Alk Cal Mag increasing without dosing???

pawleyssurfer · Mar 18, 2020

Hopefully someone might know the answer to this I’m not dissing anything But my alkalinity keeps rising slowly but it’s rising any ideas. It’s a 120 bare bottom with around 20sps frags and around 20 lps. It’s been up since January so it’s still new. Has rock in it that cured for 6 months prior. Attached are trident graphs. As well as ph graph for the last week. I have graphs all of which are similar from past month when I got the trident. The dip in alk cal and mag on graph is from a 15% water change with fritz rpm. Just checked the alk with the hanna checker twice and it came out at 10.5. I am stumped. PO4 is at .02 and nitrates are 5-10.

W1ngz · Mar 18, 2020

How is your salinity? Since all three major parameters seem to have a (slight) increase at the same time, it shows the overall concentration of everything is high.

Check your ATO and sump return section water line. It may be low.

pawleyssurfer · Mar 18, 2020

salinity is at 1.025 and has been stable the whole time. ATO has been working fine

Copingwithpods · Mar 18, 2020

Any stress events causing the corals to stop consuming the elements?

W1ngz · Mar 18, 2020

Copingwithpods said:
Any stress events causing the corals to stop consuming the elements?

Without dosing, that wouldn't cause an increase in Ca or Mg.

Copingwithpods · Mar 18, 2020

W1ngz said:
Without dosing, that wouldn't cause an increase in Ca or Mg.

You're right, with everything else being equal I can only think of the water change and possible pricipitants now being released

pawleyssurfer · Mar 18, 2020

I did battle Dinos for a week or so about a month ago and I have only done one water change since I set the tank up which was on Sunday and that brought parameters down a tiny bit which you can see in the graphs. but it is still increasing for some reason

W1ngz · Mar 18, 2020

The relative increase is small if you look at the numbers. I'd just monitor it for a while and maybe try and cross-check it with a regular test kit. Have you changed the trident reagents recently?

pawleyssurfer · Mar 18, 2020

I have cross checked it with a hanna today which came at alk being 10.5 but I am picking up a salifert or Red Sea kit when I get off work to try that. I will be changing reagent in the trident today as well to see if that changes anything

GoVols · Mar 18, 2020

I've seen a lot of Trident users getting false calcium readings, but maybe to user error.

Need to crosscheck (as you go) Trident, with good test kits

Alk can go up, if nitrates go down.

That's a real young real too.

GoVols · Mar 18, 2020

pawleyssurfer said:
I have cross checked it with a hanna today which came at alk being 10.5 but I am picking up a salifert or Red Sea kit when I get off work to try that. I will be changing reagent in the trident today as well to see if that changes anything

Keep crosschecking all your big 3 against your Trident, there's already Neptune tickets being made with other Trident users.

pawleyssurfer · Mar 18, 2020

GoVols said:
Keep crosschecking all your big 3 against your Trident, there's already Neptune tickets being made with other Trident users.

what do you mean tickets?

GoVols · Mar 18, 2020

pawleyssurfer said:
what do you mean tickets?

Neptune Systems costumer support help, you have to make a ticket on their website.

pawleyssurfer · Mar 18, 2020

GoVols said:
Neptune Systems costumer support help, you have to make a ticket on their website.

oh gotcha

GoVols · Mar 18, 2020

pawleyssurfer said:
oh gotcha

Yeah,
Just keep crosschecking against or Trident, so you'll know if you need their customer service or not.

Here's where you fill out a help ticket, if need be, in the future.

Contact Support

TO CONTACT NEPTUNE SYSTEMS SUPPORT, FOLLOW THESE STEPS and Fill out the To Contact Support Form: Find the the serial number of your system Via the display screen> Self Test Via Apex Fusion> Apex List/Selection Visit www.ApexFusion.com and please add "neptunesupport" with "manager...

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