Is calcium a killer

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

When I had my calcium over 550 when mixing new salt for a new tank, it precipitated and made the tank white cloudy. Your tank is clear, I would think and assume if your calcium was that high, it have precipitated out.

Calcium carboante is far more likely to precipitate in new raw salt water than in a reef tank witht he same properties. That is easily seen with folks using high alk products such as Red Sea Coral Pro, where precipitation is common.

The issue is that the phosphate, organics, and even whole bacteria tend to prevent ongoing precipitation of calcium carbonate in a reef tank, but are typically quite low in new salt water. They get onto any existing or newly formed calcium carbonate surfaces and block further precipitation of calcium carbonate.

 

[scotty333]

Just got back from a week vacation and tested water params

Salinity 1.020 !! what the heck?
No3 40
Po4 0.25
Calcium 500 weird was 650a week ago
Mag 1155 also down from 1380
Kh 9.3

 

[scotty333]

Gonna add salt up to 1.026 over a few days
Acro is still alive

 

[WalkerLovesTheOcean]

Just got back from a week vacation and tested water params

Salinity 1.020 !! what the heck?
No3 40
Po4 0.25
Calcium 500 weird was 650a week ago
Mag 1155 also down from 1380
Kh 9.3

It's normal for calcium and magnesium to go down, because corals use it to grow.

Do you have a ATO, or did someone come do a water change on your tank while you were gone?

Edit: Wait, you have all softies and one monti, right? If that's true, those drops are pretty big for one coral.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I do not believe those drops are real, however, unless it is a salinity decline.

 

[scotty333]

Just have an acro frag , no coralline growth either
No water changes been done,, just topped up clean water reservoir

 

[scotty333]

Salinity decline? So much in a week?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Salinity decline? So much in a week?

A salinity decline would only happen by adding back too much water. That could happen instantly.

There’s no chance magnesium dropped by 225 ppm in a week.

Calcium drop of 150 ppm would only happen if 22 dKH of alk was consumed. Since that presumably did not happen, the calcium decline is also test error or a salinity decline.

 

[scotty333]

I’ll dbl check the mag and calc against a batch of new salt mix at 1.025

 

[twentyleagues]

I would also calibrate your salinity reading (?lol) device and check that again.

 

[scotty333]

Checked , checked and checked again will go lfs in morning as he has a digi

 

[scotty333]

Mag on new salt water at 1.025 1245ppm

 

[BigMonkeyBrain]

I generally dont get precip but it can happen

A salt water tank with even normal parameters is always precipitating.

 

[BigMonkeyBrain]

Here goes

Mag 1380
Po4 0.15
No3 25
Kh 9.3
Calcium 650
Salinity 1.026

These parameters are fine. I would just do a 10% a week water change. Just add some Alk if needed over time and let the Calcium fall back to normal levels 380 - 420.

You said your salt mixed to 400-ppm Calcium and you have 2-corals.

 

[scotty333]

Params from today are

Salinity 1.026
Kh 8.9
Po4 .20
No3 40
Mag 1350
Calcium 480

I have 7 corals and a nem, all doing well
Gfo going online Wednesday when my lfs has in stock

 

[Pod_01]

Gfo going online Wednesday when my lfs has in stock

Why?

I killed lot of corals when messing with PO4 and especially when PO4 was below 0.25…. GFO can accelerate the coral decline from my experience.
Montiporas I find are especially sensitive to sinking PO4 values.

If you want to play with leavers NO3 is safer parameter to mess with… Playing with NO3 you also adjust PO4 but not as rapidly.

 

[scotty333]

I’ve got a tank full of algae and am assuming it’s down to the po4 and no3 contributing , I’m trying to get my water to something like nsw and with the phos 0.19 over natural levels it can’t be good for coral growth

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I’ve got a tank full of algae and am assuming it’s down to the po4 and no3 contributing , I’m trying to get my water to something like nsw and with the phos 0.19 over natural levels it can’t be good for coral growth

FWIW, trying to reduce algae by nutrient reduction is often a failing effort because it can starve corals at the same time.

 

[Pod_01]

I’ve got a tank full of algae and am assuming it’s down to the po4 and no3 contributing , I’m trying to get my water to something like nsw and with the phos 0.19 over natural levels it can’t be good for coral growth

Here is a picture of my only montipora:

My PO4 level oscillates between 0.1-0.25.
This was taken week ago:

As Randy mentioned starving algae does not work. I tried and failed, ended up with GHA garden, next Dino garden etc…

 

[BigMonkeyBrain]

LOL