dKH drop, calc low.

[Justiful]

dKH below 8, above 7. 1dKH change from last week. Calc is low, 360-380 20 change from last week. Tested both twice. Was very careful about adding exactly 5ml of water, not trusting line used a syringe, looked same but helped peace of mind. PH 7.8-8.0 No change from last week.

My plan of action is a water change, 10%. Retest in four hours.

If still off I plan hit it with Seachem Reef carbonate, followed by Seachem reef complete.

I plan to use 35ml of each in my 46 gallon tank. To see if that hits my target levels of 8dkh and 380-400 calc. I do not plan to adjust magnesium, as I can't test for it today. I ran out of one of the reagents half way through. But last week it was 1150.

Is this plan sound?

As to what caused it. I think it could be a combination of the following in the last week.
1. Natural changes.
2. Added new livestock got some water with it.
3. cleaned pre-filter, top off with RO water after, but only 10-12 ounces.
4. Didn't mix salt properly, and there was a bit of solution on bottom of 5gallon. ( I alternate changes with mixed salt one time, and next time Nutri-water.)

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

What salt mix and what salinity? Unless you are using a different mix than before, it is unlikely that a water change will boost calcium noticeably.

I'm not really sure what you are trying to explain. A 1 dKH drop in alkalinity in a week is a very small amount, well below normal. It is definitely normal to need to supplement alkalinit and calcium. Baking soda is as good as the Seachem alk product, but the Seachem product is fine. If alk dropped 1 dKH, the calcium likely didn't really fall 20 ppm, since they are tied together. it may have dropped a bit 9say, 7 ppm), or it may be testing variation. Don't focus on small calcium changes. Look to longer trends. That said, boosting it is a fine plan.

 

[Justiful]

I have been dosing all week, I figured it would have gone up... Maybe I wasn't dosing enough. 5ml, per day of each. But more likely I messed up the salt mix. I think I will stop dosing for daily for a week and see if it falls again from where it is latter today. But will probably still dose 35ml reef carbonate today, and see if I can hit 8dKH.

I alternate between Nutri-water, and Reef crystals. Mainly because I only get 10g of RODI delivered a month. So it just as easy to order nutri-water.

That is messing up my results now that I think it through...

Going to just use nutri-water going forward. After water change, 380 calc now took 1 more drop, tested twice again, dKH same.

Only got about 4-5 more calc tests left in bottle so ordering new kit. But I got enough to test dKH for probably 6-7 more so plenty to correct Carbonate a few times till I get it right till new kit arrives.

I really gotta stop re-testing over and over, going through a test kit a month, testing OCD.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

You can use this calculator to determine how much is needed for a given boost:

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

 

[Justiful]

You can use this calculator to determine how much is needed for a given boost:

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

omg that is so much easier.