High Calcium Levels

[shinna]

Hi all,

My calcium levels are about 470, will this harm the growth of any of my corals?
Magnesium, Phoshate, PH, etc are all fine. My green monti cap frag is slightly bleaching on the edge of one side & I'm worried that this might be causing it. Any responses would be welcome!!

 

[jjjimmy]

470 should be fine. What is your Alk?

 

[MiddletonMark]

470 won't hurt them ... provided Alk and Magnesium are also at NSW/good levels, as jjjimmy stated.

But I'd keep an eye on Alkalinity.

I tend to have IMO best results when Alk is dead-stable, where IMO Calcium can vary a bit and I don't see much difference.

 

[shinna]

My PH is always around 8.5. My Magnesium - last night - was 1320.

 

[shinna]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7161952#post7161952 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by shinna
My PH is always around 8.5. My Magnesium - last night - was 1320.

I'm only using 150W of light but this should be ok for monti cap. It's placed in the middle of my tank, might it be wise to move it to the side somewhere so its not getting the light straight in it face?

 

[shinna]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7161966#post7161966 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by shinna
I'm only using 150W of light as well but this should be ok for monti cap. It's placed in the middle of my tank, might it be wise to move it to the side somewhere so its not getting the light straight in it face?

 

[Kip]

dkh?

 

[shinna]

pardon my ignorance but what is "dkh"?? (Please dont say d*ckhead!)

 

[worlds under]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7162926#post7162926 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by shinna
pardon my ignorance but what is "dkh"?? (Please dont say d*ckhead!)

degrees karbonate hardness? LOL:rollface:

 

[Kip]

just as (if not more) important as a Ca reading is a dkh reading... if you arent testing, then pick up a kit (aka alk test kit) ... i like salifert

 

[worlds under]

on my tanks that are up and going I test everything once a month but ca, alk, and po4 are tested every three days (if i am lazy) dkh or meql is the messurment of alk, hope its not too confusing

 

[shinna]

I test Ca, mag, phos, PH, salinty, ammonia, nitrite & nitrate. Aren't these enough!!

 

[jjjimmy]

You should really add PO4 and Alk. These 2 are quite often the source of many problems.

 

[MiddletonMark]

I test Alkalinity more than I test anything else [beyond temp, pH - electronic and salinity].

IME, if my Calcium swings from 400 to 450 - IMO I don't see a big affect on the corals. If my Alkalinity swings from 7 to 9 dKh, I can tell [poor growth/color, pH acts weird].

Get an Alkalinity test kit, put it with your normal tests. IMO, with a mature [6 + month old tank] I'd skip the Ammonia + Nitrite regular testing unless you have problems. After 6 months of zero ... I questioned why I was spending money on reagents that were likely to always read zero.
Now I keep those in the cabinet, essential when something seems wrong - but set aside after the mature tank is running well for long enough. Just my opinion

 

[twon8]

i agree, the only things i test for regularly now with test kits are are alk and calcium. and the alk is much more important imo. i test salinity with a refractometer, but less often than i test the alkalinity. i have a ph moniter, so i keep an eye on that, but im not really worried about it. magnesium is every few months, phosphate i have tested twice in the past two years, and nitrates i used to test for but have run out of the reagents and haven't bothered to buy another one.

if i could only test for one thing with a test kit it would be alkalinity.

 

[JB NY]

High Ca does not cause any problems. I kept my tank at 500-525 for well over a year without any problems at all. You actually might notice a little bit faster growth.

 

[shinna]

MiddletonMark - I usually only test Ca, Mag, Phosphate & Ph. Ca & Mag weekly the others monthly. I've not really tested ammonia, nitrate etc in months as they're always stable. I'll be buying an ALK test kit asap. Whats the reason for testing P04? If the levels for this are low is it serious??