Zinc levels

[Scotty333!!!]

Guys
Would high zinc levels affect my softies?
Level is 0.02 , range is 0.001-.0.007

 

[griss]

Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve never tested for zinc.

 

[Scotty333!!!]

It’s like 15x the correct level, I think it’s come from my rodi cos it was 12 2 weeks ago before I noticed and put a new membrane on
Other than the orp might be too high I have no idea why half of my softies are complaining

 

[griss]

Honestly, I think you might be chasing numbers a bit too much. Seems you’re trying to adjust too many things at once. Maybe take a step back, slow down and focus on one parameter at a time. Remember, nothing good happens fast in this hobby.

 

[Scotty333!!!]

Will see if another water change helps otherwise I’m stumped

 

[shred5]

Zinc is one of those things no one really knows too much about.
We know it is needed and we know it is not good in high levels. What is too high?
Zinc can come from creams, additives or corrosion. I remember reading someone had it come from their frame of their screen on top their tank that was corroding.
I do not think zinc is the issue, aluminum has been known to irritate softies though.

I am not chemistry expert at all.

Have you changed lighting? Increase in lighting certainly can cause then to close up. I added two more lights to my lagoon and now my softies close up towards evening to decrease mass so they take in less light. They will eventually adapt.

I tend to agree with Griss.

 

[Scotty333!!!]

I’m just going off the icp which plenty do, so what’s the point in doing one if you’re not going to do anything about it?
My boron and barilium are also high but was told that the zinc is more of an issue

My light dropped in the tank and blew so lightings down from 100 par to 20 so it’s not that that’s closing them up

 

[shred5]

I’m just going off the icp which plenty do, so what’s the point in doing one if you’re not going to do anything about it?
My boron and barilium are also high but was told that the zinc is more of an issue

My light dropped in the tank and blew so lightings down from 100 par to 20 so it’s not that that’s closing them up

The thing is ICP recommendations are just that recommendations. What are they based on? probably what is in natural seawater.

ICP is not always that accurate and can not test for everything. You might have chemical warfare going on.

ICP test are a tool and usually more accurate than a hobby test kit but not always.

Not every trace element has been tested in the hobby to know what levels toxic and what is not or what is too low. I doubt we even know everything a coral even needs or uses.

It is like taking vitamin C for humans. There is a recommended dosage but does it hurt taking more?

I have only seen one zinc test and it was on sps. High levels did affect it.

I get a icp test once a year or if something really seems off and can not be corrected with a water change. I have not had one in several years now. Reason I do it is I have had a pump rust in my tank and cause all kinds of issues. It was a cheap Chinese pump and they did not epoxy the motor well enough. So I like to test for metals. I know other who have had Ecotech Vortex where the magnets swell up and cause issues. Usually you can not see the issue. Magnets we use in our tanks and the blades.

By the way ICP testing in the hobby is fairly new. I would also bet the majority of the people in this hobby never get one. It is a great tool though.

Personally I do not know much about zinc in a reef aquarium. Doing a search it seems to come up high often on icp. I do not see anyone having issues with their tank due to it, just showing high on ICP. Is yours a issue I do not know but I doubt it. I just saw a post by RHF where he says the same.


You seem really enthusiastic about the hobby which is great. You also seem to do allot with your tank. The issue when you do so much it is hard to pinpoint what has changed that might cause the issue. It nice to change something and see if it has a positive or negative result over time. I mean even changing salt can impact a aquarium and sometime it is temporary while corals adjust. I have had bad salt before where a element is way to low or way to high. The whole issue could be salt.

 

[shred5]

Just so you know too salts can stratify. One element might be more at the top and less at the bottom or vise versa. This is why I prefer boxes with smaller bags in them vs buckets.

 

[Scotty333!!!]

Wow! Big write up , thanks

Well as for salt I’ve been using aqua forest reef salt for some time now and always shake the bag , I’m moving over to nsw from now though so hopefully things will improve
Thanks again

 

[griss]

For buckets of salt, I always roll them around for a while before I use them.

 

[Scotty333!!!]

Not been buying 25kg but just 7.5
Going with nsw now so no more messing