Calcium problems BRS 2 Part dosing

[GeoHawk]

Don't worry about the pH so much. You shouldn't be adjusting your levels based on pH anyways. There are plenty of people with pH at 7.8 that have no problems with their tank. If you want to raise your pH then plumb your skimmer intake outside so it gets fresh air. Just try to keep your levels stable now.

Thanks, This morning my Ph is at 7.76 would you still not worry about it? I am renting so plumbing my skimmer to outside air is not a very real possibility.

 

[gws3]

Are you using Sodium Carbonate or Sodium Bicarbonate? Dosing carbonate will maintain a higher pH as opposed to Bicarbonate. I dose carbonate, and a lot of it, and find pH to be acceptable.

Also, as others have suggested, increasing you mg is a good idea. There doesn't seem to be any harm in running it high, and it will prevent precipitation of calcium carbonate.

I suggest you read some of Randy's articles. Google search "Chemistry And The Aquarium: Solving Calcium And Alkalinity Problems". These is a lot to learn from him on the topic of reef chemistry.

 

[GeoHawk]

Are you using Sodium Carbonate or Sodium Bicarbonate? Dosing carbonate will maintain a higher pH as opposed to Bicarbonate. I dose carbonate, and a lot of it, and find pH to be acceptable.

Also, as others have suggested, increasing you mg is a good idea. There doesn't seem to be any harm in running it high, and it will prevent precipitation of calcium carbonate.

I suggest you read some of Randy's articles. Google search "Chemistry And The Aquarium: Solving Calcium And Alkalinity Problems". These is a lot to learn from him on the topic of reef chemistry.

Mg this morning was 1350
Alk was 8.8 dkh (odd because I checked it yesterday at it seemed to be at 10)
ph now 7.75
I didn't check ca
All tests are salifert, except ph is RKL

I dose sodium carbonate, and calcium chloride. After reading Randy's articles I think it might be a good idea for me to add kalkwasser to my ato to help stabilize ph. What do you guys think?

 

[gws3]

I tried using kalk in my top off at one point earlier on. Eventually I got rid of it and just stuck with two part. The issue with kalk in top off for me is that it is not as stable as two part. For two part I use a lab grade peristaltic pump and tubing, in other words it doses a very consistent amount. On the other hand you can't control how much top off water your tank uses. On humid days it will be less, on dry more, if you use fans for cooling it will evaporate more when the fans run more, etc. So for me I opted just to run two part. Although I know there are people out there that really like using kalk.

If I were you I wouldn't worry about he pH. I only watch pH as a method to make sure my alk is being dosed between tests. I do not try to control it.

Just make sure you alk is stable and the tank water is well aerated (no need to worry since you are running a skimmer).

Give the corals some time. Your parameters have been rather unstable lately. Keep you alk between 8-10 and the corals will look better in a month or two. Don't make other changes like adding kalk until you give two part and stable alk a chance.

Read this article as well: Chemistry And The Aquarium: The Relationship Between Alkalinity And pH — Advanced Aquarist | Aquarist Magazine and Blog

 

[GeoHawk]

ok, thanks. Should I be concerned that the sodium bicarb forms a precipitate when it enters the sump? I have my drip line entering right before it goes into the return. Pump runs 6 minutes every hour and a half.

 

[lpslover]

I agree with Fieroguy19 on the pH issue. Lower pH is often not a problem but a symptom of something else going on which may or may not be problematic.

For example: If your Alk/Ca/Mg are low or unbalanced then your pH will be low. Alk levels that are primarily bicarbonate rather than carbonate will result in a lower pH, this tends to be an issue in older tanks, and is why many prefer to dose straight carbonate rather than blended buffers. The tank's metabolism will over time convert carbonate to bicarbonate anyway. Also an issue is carbon dioxide vs. oxygen saturation in the water. Tanks with higher CO2 levels will have lower pH, tanks with higher O2 levels will have higher pH.

