Calcium

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Yea my dad has me dosing just 1 ml vodka and 1 ml vinegar is that to much?
On his 110 tank I dose 10 ml vodka and 20 ml vinegar dose that sound about right

If the corals look good, I wouldn't change it, but some folks get into trouble dropping nutrients too low.

 

[brownsalt92]

Yea my tank has never looked better corals are growing but I hate dosing all that 2 part calcium in it

 

[brownsalt92]

So when I'm dosing the 2 part calcium its raising my alkalinity also? So if I stop dosing the Ca and do a 5 gall water change Sunday night and test it Mon morning and the calcium is still low where do I go from there? So does this mean I need to get my dkh to a 8 to 10 and then how do I get the calcium normal again just keep doing water changes?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

So when I'm dosing the 2 part calcium its raising my alkalinity also? So if I stop dosing the Ca and do a 5 gall water change Sunday night and test it Mon morning and the calcium is still low where do I go from there? So does this mean I need to get my dkh to a 8 to 10 and then how do I get the calcium normal again just keep doing water changes?

No, water changes are not the best way.

If you dose just the calcium part (or, less expensively, just calcium chloride) and do not use the alkalinity part, it won't boost alkalinity and will raise calcium.

For many such products, you can use this calculator to determine the amount needed to boost calcium to where you want:

http://reef.diesyst.com/chemcalc/chem_calc3.html

 

[brownsalt92]

Okay so I did a water test on my tank I roughly estimate it holds 25 gallons of water.
Salt 1.025
Cal 340 api
Mag 1400
Ammonia 0 api
Nitrite 0 api
Nitrate 0
PH 8.0-8.2 api
Dkh tested at a 21 using a api test kit
I used the calculator Randy posted. It told me to add 170 ml of part a to raise it so I am adding 80 ml tonight in a 2 parts 40 ml then a hr and 40 ml and will test at 5 am tommaro does that sound like a good plan and at part a as needed

 

[brownsalt92]

I had retested my calcium this morning after adding 80ml of part a calcium to my tank and it still was at a 340!? Could it still not go up because the dkh is still at a 21?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I had retested my calcium this morning after adding 80ml of part a calcium to my tank and it still was at a 340!? Could it still not go up because the dkh is still at a 21?

Maybe. Might also be testing error.

How much was that boost calculated to increase calcium?

 

[brownsalt92]

From 340 to a 440 and it told me I needed 170 ml part a.
How long will it take for the dkh to come down? A lfs told be be for that a 22 dkh was fine you just don't want it low... But I just can't get my calcium up.I tested both my dad's tanks and they tested at 440-450 for calcium

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

If you added enough of the calcium part (and no alkalinity part) to boost from 340 ppm to 440 ppm, and then it was back to 340 ppm, the tank water would have to have used up 14 or so dKH of alkalinity. If the alk didn't decline noticeably, something is wrong with one or more of the measurements.

If alk might have declined that much since the dosing, then you'll have to add calcium again.

 

[brownsalt92]

I will test after work everything and see what it reads

 

[brownsalt92]

Everything is spot on but the alk and calcium

 

[brownsalt92]

Alright so I did test my water after work today. Also I tested the dkh in reef Chrystal's instant reef and I found out newly mixed salt water is a 13 with a api test kit.
My parameters
Salt:1.025
Mag:1400
Cal:400
Nitrite:0 ppm
Nitrate:0 ppm
Ammonia: 0 ppm
PH: 8.2
Alk: 22
All tested with api besides for magnesium. My dad added both parts a and b this morning after I left for work 50 ml of each.
I did a 2 gallon water change tonight. The alk rose 1 point.
I decided to clean my dual power head and after cleaning that I scaped the glass. when I was doing that I found that in spots my sand was very hard. Why did it do that? Is it because of me dosing so much 2 part in the tank what can I do to fix it without cycling tank by stirring sand. I poked around with a razor blade and broke some of it up without stirring up the sand. But I noticed that my engineering goby had gone sand tunnels and thought that was odd. Also what's this algea and what's the easiest way to get rid of it?

 

[brownsalt92]

Here's the green

 

[brownsalt92]

The alk rose 1 point after he added 50 ml of part b

 

[brownsalt92]

I also noticed for about a week my sand sifting star has been on the glass

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

High alkalinity and/or pH will encourage precipitation of calcium carbonate, which is likely why the sand has hardened.

I'd probably just wait for alkalinity to decline and not be dosing any of the alkalinity part while it does so.

But you can lower it with acid if you want.

 

[brownsalt92]

12 sandbag not be hard anymore once the alkalinity drops and I get my calcium in check?

 

[brownsalt92]

Would the sanded

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Once hardened, it may not break up easily on its own. But you will likely decrease the potential for more hardening.

 

[beaslbob]

If you haven't already I would read the DR. Holmes-Farley's diy two part.