Need some help

Reefdiver77

Premium Member
My Maxima clam I have had for over a year died today. He has not been happy for a couple of months despite changing him to rock and then sand. Closer to lights and farther away. Different flows. I have checked him for snails, etc.I have 2 clowns, a watchman goby/tiger pistol pair, a large coral banded shrimp and a blood red shrimp as well as assorted snails and hermit crabs. The coral would bother him at times. I have never seen anything else bother him. Any ideas on what may have resulted in his demise?
water parameters tonight
ph 7.8
alk 1.14
calcium 440
ammonia 0
nitrates 0
nitrites 0

I use Oceanic salt, which can and usually does result in higher calcium and lower alk. I am now doing a slow drip of baked baking soda into the sump. This will usually help get the alkalinity up and not drop my calcium too much. I use 60 cc of my top off water and 1/2 tsp of the baking soda. Any other suggestions. I have the Kents Parts A&B. Would dosing with just the B bring up the alkalinity? My pH usually runs higher. Suggestions for getting it up? TIA
 
Using the alkalinity calculator on the Reef Central Chemistry link, you should dose with 175 ml of Kent Part B to raise alkalinity from 1.14 to about 4. Or if you make Randy's Homemade alkalinity (with baked baking soda: Recipe 1) you would dose with approximately 250 ml of that. Was low alkalinity and low pH the trouble for your clam??? Dunno! But keeping up with your alkalinity and calcium will certainly benefit your critters that deposit calcium carbonate.
 
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