While Alk/Ca/Mg related pH drops should be worried about, carbonate/bicarbonate buffer balance and CO2/O2 saturation are less dire, and usually only something that needs to be worried about if you see things like algae blooms (more acidic conditions and more CO2 favor plant rather than animal growth) or poor stony coral growth (they use carbonate not bicarbonate) that may be related to those issues. Dosing kalk or another hydroxide (like Aquavitro's Balance) can help reset buffer balance and also drive off CO2. You can also get CO2 scrubbers to hook to the air intake of you skimmer.

I dose kalk to do my additional calcium dosing once a week because I've found my LPS grow better and I see less algae regardless of NO3/PO4 level. Yes my pH stays up higher, but that isn't the goal, simply a side effect. Many people do use kalk in a ATO system. The idea makes me nervous personally. Kalk is very potent and incredibly corrosive. If it gets overdosed accidentally it can wreak havoc with all your water parameters, and potentially kill most of your tank. Dosing a calculated amount based on tested parameters by hand is, IMO safer and less likely to create unstable parameters.

 

[gws3]

Does if get cloudy and then disappear or does it actually form a solid precipitate? If it gets cloudy and disappears that is normal. If solids are actually precipitating out that is not a good thing.

ok, thanks. Should I be concerned that the sodium bicarb forms a precipitate when it enters the sump? I have my drip line entering right before it goes into the return. Pump runs 6 minutes every hour and a half.

 

[GeoHawk]

Does if get cloudy and then disappear or does it actually form a solid precipitate? If it gets cloudy and disappears that is normal. If solids are actually precipitating out that is not a good thing.

It does a little of both, some of it lands in the bottom of my sump, but its not piling up in there. My return pump filter has been stiff since I started using dosing pumps. I have it dripping in right before the return pump.

 

[mcarroll]

Awhile back I had some major problems with keeping my calcium and alkalinity up, so I invested in BRS dosing pumps, RKL, and I have been dosing BRS 2 part recipe 1. My alkilinity and PH have improved significantly and I have had some improvement in coral color (but some are still brown). My problem is this, my calcium seems to stay low even though I dose just as much calcium as I do alkilinity. I didn't add the full amount of Mg that BRS suggests when finishing the first gallon, because my Mg was 1350. I know I need to raise it some, but Im not convinced that this is why my CA is so low.

What should I do?

CA (salifert) 300
KH (Salifert) 12.1
MG (Salifert) 1290
Nitrate (Nutrafin) 0

I hate to say it cuz nobody wants to hear this, but I'm going to blame this whole thing on your water change schedule. Once a month on a reef (especialy if stonies are involved) is uncalled for.

Figure out why you aren't doing at least 10% per week (20-25/wk if you have a lot of coral) and resolve that issue. (Make them quicker. Make them cheaper. Make them easier. Whatever...be creative!) Do that (and possibly switch to Reef Crystals...much prefer its balance) and these issues should disappear. (Dosing needs should decrease and become much more manageable as well.)

Just for an idea of one possibility, I've never had better coral color or growth than when I broke up my water changes on my 100 gallon system into 5 gallons every night. Small enough that I could do the whole thing and mix a new batch for the following night in like 10 minutes.

People surely do it, but I don't recommend trying to minimize one's water changes.

-Matt

 

[mcarroll]

It does a little of both, some of it lands in the bottom of my sump, but its not piling up in there. My return pump filter has been stiff since I started using dosing pumps. I have it dripping in right before the return pump.

You need more flow/turbulence/mixing where you do your dripping. If such a place doesn't exist that you can move to, add a small powerhead in your dripping area to create it.

Definitely do what you can to not dose near any pump intakes.

Good luck!
-Matt

 

[zemuss]

I agree with everything said and actually learned something here.

The only thing I will say is your concern with PH depends on when your testing it. PH will fluctuate between lights on and lights off. When are you testing your PH, during the night or day?

 

[gws3]

You may be dripping too fast or an an area of too little flow if it is precipitating. Avoid doing this near a pump inlet... you pump will eventually sieze up.

Read this about precipitation: What is that Precipitate in My Reef Aquarium? by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com

It does a little of both, some of it lands in the bottom of my sump, but its not piling up in there. My return pump filter has been stiff since I started using dosing pumps. I have it dripping in right before the return pump.