big 3 rapidly dropping... normal?

[jda]

Also, dosing is not meant to raise the levels... you need incremental doses for this. A dosing system is to keep it stable. Your dosing should arrest any fall. Then, when you are sure that you have it stable, then add some incremental doses to raise it to where you want it.

Yes, you can lower and raise levels with a doser, but it is not all that easy sometimes.

 

[landlubber]

Also, dosing is not meant to raise the levels... you need incremental doses for this. A dosing system is to keep it stable. Your dosing should arrest any fall. Then, when you are sure that you have it stable, then add some incremental doses to raise it to where you want it.

Yes, you can lower and raise levels with a doser, but it is not all that easy sometimes.

which brings up another question then... so when you're responding to actual consumption of your systems elements and your current dose isn't keeping up are you suggesting that everyone manually doses each element until they find their normal parameters and then slightly adjusts their doser a little higher to hold it?
sorry for my ignorance but I had never really had great luck with sps until this past year and therefore have had no reason to increase things.

 

[Reefltx]

When was the last time you check your doser?

They need maintenance as well.

 

[landlubber]

When was the last time you check your doser?

They need maintenance as well.

I made sure there was no blockage in the lines a couple of times over the past few weeks when I discovered the deficiencies and both DOS's were calibrated in March. Otherwise they seem to be operating normally.

 

[Diesel]

Did you check the mix that you dosing with?
How are the corals doing in the system?

 

[chromis]

Once you readjust your salinity up, if alk doesn’t begin to rise again with the increased amount you’re dosing, I recommend looking for places things might be precipitating - white streaks on the glass of your sump next to the alk doser outlet, sheets of clear junk lying on the bottom of your sump, caked white stuff on your heater... do a water change and siphon those out. If you can’t find anything, mix some new saltwater to the alk you want and do a large water change.

 

[terri_ann]

Good info given everyone!. When you checked the Dos, did you check the end where the tubing is in the elements? Could the alk, ca and mag be bad/not mixed well enough? When you have the salinity to your target, I'd suggest measuring the big 3...wait 24hrs, measure them again. If all 3 dropped drastically, add more than recommended magnesium since mag has a direct impact on all & ca. Wait a few hours, test all 3 again. If mag has dropped significantly, I would then start considering that the mag is bad. Replace/add new mag. Etc. I would start ruling out each element one by one as long as you covered all the other considerations. Just make sure that you bring the alk & ca up slowly so as not to stress the corals. Good luck!

 

[landlubber]

Did you check the mix that you dosing with?
How are the corals doing in the system?

alright so 24 hours of no dosing and my alkalinity didn't budge.
my dosing containers are at about 25% of their normal volume so I'll give them a shake.
otherwise, looking into things a little more I do see a little precipitate that basically look like splashes on the bottom of my sump, there isn't much but it's there. most of the corals look fine aside from the 2 leathers I keep which haven't looked happy for a week or so.

 

[Diesel]

alright so 24 hours of no dosing and my alkalinity didn't budge.
my dosing containers are at about 25% of their normal volume so I'll give them a shake.
otherwise, looking into things a little more I do see a little precipitate that basically look like splashes on the bottom of my sump, there isn't much but it's there. most of the corals look fine aside from the 2 leathers I keep which haven't looked happy for a week or so.

With 24hrs of no dosing and # didn't change much I believe that your dosing equipment is off or your mix ain't right.
What kind of doser you exercise?
You already mention you use two part. It from what brand?

 

[landlubber]

With 24hrs of no dosing and # didn't change much I believe that your dosing equipment is off or your mix ain't right.
What kind of doser you exercise?
You already mention you use two part. It from what brand?

aquaforest elements and the dosing is done by 2 apex dos's. both were calibrated in the past 6 months and I can visually see the elements dripping into my return chamber from the lines so there is no blockage

 

[Diesel]

The apex dosers are awesome.
I have three new in a box but don't want to take my 6 year in a row trusted CaRx of line.

I would change solution for the time being to see if that makes a change.
Try the EVS solution, I always like that as you mix the same amount and basically you dose the same amount as well if your big 3 elements are at target.

With your corals looking good I wouldn't make it a big deal to chase the # but it ain't bad to be comfortable on what works best for your system.
AF isn't that bad but the EVS is IMO a little easier to stay at balance.

 

[landlubber]

The apex dosers are awesome.
I have three new in a box but don't want to take my 6 year in a row trusted CaRx of line.

I would change solution for the time being to see if that makes a change.
Try the EVS solution, I always like that as you mix the same amount and basically you dose the same amount as well if your big 3 elements are at target.

With your corals looking good I wouldn't make it a big deal to chase the # but it ain't bad to be comfortable on what works best for your system.
AF isn't that bad but the EVS is IMO a little easier to stay at balance.

yes they are very headache free. I ran a single one for the past couple of years and just added a second in march as I was using a little single doser pump that was spiking up my ocd
I just agitated the solutions this morning so we'll see if that makes any kind of difference in the interim. I'm thinking I'll probably just dial my dosing back to the original levels I had them at before all this started. if that sounds like a bad plan let me know lol

 

[Diesel]

Regular testing is getting to know your tank.
I tested always everyday my ALK and N03.
Knowing these # everyday you won't freak out or jump the gun.
If for some reason your # are off it's never your system but a testing error.
Either on behalf the hobbyist, dirty vails or expired regents.
Believe me not always if the expiration date tells you it ain't expired it is still good.
I always had a backup regent but my regents never lasted a month or so due to the constant testing.

 

[CoralWealth]

The apex dosers are awesome.
I have three new in a box but don't want to take my 6 year in a row trusted CaRx of line.

I would change solution for the time being to see if that makes a change.
Try the EVS solution, I always like that as you mix the same amount and basically you dose the same amount as well if your big 3 elements are at target.

With your corals looking good I wouldn't make it a big deal to chase the # but it ain't bad to be comfortable on what works best for your system.
AF isn't that bad but the EVS is IMO a little easier to stay at balance.

why would you change the solution? i dont see a reason to change the solution at all

your number didnt change when you didnt dose. I would keep it going, go 48 hours without dosing and see if it drops. I bet you can go back to your normal dose. Also a FTS of your tank will help to see how many corals you have.

 

[terri_ann]

I was dosing a very popular brand of 2-part for a couple of years with no problems. The doses were dialed in, had not added or removed any corals. I tested the big 3 and my values were very, very low. I went through all the usual checks...dosers not working, dosing tubes blocked, precip, etc... I could not figure out what was wrong. Then I tested the solutions...all did not register and neither did mag. After 3 tests on those with no change, I then used new solutions. Bingo! I know difficult to believe but it was the solutions.... it wasn't but a week later and I saw a couple people post having a problem with their levels...yep, same brand and same problem. IMO, no different than salt mixes having inconsistent results... automation...human error...it happens.