2 part help please! Asap!

[MattL22]

Ok I switched to 2part with brs dosers few weeks ago

I ran the tubes into the water of my sump and it clogged ! So my levels went outta whack my alk is 6 and my cal 520
I fixed my dossers !

So do I keep dosing equal parts will it correct it self? Or should I adjust the cal to dose way less??

Please help my sps r taking a big hit

 

[Laird]

It will not just correct itself, in fact it will just get worse. I'd do a water change, test again, then adjust accordingly. But just letting it do its thing will just make it worse. You don't want to dose equal parts until both your parameters are exactly where you want them each to be.

If you aren't going to do a water change, which you should, then stop dosing Cal completely and just dose alk until its at the level you want it to. As you bring your alk up your cal will come down. But right now its way to high and you should really just do a decent size water change.

 

[MattL22]

Ok that's what I was thinking !!! Will stop the cal ASAP !! Give it few days see if it creeps back to normal if not coming down I'll do 15 gal wc

 

[sluicebox]

Matt,

Do not put the ends of the tubes underwater....they will clog. Leave them above the water surface and let it drip. BRS has a dose calculator on their website that should help you figure out how much to dose to bring the Alk levels up to where you want.

 

[Steelerfan747]

Great advice from above. I would stop dosing calcium until its back to where it should be. I would also not do a large water change as the large fluctuations both ways could be stressful. just change a little bit at a time.

 

[MattL22]

The calcium portion was unplugged last night I will check it when I get home !! I really hope this is my last setback for a while I try so hard put so much time into trying to grow a sps reef not to mention hundreds $ on frags I could never quit this hobby it's just too much of who I am now but man it sure is frustrating !

 

[MattL22]

One of my biggest mistakes was not checking my cal often enough I check my alk every day but cal rarely will now check 2-3 times a week as part of normal routine

 

[duke62]

Hey Matt to many people in the past 4 months have lost there tanks due to alk swings from there doser. I would really look into getting a Calcium reactor.

 

[mic209]

Ok I switched to 2part with brs dosers few weeks ago

I ran the tubes into the water of my sump and it clogged ! So my levels went outta whack my alk is 6 and my cal 520
I fixed my dossers !

So do I keep dosing equal parts will it correct it self? Or should I adjust the cal to dose way less??

Please help my sps r taking a big hit

Are you dosing ALK and CA in equal amounts? Typically, a tank uses more ALK than CA so your ALK dosage should be higher than your CA.

 

[MattL22]

Yes I was dosing equal amounts but the tubes got clogged and the levels got all outta whack !!

Now this is the question isn't 2 part ment to be added in equal amounts??? I'm planning not add cal till my levels get back to normal then continue adding equal parts??

 

[cryptics]

Matt,

That is what the instructions say but I don't know anyone who does. It is always a little more of one over the other. Right now i am switching from Kalk to 2 part also. I have very few sps and no huge calcuim draw in my system (z&p's and a few chalices). I am dialing in the amounts right now but 30ml's of alk and 12 ml's of calcuim seems to keep me at 9.7 dkh and 450 calcuim. People with a better understanding than me might chime in as too why but you should be testing Mag also regularly. Mag acts as the buffer that keeps alk and calcuim in harmony. If your Mag is off your calcuim and alk can get out of whack quick. What 2 part are you using?

 

[robf]

Ok I have a question. I run kalk via tlf reactor attached to reef keeper and ATO. As long as Ph is below 8.2 it uses this system. When it's higher than 8.2 another pump in ATO runs straight Ro for top off. I Also run dosing pumps with 2 part and Mg. can I eventually rid myself of kalk or will I still want it for ph swings. Does 1 part alleviate ph swing?

 

[mic209]

Yes I was dosing equal amounts but the tubes got clogged and the levels got all outta whack !!

Now this is the question isn't 2 part ment to be added in equal amounts??? I'm planning not add cal till my levels get back to normal then continue adding equal parts??

No it's not ment to be used in equal parts. Your tank will deplete alkalinity at a faster rate than calcium so you will always dose more ALK supplement than calcium. Best thing to do is to test ALK and Calcium daily until you get a good idea of how much your ALK and CA is dropping over a 24 hour period. After you know how much your ALK and CA is dropping, use one of the online 2 part calculators (BRS has a good one) to find your daily dose. Now unless you know exactly how how many gallons of water is in your tank, you'll have to tweak your dosages so test daily for another week or so and fine tune your dosage. Also, maintaining proper magnesium levels is important to keep ALK and CA stable. Magnesium can be tested on a weekly basis or as needed.

 

[MattL22]

So now I'm dosing upwards of 40 ml of just alk a day won't stay at 7 and even though I'm not dosing any cal it hasnt come down in 3 or 4 days from 520
Btw tested mag today and it's 1400

 

[Rockadile]

Yes I was dosing equal amounts but the tubes got clogged and the levels got all outta whack !!

Now this is the question isn't 2 part ment to be added in equal amounts??? I'm planning not add cal till my levels get back to normal then continue adding equal parts??

nope they are ment to be added as your tank needs. 1 pt is alk the other is calcium. typical tanks use more alk then calcium.

 

[MattL22]

So vie changed 10 gal today and the cal has not droped at all actually I think it went up a ppm vie only dosed alk for a week and my cal is still 520 and I can't get alk up too 8

Any ideas I don't wanna do a lg wc but will as last resort but I have most sps so don't like anything that will change too much too quick

 

[Grant W]

Matt, the alk is going to go up as the ca comes down. Your mag is in the right range. My dumb analogy for the top two is this. They are like a bag with 100 marbles in it, if one side goes up the other will go down and theres nothing you can do about it. They ca will go down allowing the alk to come up. Water change with just slow the process as the fresh salt mix will prob have elevated levels of both alk and ca. Stop dosing ca and watch your numbers for a while. They will balance especially if you keep your mag at the right. Levels. Hang in there Bud. Grant

 

[MattL22]

Thank you grant finally an answer!! This is what I figured but needed confirmation i did 10 gal water change so I'll cut that out! I got my alk up too 8 which is what I wanted so I'll just test every day ! Keep an eye on things

 

[MattL22]

One more question would using kalk temporarily instead of the 1 part alk
Help balance things out!

 

[Grant W]

It might bring it up too quickly, I would just let the ca drift down and keep monitoring it daily. Btw keep doing your regular water changes. Dont want to start another problem. Have you tested your salt mix to see where it's at?