All for reef dialling in

[scotty333]

Guys
I’m switching to afr tomorrow, will make 2 litres and put on 2 doser heads 25ml each

I worked out 55ml is for .8 kh usage but how do you dial it in ?

Just set the dosers to dose 1ml per hour and leave it ? Is it likely my kh will lower from 10.5 to like 9 then creep back up to 10.5 ??

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

You have to test every day to dial it in, then keep testing every day for a few days to make sure it stays where you want. It took me about 3 weeks to get it right. Even dialed in I still test every 2 or 3 days.

 

[scotty333]

What took 3 weeks?
I mean I believe testing is tricky for the first couple of days
But what were your results like?
Start kh
Set amount in ml
Test after 6 hours
Test after 24 hours
What adjustments did you make

Any info like that please?

 

[Vinaka_vakalevu]

What took 3 weeks?
I mean I believe testing is tricky for the first couple of days
But what were your results like?
Start kh
Set amount in ml
Test after 6 hours
Test after 24 hours

Any info like that please?

Because of how AFR adds Alk it will not show up in 6 hours, or 24 hours it will take around 3 days for the alk from AFR to become noticeable

 

[scotty333]

Because of how AFR adds Alk it will not show up in 6 hours, or 24 hours it will take around 3 days for the alk from AFR to become noticeable

So if I’m at 10.5 it’ll reduce to 9.7 day 1 8.9 day 2 then the afr will show up how? Straight to 10.5 ?

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

What took 3 weeks?
I mean I believe testing is tricky for the first couple of days
But what were your results like?
Start kh
Set amount in ml
Test after 6 hours
Test after 24 hours
What adjustments did you make

Any info like that please?

You know that AFR maintains alk, it will not increase it? You have to use buffer to increase alk then work with AFR to maintain it, but as mentioned, it takes a few days for it to start working. This is what dialing in means, working with the buffer and AFR until you get it right.

 

[Vinaka_vakalevu]

No, it will level out your consumption and your dkh will stay the same. It will be as tho you are not dosing the 3 or so days it takes AFR to show as alk and then you will find alk stability which will still take dialing in over a couple week period.

 

[scotty333]

You know that AFR maintains alk, it will not increase it? You have to use buffer to increase alk then work with AFR to maintain it, but as mentioned, it takes a few days for it to start working. This is what dialing in means, working with the buffer and AFR until you get it right.

I don’t want to increase it but maintain it wherever it falls between 8-10

 

[scotty333]

No, it will level out your consumption and your dkh will stay the same. It will be as tho you are not dosing the 3 or so days it takes AFR to show as alk and then you will find alk stability which will still take dialing in over a couple week period.

So I can let it drop to say 8.9 then it’ll maintain that?

 

[Vinaka_vakalevu]

I don’t want to increase it but maintain it wherever it falls between 8-10

I would supplementally dose alk alone no calcium for those couple of days when making the transition to AFR. Your corals would not like a .8 swing 3 days in a row.

 

[scotty333]

I would supplementally dose alk alone no calcium for those couple of days when making the transition to AFR. Your corals would not like a .8 swing 3 days in a row.

A swing down shouldn’t be noticed imo , I mean how do corals notice that?
Up, yes because they’ll stall to get used to the new level

 

[Pod_01]

When I switched to AFR at the beginning I checked Alk once a day (once every 24 hours). I don’t recall big swing at start and at 0.8kh consumption you may see some drop. I would keep same dose and only increase the dose if alk keeps going down after 3 or 4 days. You can always bump up Alk with baking soda if you feel the drop is too much.
If you have correct dose you will observe very stable alk. Later I was checking Alk less frequently…


Good luck,

 

[areefer01]

I don’t want to increase it but maintain it wherever it falls between 8-10

That is a range vs something a bit more specific. Have you looked at the All For Reef instructions by any chance? That is what @Mr. Mojo Rising was getting at. Tropic Marin recommends getting the water chemistry to the desired levels, calculate the dose, then start from there. It is easier to work with when you have your chemistry to desired levels.

Alkalinity can take some time to show up when dosing AFR which is why they suggest using whatever product you want to manually correct. Same is true with calcium and magnesium. Get levels to what you desire then start dosing AFR.

 

[scotty333]

Afr online at 50ml , kh 10.5 will check tonight again

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

You know that AFR maintains alk, it will not increase it? You have to use buffer to increase alk then work with AFR to maintain it, but as mentioned, it takes a few days for it to start working. This is what dialing in means, working with the buffer and AFR until you get it right.

Why not? It will be fine to raise alk with AFR. The calcium rise is small, if that is what concerns you.

 

[rishma]

You know that AFR maintains alk, it will not increase it? You have to use buffer to increase alk then work with AFR to maintain it, but as mentioned, it takes a few days for it to start working. This is what dialing in means, working with the buffer and AFR until you get it right.

I disagree with this. AFR absolutely can raise alkalinity. It adds alkalinity along with other elements, therefore it can increase them in the tank. There is 6000 dKH in an ml if AFR.

AFR might not be the best supplement to make major changes in these levels, but it certainly does increase them if dosed at a greater rate than consumption.

I have increased my Alk many times with AFR.

 

[areefer01]

I disagree with this. AFR absolutely can raise alkalinity. It adds alkalinity along with other elements, therefore it can increase them in the tank. There is 6000 dKH in an ml if AFR.

AFR might not be the best supplement to make major changes in these levels, but it certainly does increase them if dosed at a greater rate than consumption.

I have increased my Alk many times with AFR.

Yes, you can. It is just slower due to how the product works. There can be lag time of the incremental dose test results. This is why Tropic Marin recommends manual adjustments with your favorite 2 part or equivalent. This isn't anything you don't already know though.

My guess is that they are just talking about making manual corrections using whatever product they have or prefer. Of course your mileage may vary.

 

[jk1knight]

I started dosing AFR at 50 ml/day on my 210g reef. Through periodic testing, I slowly increased to 75ml/day. My calcium levels are always perfect. I test Sunday to Sunday then calculate a daily need and then dial in the dosing pump. I do have to add additional alkalinity in addition to the AFR, but maybe that is just my tank. I now test Sunday to Sunday one week a month and adjust. Testing more frequently in the beginning may be beneficial to dial everything in faster. I personally like the digital test for Alk from BRS. I am still doing 40 gallon water changes every 7-10 days with Red Sea Coral Salt. There are a lot of variables. Every tank is different. Best results are had with a combination of math + trial/error.

 

[Joe.D]

I used AFR and tested and kind of got it to where I wanted. I then switched to the mode on my Trident that doses to a desired Alk level and the dosing gets adjusted to maintain that level (or close to it). That seems to work well for me.

 

[rishma]

I used AFR and tested and kind of got it to where I wanted. I then switched to the mode on my Trident that doses to a desired Alk level and the dosing gets adjusted to maintain that level (or close to it). That seems to work well for me.

Given the delay in a dose turning to alkalinity, I always worried about automating with a Trident. In my tank it takes 1-2 days to see the full affect of a dose. it is great that it’s working well for you.