Analyzing my Triton Test

[tcoyle]

Here is my Triton Test. Any thoughts on the numbers? I find it interesting that my Mag is low as my Red Sea kit always shows over 1400 ppm..

Also how do I calculate some of these readings.. In particular the P04, Ca, Mg and Na

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

What do you mean by "Also how do I calculate some of these readings.. In particular the P04, Ca, Mg and Na "?

I'd look to raise potassium, and probably magnesium.

I don't generally think supplemental iodine is useful, but if you think it might be, you might look to regular dosing of it.

 

[tcoyle]

like how do I convert the readings to ppm?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

like how do I convert the readings to ppm?

They are already in mg/L, which many people quote and even use interchangeably with ppm (incorrectly), but to get ppm (which is mg/kg not mg/L), you can divide by the density of seawater, or about 1.024.

So 1300 mg/L --> 1270 ppm

 

[tcoyle]

Thanks Randy! So I am I correct that they recommend me doing a one time dose of 158 ml of potassium and how much is safe to dose at once. I have some Red Sea Color B that would bring both potassium and boron up some.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I do not know how concentrated or pure the solutions are (which impact how much volume and how much at once) but I'd raise the potassium over at least a couple of days.

For potassium, you can also use Iherb food grade:

http://www.iherb.com/Now-Foods-Potassium-Chloride-Powder-8-oz-227-g/777

 

[biom]

You will need about 72 ml of Red Sea Color B to rise potassium levels with 50 mg/l. From my experience is safe to rise it with 10 mg/l per day. So I would spread 72 ml dose in 6 days (12 ml daily). We don't know how much boron is in Red Sea Color B, they stated in MSDS that there is 1-5% Sodium tetraborate * 10H2O which is ok in your case because even if it is 5% will add less boron than you needed according triton test.

 

[tcoyle]

biom, how did you come up with those figure> I don't see the concentration of the Red Sea Color B. The Triton report says for me to dose 158ml to get back to a good level. Hopefully I did not mess up as I dosed 50ml of it last night and was planning on splitting up the 158ml in 3 doses. Guess I will wait a few more days and just dose 12 ml until I hit the 72ml that you suggest.

 

[biom]

you can find it on the bottle or on their web site or in the manual and it is: 1ml will raise the potassium level of 100 liters (25 gal) by 1.75ppm. So 72 ml is approx. i did't calculate specific gravity of solution but it is ok like this I believe.

yes, the Triton report says to dose 158ml but from their own solution. Every manufacturer produces solutions with concentrations that could vary greatly.

 

[tcoyle]

Gotcha, some how I didn't get that when I read it. Hopefully my dose yesterday will not cause any issues. Today is water change day any how.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

You will need about 72 ml of Red Sea Color B to rise potassium levels with 50 mg/l. From my experience is safe to rise it with 10 mg/l per day. So I would spread 72 ml dose in 6 days (12 ml daily). We don't know how much boron is in Red Sea Color B, they stated in MSDS that there is 1-5% Sodium tetraborate * 10H2O which is ok in your case because even if it is 5% will add less boron than you needed according triton test.

Have you seen issues raising it faster than 10 mg/L per day?

 

[biom]

Have you seen issues raising it faster than 10 mg/L per day?

Not 100% sure but occasionally raised with about 70 mg/l and noticed polyp retraction and extra mucous production in area close to the inlet pipe (dosed into the sump, actually this coral behavior forced me to realize that I'm doing something wrong), it is possible this reaction was provoked by raised salinity. But to be on the safe side decide 10 mg/l per day is my upper limit.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Not 100% sure but occasionally raised with about 70 mg/l and noticed polyp retraction and extra mucous production in area close to the inlet pipe (dosed into the sump, actually this coral behavior forced me to realize that I'm doing something wrong), it is possible this reaction was provoked by raised salinity. But to be on the safe side decide 10 mg/l per day is my upper limit.

Thanks, Stoyan.

 

[tcoyle]

Thanks for all your help… Even with my high dose the other day, everything seems fine. So who makes a good quality test kit for Potassium? I hear the Red Sea one is kind of touchy and not very accurate.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I didn't find the ones I used especially precise. The tank water I tested with the Fauna Marin kit did not look much different than a true seawater standard (with normal potassium) I had for other reasons, so I most recently relied on Triton to confirm that potassium did not seem to deplete in my tank, and I have not worried about it since then.

 

[tcoyle]

Kind of what I thought and now I'm not sure how to maintain my potassium level after dosing what back to where I need to be. Guess I'll just add a little once a week or so.