ELF's RedSea XL 300 Reeftank

[Lavey29]

You are correct this time. I did the test again, and got the same result... the issue wasn't the test kit, it was the moron reading it.

I had to watch the video to see what i was doing wrong. I was reading the chart backward. Mag is now high (due to dosing), now low.

What is mag? I keep mine around 1380.

 

[ELF1024]

What is mag? I keep mine around 1380.

It's about 1500, depending on the accuracy of the test.

From what little I just read about high Mag, it's not as high as some people have gone, so I'll likely let it ride.

 

[Lavey29]

It's about 1500, depending on the accuracy of the test.

From what little I just read about high Mag, it's not as high as some people have gone, so I'll likely let it ride.

I've kept mine at 1500 with no issues too it helps get rid of GHA

 

[ELF1024]

Date	Time	Temp	Salinity	DKH	PH	NH3/NH4 ppm	NO3 ppb	NO2 ppm	PO₄³⁻ ppm	CA ppm	Mag ppm	Carbon Changed	Socks Changed	Water Change	Notes	Ratio NO2 to PO₄³⁻	Lights
6/1/2022	7:00:00 AM	79.4	1.025	10.7	8.07	0.005		7.4	0.09	494	1440	x	x		.5oz MbClean 1oz Mb7 1oz ChaetoGro 80ml Soda	8:1	20%
6/2/2022	8:00:00 AM	79.6			8.1	0.006									40ml Soda		22%
6/3/2022	8:00:00 AM	79			8.09	0.006									40ml Soda		23%
6/4/2022	7:00:00 AM	79.4	1.025	10.7	8.07	0.006		6.4	0.07				x	x	1oz MbClean 10ml Mb7 1oz ChaetoGro 80ml Soda	9:1	25%

 

[ELF1024]

Date	Time	Temp	Salinity	DKH	PH	NH3 ppm	NH4 ppm	NO3 ppb	NO2 ppm	PO₄³⁻ ppm	CA ppm	Mag ppm	Carbon Changed	Socks Changed	Water Change	Notes	Ratio NO2 to PO₄³⁻	Lights
6/4/2022	7:00:00 AM	79.4	1.025	10.7	8.07	0.006	11.93		6.4	0.07				x	x	1oz MbClean 10ml Mb7 1oz ChaetoGro 80ml Soda	91:1	25%
6/5/2022	8:00:00 AM	79.8		11.1	8.08	0.006	16.22									70ml Soda		26%
6/6/2022	8:00:00 AM	79.2		11	8.08	0.007	16.22									80ml Soda		28%
6/7/2022	8:00:00 AM	79.4		11.1	8.08	0.007	16.08									80ml Soda		30%
6/8/2022	8:00:00 AM	79.3	1.025	10.9	8.08	0.007	16.36		7.7	0.19				x		1oz ChaetoGro 80ml Soda	41:1	33%
6/9/2022	8:00:00 AM	79.3			8.08	0.007	16.08									80ml Soda		36%
6/10/2022	8:00:00 AM	78.9			8.25	0.007	11.2									80ml Soda		39%
6/11/2022	9:00:00 AM	79.1	1.024	12.3	8.06	0.008	17.07		5.7	0.17	377			x	x	10ml Mb7 1oz ChaetoGro 400ml CA	34:1	41%

My Chaeto has not been doing well, it's a tiny little spot of Chaeto anymore. Since Phosphates had spiked about .1 earlier this week, I ordered some more macro-Aglae from AlgaeBarn. It should be here early next week. It should have three kinds of macro-Algae in it. I also picked up another 32oz of Pods and some phytoplankton.

I was glad to see that phosphates were down some today. even if it was only due to the 10% water change. I suspect that the spike in Phosphates was due to the death of the hermit crab. I'm not a bit fan of hermits, so I am not planning on replacing him. I finally found his empty shell and was able to remove it today. However, I think rotting bits have already done their damage. Why can't things die where are easy to find?

I have also ordered my first set of test corals (6). A Pavona, Zoa, Birdsnest, Green Star Polyp, Leptoersis, and a Cyphastrea. I also picked up some CoralAmino as well.

Lights should be up to 100% on July 3.

 

[Lavey29]

Water changes do nothing to lower phosphate. If you are dosing one ounce of chaeto gro every few days your tank is way way overdosed with trace elements like iron, potassium, etc... so I'm not surprised to hear that your chaeto is failing. I was dosing 10ml of chaeto gro twice a week on an 80g system and my ICP was fine. My chaeto is huge and requires pruning every week. You may want to check your complete water chemistry as you begin to add corals or they may go the same direction as your chaeto. Also .1 phosphate is fine.

 

[ELF1024]

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[ELF1024]

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[ELF1024]

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[ELF1024]

I 've been trying to get my ALK and CA stable for the past couple of weeks with no success. I think I just found part of the problem. I just pulled out my heaters, the heater in the sump was mostly clean, but has some Calcification spots on it. However, the one in the overflow was utterly caked with Calcification. I ended up giving both a diluted white vinegar bath and a scraped off the build-up by running a butter knife lightly over the titanium. Then back in the vinegar, and good long rinse, and then a dry.

Hopefully, this will cut down on the amount of ALK and CA that is precipitating in the tank.

 

[Ranjib]

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absolutely love this selection