Dkh consumption by lps corals

[Fishko]

I currently have 5 lps frags and a large torch coral with 3 heads. My dkh has been hovering at 10.6 i have the intentions of allowing it to drop to 9.0 but have not had success with this since i have had to remove water to dip corals and replace the water with new salt. Im using red sea coral pro which has the higher alk. I plan of switching to the regular soon once i run out.

My question is how much per week should i expect my dkh to drop. When it was at 11.6 it dropped to 11 but this was with fewer frags. But now its staying steady at 10.6. what factors can influence a quicker drop in dkh. Also if i buy a sand sifting star will i see it only at night or when i feed the tank?

 

[Euphyllia97]

There is no magic number to give you on alkalinity consumption. It will depend on your individual corals, inverts and coralline algae (calcification processes). Best thing to do is dose nothing for a week and compare the numbers on day 1 and day 7. You will know exactly what your tank is consuming this way. My tank is a 120 gallon with mainly SPS and LPS. I also keep some softies. It is consuming approximately 1,3 Dkh/day.

To get a good grip of the big 3 ( Alk, Calcium and Magnesium), there are some good calculators around which will tell you the correct values for chemical balance.

If you want more scientific information with facts, google for “Randy Holmes Farley”. He is part of our community and very knowledgeable.

Picture for dkh consumption (1,3Dkh/day/120gallon)

 

[chris k.]

A sand sifting starfish needs to be in a mature tank. It feeds off the organisms in the sand. If you have a new tank the starfish could starve. And good info in previous post. Every tank is different. You can see the starfish during the day but normally it stays just under the sand. I dont see mine much, but see the tracks where he has been.