Reef Chemistry Issues

Flightpipe

Flightpipe

Sea Turtles Love Me......
My tank is looking a little rough and its because of my params being off but I am not sure about how to proceed, The only thing I know for sure is I am mixing a water change right now for tomorrow so it may help me out.

I have been trying to raise my cal and alk to better levels (cal around 400 and alk around 10-11 dkh) But have not had to much luck I have been dosing turbo calcium and an alk buffer (Kent) about once a week for a few weeks now and I drip kalk usually at night. I think the dosing is what has messed me up. All the while I was not testing PH because I simply forgot.

My current water params are

Ph 8.6-8.8
Cal 330
DKH 7.7 (2.74 meq)
Nitrate 0
P02 0
SG 1.025

My high ph is my primary cause for concern and I think that is the main reason my tank is not feeling so hot, along with high ph I think I am getting a significant ph fall in the morning dropping to 8-7.8 which i know is whay to much. I do have a refuge with cheato and light on reverse cycle but I am not seeing much help. My low cal and alk is also bothering me because after my dosing they have not elevated to where I would like them. If I buffer for alk,cal, or drip more kalk that will just drive my ph higher. So I am confused on my chemistry and all I know is a wc will help but I will still have the same issues. I have read a few articles tonight and I need to research more but can anyone help me out? I will be testing every day for a while to keep track of what is going on.
 
Have you checked you magnesium levels? It sound as if it may be too low. mag is needed to balance and maintain the Ca and Alk levels. What are your mag test results?
 
Along with magnesium, you need to be careful how much Ca & Alk you add at a time, and do not add them together. There is only so much you can add at once, or you will experience a precipitation event and basically nullify everything you just added. Also you will want to break up the required dosage over the course of a few days so you don't jump your pH or any specific parameter too much.

A chemistry guru could definitely explain it better than I though. ;)

Here's a good tool to get you started in the right direction:

http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/chem_calc3.html
 
I dont have a mag test I will see about getting one. I was dosing cal and alk at the same time in one dose (not together) and I have noticed so white spots poping up. What is the best call about the PH....WC, vinegar ect. ?

I am thinking a need to get a kalk reactor set up and get on my mag levels I have alot of reading to do.
 
I think the dosing is what has messed me up.

A possibly more likely explanation is having used a low calcium mix, like Instant Ocean.

What salt mix are you using?

If that pH is accurate (it may not be), I'd reduce the limewater.
 
I am using Reef Crystals, and I have stopped the lime water for until i get my bearings with this. I am slammed today but tonight I will test again and start searching articles ect. ( Most written by you!) I think I just need WC's to start testing for mag, and a reactor set up.
 
yes get your mag.at a reasonable level while workin your alk/calc level.make sure not to add in same day unless 2part solution.this will cause a conflict in your levels...
 
First off thanks randy for your comments and more importantly your articles. I think My arbitrary lime water drip was one major issue along with large buffering of alk. Second day of testing and a 13g wc my ph was 7.8, dkh 8.4 cal was 330 again.

After reading up I'm going to slowly dose alk and cal to get them to where they need to be and I plan on using the two part B-ionic (over at least 3 days to aviod a large ph swing). I am positive my mag is low I have a test kit waiting on my at a LFS so I will get that where it needs to be as well. When this mess is fixed I am going to set up a kalk ato and monitor mag.

Is B-ionic ok to use for this sort of correction seems I am going to need about a bottle of both for the correction

Once My params are correct what is a normal amount of dosing to maintain params? I realise it depends on my tank's demand but how often is to often my tank is 75g and med demand so I would think once a week should be the norm.

What would be considered an acceptable ph swing? While doing this wrong and dripping kalk and dosing way to much alk buffer at once my ph was swinging from 7.8 to 8.5. I have lost an acro frag, bleached out some monti's, upset my xenias, and began to stress and bleach my fav green Haddoni (he is still green and has good color but it has faded and he is not as happy as normal.) once I slowly correct my params what is a normal swing that I will see so I know what to look for?

I know that is more rant-ish but I am looking for a stamp of approval.

I plan on another 10g wc over the weekend so that will help
 
B-ionic is fine, but you'll need a lot of the calcium part and little of the alk part to get you to NSW levels. So calcium chloride, which is equally good as a stand alone calcium supplement, may be a cheaper way to go.

I don't worry about the pH swing as much as the extremes, especially the low extremes. That said, more aeration will limit the swing, as will adding high pH additives at night.
 
Mag test was 1170 I pick up a mag supplement and started with one dose last night. I also dose b ionic 1&2 last night alk was 10.7 cal was 360 so keep bring up mag and cal and alk should be good where it is with monitoring.

Is mag of 1200 enough to "saturate alk and cal" or does it need to be higher. Randy I saw your article called for around 1200 for best results.
 
If you decide to go B-ionic, buy the concentrated jugs of the stuff if you can get it.

The teeny-tiny little bottles that run about $15 lasted me about 2 weeks, so now I buy the concentrated jugs ($44 for the set at my LFS) and they last a good 3 months, allowing refills of the teeny bottles about 8 times :)

But Randy is right, you can follow a DIY recipe and save even more money ;)
 
Is mag of 1200 enough to "saturate alk and cal" or does it need to be higher. Randy I saw your article called for around 1200 for best results.

I generally recommend magnesium to be 1250 to 1350 ppm. :)
 
My mag has never ran that low while using reef crystals. Last time I checked it was at 1425 ppm. What brand test kit did you buy?
 
Last edited:
I was way behind on my WC's which are not back on track
After some large does of cal and mag and little alk my current params are
cal 430
DKH 9.3
Ni 0
Mag 1230
Ph 8.5-6

I dosed a small amount of alk this morning to bring dkh up from 8.6 and I think I should have left it alone now that my ph is high. How can alk be raised without bringing up ph?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14727438#post14727438 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Flightpipe
I was way behind on my WC's which are not back on track
After some large does of cal and mag and little alk my current params are
cal 430
DKH 9.3
Ni 0
Mag 1230
Ph 8.5-6

I dosed a small amount of alk this morning to bring dkh up from 8.6 and I think I should have left it alone now that my ph is high. How can alk be raised without bringing up ph?
Click to expand...

slowly.

I think I would have started with smaller frequent water changes instead of dosing this or that especially after you admitted that you are behind on water changes.

Good luck though sounds like you are working it out.
 
Raw being the key word here I dont imagine I can use the arm and hammer stuff for the fridge lol. I remember seeing it in one of your articles ill see if I can track it down.
 
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