What does vinegar do??? how much vodka??

[luk81a]

Just getting into sps corals cause they, in my mind, are the pinnicle of reef keeping. Just not too sure if I know what im getting myself into. Might sound like a stupid question but what does vinegar do? and when vodka dosing how do you know how much to use.

Setting up dosing pumps seems tricky but that is what I have planed. What are the main fundementals? Ca, Mg, KH ??? auto top off????

Any guidance is greatly appreciated.

 

[M88A2]

vinegar serves the same purpose as vodka, sugar, and biopelets. they add carbon to the system and promote the growth of certain bacteria to take up nitrates and phosphate in your water. the bacteria are then take out of the system via a skimmer. a good skimmer is a must for this method. you should do lots of reading on the subject before jumping into it. here is a link to get you on the right track.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/index.php

 

[Spar]

does/can vinegar dosing have the same negative effects on SPS that Biopellets are known to do? E.g. some bleaching of corals?

I had an issue where biopellets were halting growth of / killing coralline even. Within a week after I stopped using biopellets my coralline started growing back.

Think vinegar/vodka, etc, will have a different result?

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

They are all ways to lower nitrates, they all have different characteristics, one big difference with vinegar is that it immediately lowers the ph of a tank. Vodka is a more pure carbon source because it's usually triple distilled. sugar is probably the worst of all because of the impurities that can be in with the sugar.

They are all effective in removing nitrates if done properly, the link that M88A2 posted is a great way to initiate carbon dosing.

As for alkalinity, calcium and magnesium, they are the fundamental chemicals that SPS coral need to thrive in a reef tank, they all need to be maintained at a certain level either by using a set of dosing pumps or a calcium reactor. Stability is key when it comes to keeping SPS corals, if you're new to the reef hobby I would suggest you try your hand at easier corals just so you can fine tune your skills and know what needs to be done if something goes wrong, once you have a good grasp on things then you can jump into the SPS arena. Of course this is my opinion, some people jump right in and have tons of problems not to mention hurting the pocket book and some are quick learners.

 

[Spar]

Thanks. I will read up on the Vodka dosing. Mainly interested to just see what the difference in negative impacts the various options have. Obviously Biopellets have their downsides, but don't see a lot of people saying anything negative about Vinegar or Vodka.

Understood on the other parameters. Been doing SPS for 8 years, have managed to get my 'art' of keeping Alk/Ca/Mg pretty much spot on day-to-day. Maybe the link will discuss this, but does vodka or vinegar have a noticeable effect on those parameters? I guess any added acid can reduce at least Alk?

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Yes it lowers PH which is tied into alk, one downside to dosing vodka is that the carbon seems to feed and promote the growth of cyano bacteria, which if not kept in check will become a hassle.

 

[FragIt Dan]

Vodka or Vinegar dosing will have no significant effect on your dKh, Mg, Ca or pH. The amount of Vinegar you dose may have a tiny effect on pH in the short term, but your tank will reestablish equilibrium with ambient CO2 fast enough it is of little consequence.