High Magnesium Levels

[murdock84]

Maybe I'm doing something wrong with my test but my MG levels appear to be getting higher all the time. What could cause this? And what could happen?

I'm using a Red Sea test kit that is in date. Below is what I got while testing.

1/9/15 - 1440
1/21/15 - 1580
2/1/15 - 1580
2/10/15 - 1600
2/23/15 - 1680

ALK was 11.2 today. Highest I had for that as well. First two test were 9.1 and last two prior to today were 8.4.

CA is steady between 425-450.

Thanks for any help.

 

[FishN00b83]

that's weird that it's climbing like that. are you doing the test right? first bottle do one drop at a time and swirl for 15 seconds? I know it's a bit of a pain...after I switched to Red Sea tests they've been dead on. are you testing your WC water before you do it? is it possible the salt needs to be mixed? I use RC salt and if I don't mix before I scoop it up sometimes I get wacky levels. I always test the WC water before I do a change now. I usually have to add some calc/alk/mag to get it to where I want it to be.

 

[bertoni]

My first guess would be that the salt mix has a high magnesium level, or has settled badly during shipment. I'd start by checking some freshly-mixed saltwater. Other than that, raising magnesium that much would take a lot of supplement, so my second guess would be problems with the test kit.

 

[msaba]

+1

check freshly mixed, and I always have at least 2 test kits for the same element in case of test accuracy issues. (I actually have three of each with different manufacturers!!) Your tank biologic load and water change schedule would be of interest as well

 

[Pegasus209]

I had an opposite issue when I started using Red Sea Magnesium Pro. The more Mag I added, the less it showed... until I realized that I was supposed to read how much of part C was used, and not what was left in the syringe. It's easy to make that mistake...

 

[alexander_ktn]

Is your salinity steady and what are you dosing as far as supplements go? Magnesium won't appear on its own, same as alkalinity, so you must be adding something to the tank.

 

[AdamNC]

Also make sure to clean your vial out with white vinegar, residue from a previous test will mess up the follow up tests, been there done that.

 

[murdock84]

Thanks for the recommendations. I made some water yesterday and will test that. I will also stir my salt mix up before next time as well. I usually change about 20 gallons of water every week and a half. Sometimes I have some small 5 gallon changes in between depending on if I am adding anything to the tank or not. My tank has been running since Christmas and only has some coral frags, two fish and a CUC for the time being. Salinity has been 1.026 since January 8th on every check. I'll clean out the test vial too. Normally I just rinse them with freshwater after each use.

 

[bertoni]

Okay, those steps seem like a good idea to me. Good luck!