Aquaforest KH Plus Issues

Zach W · Jun 25, 2018

I purchased aquaforest KH Plus to keep my alk stable over time and have come to realize either the usage instructions are not accurate or my batch is not as concentrated as advertised. I have a 20 gallon tank with roughly 14gal of total water volume. The instructions say that 10mL of KH Plus will raise the Alk of 27gal o.5 dKH, thus theoretically in my water volume (roughly half) 10mL should increase the dKH by 1.0 (0.1 per mL). I have found that this is not at all the case though. 5mL of the dilution is only raising my alk by 0.2 dKH. Are the usage instructions just wrong or did I get a bad batch?

SewerynAquaforest · Jun 25, 2018

Pls remember that that your tank has a daily consumption of Kh. When you add kh tank will "consume" kh in the same time.

Zach W · Jun 25, 2018

sever10 said:
Pls remember that that your tank has a daily consumption of Kh. When you add kh tank will "consume" kh in the same time.

Yes, I charted the daily consumption over a week without dosing anything to get a baseline of how much is being consumed. After the week I dosed to return the KH levels to where I want it to be. I followed the instructions on the package and it took way more then advertised to raise the KH from 6.3 to 7.5. According to the instructions 10mL in 13.5 gallons should raise the KH 1.0, but in reality it only raised the level 0.4. That is what my issue is, it is either not advertised properly or I have a less concentrated sample then normal.

Fishfinder · Jun 25, 2018

How long after dosing did you test? And what corals do you have?

Zach W · Jun 25, 2018

Fishfinder said:
How long after dosing did you test? And what corals do you have?

I tested 1hr after each addition to make sure I had enough water turnover. I only have a couple small frogs as the tank is only about 4 months old. I have two hammers, a frogspawn, a mushroom, a favia, and a blasto.

Fishfinder · Jun 25, 2018

According to your tank description and their instructions it should be raising higher than that. But there are a lot of factors that could lead to it not rising to the desired amount. Just for example (not saying anything was done wrong), water volume miscalculation, dose mismeasurement, coral consumption, precipitation, just to name a few, product falling out of solution, not completely mixed into your tank, just to name a few.

I would test the dose on a seperate bucket of water that has less variables and see what the result is. That would give you a good idea of the problem. (It would still be good for water change after the test is done)

Zach W · Jun 25, 2018

Fishfinder said:
According to your tank description and their instructions it should be raising higher than that. But there are a lot of factors that could lead to it not rising to the desired amount. Just for example (not saying anything was done wrong), water volume miscalculation, dose mismeasurement, coral consumption, precipitation, just to name a few, product falling out of solution, not completely mixed into your tank, just to name a few.

I would test the dose on a seperate bucket of water that has less variables and see what the result is. That would give you a good idea of the problem. (It would still be good for water change after the test is done)

I am quite confident that the total water volume is accurate and my dosing has been accurate as well since I have been using graduated syringes for every addition. I also did not see any evidence of precipitation upon additions. I can try mixing up a fresh batch of saltwater and doing an addition to that instead of my display water. I was just quite surprised at the lack of response with this product in my system.

Fishfinder · Jun 25, 2018

Give it a try in a seperate container and see what happens. Really I'm curious also, I use their component+ system

Zach W · Jun 26, 2018

So I just tested the solution in a fresh mixed gallon of saltwater. I use aquaforest reef salt as well, measured to 1.025 SG with a refractometer. And tested the waters Alk level using a Hanna Checker and it read out to be 7 on the dot (which is a separate issue because the batch specs say it should be 7.7 but that’s besides the point). I added 0.4mL (same percentage as 5mL in 13.5 gal, only off by 0.03) of the KH Plus with a syringe to the water and I got a boost of 0.2 dKH. Based on the instructions that ratio should give me a 0.5 dKH boost.

I am not trying to bash the product as I am using aquaforest salt and supplements and my corals are all happy and thriving, I really like the results I am getting. I am just trying to figure out if my batch is less concentrated then the rest or what is going on.

Fishfinder · Jun 27, 2018

Hmmm.... that's interesting. I don't use that particular product but I think you have a valid concern

marlinmon · Jun 27, 2018

I use this stuff continuously in my 90 gallon with no issues. Established a baseline and dosed accordingly. Perhaps you got a bad batch? I like Fishfinder's idea - test it out in a control.

Zach W · Jun 27, 2018

marlinmon said:
I use this stuff continuously in my 90 gallon with no issues. Established a baseline and dosed accordingly. Perhaps you got a bad batch? I like Fishfinder's idea - test it out in a control.

I did try the control idea, I put it in my last post here. Like I said I like the products I just think maybe I have a less concentrated batch or something? Real weird

Fishfinder · Jun 27, 2018

Ya I agree it is odd, have you tried to contact them?

Zach W · Jun 27, 2018

I could not find a USA based customer service number, and when I emailed the email address I found on their site (european email) I got a response with a link on "advice on how to use aquaforest products", and info about their facebook group, the group here, and a reefcentral group. I figure they have representatives floating on here or something? I am not sure, I have to look into that more, but on my initial look I did not see anything in terms of USA customer service

Fishfinder · Jun 27, 2018

@Aquaforest @Perry any ideas?

Anirban · Jun 27, 2018

@sever10
Can you help him out please.

Zach W · Jun 28, 2018

@Aquaforest reached out to me directly and resolved the issue. It turns out that there was a mistake is the product labeling for a batch or two and I happened to get one of them. The product is working as it is suppose to and it was just the labeling that was misleading me. They are sending me new material with the proper usage instructions. Good customer service!