Carbon dosing questions

[Oregon Grown Reef]

I think it is worth a try. Iron is more of an issue with solubility at high pH.

Should I try adding both to the vinegar or just K+?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Should I try adding both to the vinegar or just K+?

I’d stick to just k+.

 

[Oregon Grown Reef]

I’d stick to just k+.

Thank you, sir! As always, your help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

You’re welcome. Let us know what happens when you mix it.

 

[Oregon Grown Reef]

You’re welcome. Let us know what happens when you mix it.

I just added 125ml of K+ to about 3,500ml (just under a gallon) of vinegar. That should mean for every 28ml of vinegar added, I'm dosing ~1 mL of trace elements. The recommended dosage for K+ is 1ml per 25 gallons, so this is about half strength at my current vinegar dosage for my water volume. I want to start slowly. There is no visible precipitant at the bottom of the container. I inverted the container about 30 times. There's a slight blue hue to the vinegar, which makes sense since K+ is blue. The vinegar still has a strong acetate smell.

After I'm about half way through this bottle, I'll send out an ICP test I have laying around to see where things are at. Depending on the levels found, I'll increase/decrease the strength. As stated earlier in this thread, I'll continue to do biweekly water changes of 10%.

 

[Oregon Grown Reef]

I'll report back in after a little while to see if there's any precipitation.

 

[Oregon Grown Reef]

Okay...it's been mixed for over an hour and there's no precipitation. That's promising. I'm excited to see what the trace element levels will be at in at in the next couple of months. Would it be possible to add Tropic Marin A- to kalkwasser or will that cause precipitation due to the high pH?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Okay...it's been mixed for over an hour and there's no precipitation. That's promising. I'm excited to see what the trace element levels will be at in at in the next couple of months. Would it be possible to add Tropic Marin A- to kalkwasser or will that cause precipitation due to the high pH?

I’m not sure exactly what is in it, but that’s the one to try to put in kalkwasser and I think it is most likely ok. Air oxidation of iodide to iodate may take place when diluted like that, but may be fine. Iodate is natural in seawater.

 

[Oregon Grown Reef]

I’m not sure exactly what is in it, but that’s the one to try to put in kalkwasser and I think it is most likely ok. Air oxidation of iodide to iodate may take place when diluted like that, but may be fine. Iodate is natural in seawater.

This is great news! Glad to have possibly found a way to add trace elements without having to manually dose or buy more equipment.