Dosing question

[Defect]

So...I have started to dose alk and cal. I am dosing in the morning 10 ml alk and a little less cal. For the past 3 days I have been testing then dosing both. My alk would be at 8.1 then I would dose and test an hour later and my alk would go to 8.9 or 9.1 and my calcium would be at 410-420 then dose and it would go to 450.

The alk going up that quickly is my concern becuase I know alk swings are killers and it seems jumping up 1 alk in a short period of time is not the best thing but I do not have a doser and I am not really wanting to buy one so I am manual dosing in the mornings. I know other people dose manually and arent having problems but just wanted to get some input on this subject here. Should I be worried or is there something else I should be doing?

Also wondering about the PH jump as well. I start the day at 8.16 PH and once I dose it usually rises to 8.25 and at the peak it is around 8.35

Thanks in advance,

Aaron

 

[mike007]

It Is better to figure out how much of each your tank Is consuming each day. A simple way to do this to get alk. and ca. where you want them then go 3 days without dosing and retest. Divide results by 3 and that will tell you your consumption. Then you can go to the brs reef calculator and It will tell you how much to dose to maintain levels. You want to add small amounts to prevent swings.[h=3]Reef Calculator - Bulk Reef Supply[/h]

 

[Defect]

I wish I could dose small amounts all day. I just start work at 9 in the morning and most nights get home at 9 at night. The only thing I can think of is getting the dang dosing pump but there are no spots left on my APEX....lol

 

[mike007]

You really don't have to have It on the apex. I went without one for years and when I finally got one I don't know how I ever lived without one. I also work long hours and now I can dose small amounts 24 times a day and what a difference I have seen with my corals.

 

[Defect]

Fine fine....I will just unplug my fuge light and put a dosing pump on lol. Thanks for the help I knew I would need to get one but if it wasnt needed was going to just wait but I know it will make everything happier. Now to pick which pump.

 

[saltyhog]

Why not dose half the daily amount before you go to work and the other half when you get home? The calcium in one dose wouldn't be much of a problem IMO.

 

[prsnlty]

Is there a less expensive way to dose with a dosing pump like the one from fish street without having an apex? I simply can't afford an apex right mow, maybe not till next tax season lol. Can that be used without anything else?

 

[mike007]

You don't have to have a Apex to use a dosing pump. Many pumps have there own controls that you can program to dose whatever amounts you would like. Dosing pumps will keep your tank more stable than manual dosing and makes life a lot easier.

 

[prsnlty]

Thanks Mike I don't think I will be needing to dose alk since mine is always between 8-10. Trying to actually get that to stay in the 8 area. But my kalk reactor isn't doining a good enough job with keeping ca balanced and my mg has big drops (I think due to the kalk reactor) so I've been thinking I may be much better off with a dosing set up. Yes? I was considering the one from fish street for $120. I've seen these on a lot of systems so the general consensus imo is that they must be a decent unit.

 

[Defect]

I will be picking up a doser just to make it easier. I don't want to have to remember every morning/night. I have been reading about them and looking at reviews and the one I have decided to go with is the same one Mike has the ghl profilux stand alone. Seems to be reliable with very few problems.

Hey Mike where did you pick yours up from?

 

[mike007]

I had a Bubble Magus but it was sold to me as new but it had been used. It was okay but I upgraded to the Proflux and I really like it. I believe I bought it at Aquacave.