B-Ionic 2 part so DILUTED!?!?

[Miami Reef]

Just purchased this for my +-300 gallon tank. My livestock is non existent. Tiny little soft coral frags. It’s a new tank because I started with dead rock.

Anyway Calcium was 415ppm so I dosed 150ml of this and it raised it to 430ppm. I tested after 10 mins from dosing.

Already half the bottle is gone. I use natural sea water and planned to get this automated, but this dosing amount is really not doing it for me.

How do those massive aquariums manage their calcium and Alkalinity? They must have the most efficient system because they won’t have time dosing millions of ml per x time.

This is what I purchased: https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/64-oz-package-esv-b-ionic-calcium-buffer-system.html

I needed to use 300ml to raise Alk from 6.5 to 8.

 

[Miami Reef]

FYI If you will suggest a more concentrated version, please refrain from any DIY home-ingredient projects. I want something fool proof. Mix x water in bottle + x powder and be done with it.

 

[Nick Steele]

On a tank that big you will either need to buy the bulk esv or probably use a calcium reactor

 

[blasterman]

We don't buy water. That's what you are paying for. Plain old water in a plastic bottle with a pennys worth of calcium chloride. Whats the profit margin on that stuff? 1000 % ?

We buy dry calcium chloride by the pound and baking soda by the pound. We then dilute it how we wish.

 

[blasterman]

Also, with a 300 gal tank and just some soft corals frags you are wasting your money dosing calcium at all.

415 was likely what your salt mix started at. Nothing in that tank is consuming calcium and going from 415 to 430 won't change a thing .

 

[schuby]

For me (and likely others), I only use my B-Ionic 2-part to maintain my Alk and Ca levels. I use a specific Ca supplement (Brightwell Calcion) to increase Ca and a specific Alk supplement (SeaChem Reef Builder) to increase Alk.

To decrease levels, I reduce or stop that portion of the 2-part.

The 2-part is not meant to adjust levels.

 

[mdb_talon]

300 gallons is a lot of volume and what you had to add does not seem unreasonable to me. I undertand you may not want to mix your own and that is fine... but the downside is you are going to need to buy this stuff by the tanker load if you get to the point of having a lot of growing coral (or even corraline). Right now your calc useage should be almost none. Alk may go down some due to biological processes, but should be a relatively small decline

The other issue you have working against you is you are using NSW water, but wanting parameters above NSW levels. Every waterchange is going to work against you in regards to your calc/alk levels. Basically you are pouring those additives down the drain every waterchange you do.

 

[tehmadreefer]

Until you get HEAVY into sps, no need to even dose... water changes are suitable for softies and lps

 

[Miami Reef]

300 gallons is a lot of volume and what you had to add does not seem unreasonable to me. I undertand you may not want to mix your own and that is fine... but the downside is you are going to need to buy this stuff by the tanker load if you get to the point of having a lot of growing coral (or even corraline). Right now your calc useage should be almost none. Alk may go down some due to biological processes, but should be a relatively small decline

The other issue you have working against you is you are using NSW water, but wanting parameters above NSW levels. Every waterchange is going to work against you in regards to your calc/alk levels. Basically you are pouring those additives down the drain every waterchange you do.

Wow. What you said is true. Let’s say I have a full tank for hard corals and I only do a water change once a month with NSW...Won’t the corals die from the difference? Going from 8-12dkh to 6-7dkh?

I plan to have the doser eventually take over...Does that mean once a month I will need to make a big dose to the NSW?

I pay $120 per month on the water changes. I can use/store as much water as I want when the truck comes. I personally don’t take any of the water. He just siphons it out and fills it back in.

 

[Miami Reef]

Also, I don’t think I’m going to do monthly changes when the tank becomes stable. Triton method sounds way easier and cheaper.

 

[mdb_talon]

Wow. What you said is true. Let’s say I have a full tank for hard corals and I only do a water change once a month with NSW...Won’t the corals die from the difference? Going from 8-12dkh to 6-7dkh?

I plan to have the doser eventually take over...Does that mean once a month I will need to make a big dose to the NSW?

I pay $120 per month on the water changes. I can use/store as much water as I want when the truck comes. I personally don’t take any of the water. He just siphons it out and fills it back in.

If we assume the NSW being delivered is about 7dkh and you want to keep yours at 8 a water change certainly wont be enough to kill anything. Even a 50% change (which i assume you are not doing that large) is only going to drop it by .5dkh. Now if you are keeping your dkh at 11 and do a large water change with 7dkh I would start to worry.

Again though as you are learning with 300g system it is going to take a lot of bionic to raise alk/calc even minimal amounts. However more concerning will be if you get to the point you have a heavily stocked tank of growing LPS/SPS. Will take a lot of dosing to keep up. I mean bionic may be reasonable to maintain your levels in a lightly stocked or mostly softy large tank or in a small tank more heavily stocked.

At least for now I would not even attempt to raise your levels above NSW unless you just like pouring bionic in If parameters drop below NSW then go for it. Maybe try to keep your calc at 415/420 and alk at 6.5-7. That should keep it pretty close to what your NSW water comes in at.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

FYI If you will suggest a more concentrated version, please refrain from any DIY home-ingredient projects. I want something fool proof. Mix x water in bottle + x powder and be done with it.

lol

DIY is more fool proof and more concentrated than buying from any company. But you asked to not hear the best option, so I won't give it.

 

[Miami Reef]

lol

DIY is more fool proof and more concentrated than buying from any company. But you asked to not hear the best option, so I won't give it.

Wait. Upon further research I want the DIY option!!!!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

FWIW, it takes 150 mL of B-ionic to boost 300 gallons by 1 dKH. no commercial two part will be a lot mroe potent, but a DIY using hydroxide is.

Anyway, big aquariums likely use CaCO3/CO2 reactors.

 

[Miami Reef]

FWIW, it takes 150 mL of B-ionic to boost 300 gallons by 1 dKH. no commercial two part will be a lot mroe potent, but a DIY using hydroxide is.

Anyway, big aquariums likely use CaCO3/CO2 reactors.

I found your article on the DIY recipe! The calcium chloride dihydrate per 2.5 gallons of water is what the recipe suggests. Do you think this is a strong enough ratio for me? I’m going to hook this to a doser eventually, and I’m going to find the exact dose by starting at NSW base and slowly adding until levels are perfect.

What ratio should I do?

 

[Miami Reef]

@Randy Holmes-Farley I noticed you said hydroxide but your article says dihydrate. I’m assuming I found the wring recipe?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

@Randy Holmes-Farley I noticed you said hydroxide but your article says dihydrate. I’m assuming I found the wring recipe?

I meant hydroxide, if what you want is something more potent than B-ionic. There's no way to get substantially more potent than B-ionic using sodium carbonate or sodium bicarbonate. That said, potency is not a big deal. Cost is. All of the DIY are cheaper than B-ionic (which is an excellent product), albeit with a less than perfect ionic balance (unless you use Balling Part C for the third part, rather than my DIY third part).

Second New DIY Two Part Recipe with Higher pH Boost

In a previous thread, I posted a true two part DIY recipe: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/new-diy-two-part-recipes-with-higher-ph-boost.344500/ But some folks may want to just swap the new ingredient into my 2/3 part recipe (as used by BRS, for example). Here's the original recipe link...

www.reef2reef.com

New DIY Two Part Recipes with Higher pH Boost

Here's a first crack at what may end up being multiple possible recipes for a DIY two part that either has a higher pH or can be made more concentrated than traditional two part recipes. This one has about twice the pH raising effect compared to a carbonate based two part, per unit of...

www.reef2reef.com