Alkalinity 6.7

[Madonia]

Consistently my alkalinity is 6.7.

This is via Hanna alk checker

Is this a problem that needs to be addressed immediately? I have a mix of SPS (that I just added) and LPS. The LPS have been doing very well. The SPS don’t look as great as when I first added them.

 

[motortrendz]

Do you dose 2 part?

 

[Madonia]

Do you dose 2 part?

I purchased seachem Reef fusion 1/2.
I just started dosing the other day.
Can I stick with this product to raise the alkalinity? Or should I choose a different product? How quickly should I raise it? And what is the optimum level?

 

[motortrendz]

I dont know that product, is it a calcium and alkalinity suppliment? And I'd get it up to 8dkh, that's a good starting point.

 

[NanoDJS]

dose part 2 of that to raise your alk to 9ish for mixed reef
read the instructions for your size tank ect

 

[GabeM]

Don't raise your alk more than 1dkh per day

 

[Madonia]

Over the course of how long should I raise it to 8?

 

[Madonia]

Don't raise your alk more than 1dkh per day

Thank you

 

[mitch91175]

I purchased seachem Reef fusion 1/2.
I just started dosing the other day.
Can I stick with this product to raise the alkalinity? Or should I choose a different product? How quickly should I raise it? And what is the optimum level?

First I’d say get a new reagent to confirm. Maybe even a separate test kit to get a good idea of where you really are with dKH. Sometimes those reagents are bad even when new. I’ve had it happen before.

Once you are aware of your somewhat actual dKH then you need to know how much you consume over a period of time. Once you know that then you can begin your dosing regiment. If your dKH is low you can increase it without issue. Just try not to go any further than 1dKH a day. Not that it’ll kill everything is a little more, but better to be safe than sorry. Some SPS tanks have 1dKH swings during the day anyways.

As far as the ideal dKH value, it’s more about keeping a consistent range rather than a specific range. You can always keep your parameters close to those of natural sea water.

I would say stay away from SPS coral until you understand your system better. You’re just gonna kill a lot of coral potentiallyat the same time waste a lot of money.

SPS coral aren’t as difficult to keep as some make it seem, you just have to know your system and do what it takes to care for them.

Also if your dKH is consistently 6.7 you have zero consumption which doesn’t seem possible if you have some type of stony coral.

 

[Brian barranco]

Raise it and just keep it stable. I keep my at 9.5.

 

[Madonia]

After adding the doses of reef fusion 1/2, recheck is 7.1

 

[lilgrounchuck]

I’ve been using 1 and 2 with great results. You need to see how much your tank consumes in 24 hrs and dose accordingly. I’ve been dosing manually, once every morning, for the last six months. I just added a doser controller by my new reef pi build a week and some change ago and spread out the dosing over the 24 hrs period and things already seem happier. That said, I’d recommend dosing manually to start to get a feel for what your tank is doing. I think if had automated from the get go I’d have messed my chemistry up by developing lazy testing habits early on while dosing.

 

[Madonia]

First I’d say get a new reagent to confirm. Maybe even a separate test kit to get a good idea of where you really are with dKH. Sometimes those reagents are bad even when new. I’ve had it happen before.

Once you are aware of your somewhat actual dKH then you need to know how much you consume over a period of time. Once you know that then you can begin your dosing regiment. If your dKH is low you can increase it without issue. Just try not to go any further than 1dKH a day. Not that it’ll kill everything is a little more, but better to be safe than sorry. Some SPS tanks have 1dKH swings during the day anyways.

As far as the ideal dKH value, it’s more about keeping a consistent range rather than a specific range. You can always keep your parameters close to those of natural sea water.

I would say stay away from SPS coral until you understand your system better. You’re just gonna kill a lot of coral potentiallyat the same time waste a lot of money.

SPS coral aren’t as difficult to keep as some make it seem, you just have to know your system and do what it takes to care for them.

Also if your dKH is consistently 6.7 you have zero consumption which doesn’t seem possible if you have some type of stony coral.

The SPS was added over the course of the last week or two. There are about 6 sps frags total. I’m just trying to salvage them at this point. I definitely added them too soon but it’s too late to cry over spilled milk. I won’t add anymore, I just need to try my best to keep these alive.

Biocube 32gallon
Lights: Steve’s LED (@52% blue, 21% white)
Phosphates: 0.1ppm
Nitrates: 0.5ppm
Alk: now 7.1
Mg: 1410
Salinity: 1.025
Temp:79.5

 

[mitch91175]

The SPS was added over the course of the last week or two. There are about 6 sps frags total. I’m just trying to salvage them at this point. I definitely added them too soon but it’s too late to cry over spilled milk. I won’t add anymore, I just need to try my best to keep these alive.

Biocube 32gallon
Lights: Steve’s LED (@52% blue, 21% white)
Phosphates: 0.1ppm
Nitrates: 0.5ppm
Alk: now 7.1
Mg: 1410
Salinity: 1.025
Temp:79.5

The parameters above do not scream problem. Lowering PO4 some is fine but 0.1ppm isn't drastic either. You may want to look at coral placement too. Sometimes putting SPS in under different light they need to acclimate. If lighting too high they can/will bleach.

Also flow plays a part in them being happy. Try not to have direct flow hitting them constantly.