Calcium levels off the charts

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

What do you mean by this boss? Should I raise my kh to lower calc?

That was a post from 8 years ago. I’m not sure exactly what this whole old thread was about, but in general I would not recommend trying to lower calcium by pushing up alk to drive calcium carbonate precipitation.

 

[bkwonnn]

My Hannah calcium test is all over the place. If you use tapwater to rinse the vials, the results wil be wildly of

 

[rennjidk]

That was a post from 8 years ago.

We like to be very thorough in regards to our fellow reefers, lol.

Since whoever commented and resurrected the thread brought it up, I'm a little confused by that statement as well.

For context, OP was reading >600ppm Ca from salt mix alone in a newer tank. They were not dosing.

Have you been adding calcium?

If not, the 640 ppm seems likely to be a testing error.

Try testing the new salt mix.

Probably your pH or alkalinity are on the low side. A difference of 0.3 ph units is like a doubling of calcium or alkalinity.

For a lot of us, 0.3 pH units is the difference between turning a skimmer on or off. I know that pH, dKH, and Ca are all related and changing one causes swings in the other (No3 as well in regards to alkalinity), but I've never heard of it effectively doubling them.

For example: if I turn my skimmer off, my tank rests at 7.9 pH. Turning it back on brings me to 8.2 pH. I don't think that doing so causes my alkalinity to jump to 17dKH or calcium to 900ppm.

Can you help me out with that, lol?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

We like to be very thorough in regards to our fellow reefers, lol.

Since whoever commented and resurrected the thread brought it up, I'm a little confused by that statement as well.

For context, OP was reading >600ppm Ca from salt mix alone in a newer tank. They were not dosing.





For a lot of us, 0.3 pH units is the difference between turning a skimmer on or off. I know that pH, dKH, and Ca are all related and changing one causes swings in the other (No3 as well in regards to alkalinity), but I've never heard of it effectively doubling them.

For example: if I turn my skimmer off, my tank rests at 7.9 pH. Turning it back on brings me to 8.2 pH. I don't think that doing so causes my alkalinity to jump to 17dKH or calcium to 900ppm.

Can you help me out with that, lol?

The intent of that pH comment was related to likelihood of abiotic precipitation of calcium carbonate. A rise of 0.3 pH units is the same in that regard as a doubling of alk or calcium. It does not cause any actual change in alk or calcium.

 

[rennjidk]

The intent of that pH comment was related to likelihood of abiotic precipitation of calcium carbonate. A rise of 0.3 pH units is the same in that regard as a doubling of alk or calcium. It does not cause any actual change in alk or calcium.

Thank you, Randy. I learn something new every day in this forum.