, with a daily cycle between 7.65 to 7.9. I have tried to increase gas exchange with surface aeration and also opened windows to the house, none of which seems to do much.
Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Phosphate are all all at 0. Specific Gravity (Refractometer) 1.022.
Soft Corals grow like crazy. My Long Tentacle Anemone is growing and always very extended. Clam is very happy and growing.
Hard corals don't do so well, Coraline algae growth on the glass and rocks are minimal.
The tank has a large protein skimmer, a refugium full of chaeto, and a bio-reactor with All in one tumbling in it. Water flow is provided by 2 Maxspect Gyre pumps alternating from end to end. I use BRS "ROX" carbon in a reactor, changed every 2 weeks.
Water is changed 1% per day using an auto water changer controlled by my Reef Angel. Top-off is with RO-DI water reading 0 TDS. I am currently using Red Sea Coral Pro salt.
I have validated all of my tests by using multiple brands of test kits:
Hanna Checker (Phosphate, Alkalinity, Calcium)
LaMotte (Nitrate, Nitrite, Ammonia)
Salifert (Alkalinity, Calcium, Magnesium)
Red Sea (Alkalinity, Calcium, Magnesium)
Hanna probe (pH)
Lighting is supplied by BuildMyLed leds, and at "high noon" I read a PAR of about 650 on the top of the reef, 350 on the sand.
So I am wondering if it is unusual to need such a huge unbalance between the 2 parts of the solution? What might I be doing wrong? Any suggestions for pH?
Thanks,
Don
