Is dosing even necessary in a reef?

[Theo15]

I was wondering ,do you really need to dose and all these other man made chemicals into the aquarium, can't you just use a good quality salt and get the same or maybe even better results? It bothers me sometimes knowing that you have an ecosystem with living animals and your adding chemicals that can possibly wipe your whole aquarium out in a matter of hours, why not just use a good salt mix and good lighting to try and keep it as natural as possible ?

 

[Kmsutows]

It all depends on your particular setup and how much/which coral you keep. I once tried to do this exact thing and thought just that but soon realized if you have sps, especially many of them, then water changes can't keep up. I used red sea coral pro, known for a high alk, and never tested and saw an acro dying.... my alk was at 6.4. That said... I now add part B and/or buffer to top off water

 

[mrtian97]

depend on how often you change ur saltwater to replenish the uptake by your corals, how much corals you have, etc. Unlike in nature where water volume ratio to the corals, and natural process taking place, our tank is a confined glass box with high coral load ratio to the volume of water.

 

[luke33]

Are you asking if you can just do water changes to keep your parameters in check? Yes you can, but once your corals start absorbing alk, calc...etc quickly this will not work well for you. So you need to dose alk, calc, mag...etc. As far as chemicals, no you don't need to use chemicals, but natural things like alk and calc, mag...etc are necessary.

 

[ngoodermuth]

Most often, yes. It's not "chemicals" you are adding, but naturally occurring elements.

In the wild, the elements are constantly refreshed because it's well, the ocean.

In our little glass boxes those elements are often consumed faster than water changes will replace them. I guess you could maybe do water changes daily or even several times a day as needed...but I would rather just dose the elements that are being consumed [emoji12]

 

[Merry]

Hello, I'm new here. I have two SW biocubes and have a difficult time keeping corals. In my 29 I do have good luck with cabbage coral (too much), mushrooms and hammers. I tend to run high with nitrates probably due to feeding too much. Recently a friend came over to test for more than my usual testing and found the phosphates were 2.5, alkalinity 6.2 and calcium 320, the magnesium was fine at 12.80. His suggestions were to use GFO, magnesium, phosphate and Reef code A&B from Brightwells.
My 14 BC tested magnesium 780 and calcium 370, it also tests fine for PH, ammonia, nitrites but high with nitrates. I've never dosed my tanks by adding chemicals. I do water changes on both tanks 7-10 days with my own RO water and use Instant Ocean at 1.026. Needless to say I'm nervous.
Are chemicals the way to go? Thank you for comments, Merry

 

[Theo15]

But what you are using a good quality salt ?

 

[Theo15]

But what you are using a good quality salt ?

If*, and do you guys religiously do weekly water changes ? I thought stability was key ,qouldnt weekly water changes not keep everything stable ?

 

[d2mini]

But what you are using a good quality salt ?

All salts are synthetic.
They have different amounts of Calc, Alk, and Mag, but other than that they all try to replicate natural sea water.
As @ngoodermuth pointed out above, we dose Calc, Alk and Mag because these elements are used up by the coral faster than we can replenish with water changes.
These are not "chemicals". They are naturally occurring elements, no different than what the salt manufacturers use in their salt recipes.

Never add anything to your tank without testing for it first.
If you are doing regular water changes and those elements are still too low, then you HAVE to dose if you are looking to provide the optimum environment/conditions for your livestock.

 

[Merry]

But what you are using a good quality salt ?

Instant Ocean

 

[Best Fish-Jake]

I have had my 30g mixed reef (heavy LPS) running for nearly a year now and only dose phytoplankton and fuel. I do biweekly 15% waterchanges with coralife salt and I get great growth!

 

[Scarybo]

Like several people stated above, our tanks are glass boxes in our homes. No matter the effort we make, our tanks are not even close to the ocean. We have nutrient levels that far exceed the levels in the ocean. We dont have the multitude of lifeforms available on a reef. Water changes are an excellent maintenance strategy but they cannot keep up with the elements used by reef tank inhabitants. Remember the ocean has an abundance of sources for calcium, alkalinity, and other necessary elements. The major source for our tanks is what we provide. Plus the sheer water volume of the ocean exceeds what we can do with a home reef. I imagine if you had the bioload of a 20 gallon reef in a 700 gallon tank you could maintain levels with regular 10-20% water changes. We however usually try to maximize the occupants based on tank size.

 

[Greybeard]

If you look into the folks keeping really small reefs, in a gallon jug or whatnot, you'll find that's just what they do... changing a large percentage of the water often... sometimes every day! In a large tank, it's just not practical.

Kalkwasser in your top-off water is about the least I've ever been able to get away with. It helps keep the Calc and Alk where you need them, along with boosting your pH. Short of a fairly high demand system, Kalk is usually a pretty good way to go. Doesn't raise your salinity like 2part, and with a decently designed ATO, it's pretty safe. You can't over saturate kalkwasser, and if you're just replacing evaporation, you can't really overdose.

 

[Theo15]

I say chemicals because let's be honest guys most of these stuff were created in a lab, like the salts we use alot of them warn us to make sure the salt is fully dissolved before adding to main display.

 

[Theo15]

Instant Ocean

I use Aqua Forest Probiotic

 

[ECOKid]

If*, and do you guys religiously do weekly water changes ? I thought stability was key ,qouldnt weekly water changes not keep everything stable ?

This comment contridicts the original post. Also, If when you do a WC, and you Ph, temp and salinity are the same, wheres the instability? Im with the few others that said it, theyre naturally occuring elements. Derived in a lab, yes, but totally safe for organisms. Some people are jammed with SPS. Replenishing is a must. If the arguement is adding chemicals that do make the corals florish, opposed to not, and starving them of vital nutrients and amino acids. Its a toss up, but I might use the chems.

 

[Scarybo]

I say chemicals because let's be honest guys most of these stuff were created in a lab, like the salts we use alot of them warn us to make sure the salt is fully dissolved before adding to main display.

I take Insulin. It is created in a lab but that doesnt make it a chemical. It is a hormone. The problem is my body doesnt produce it so I have to supplement it with an outside source. That doesnt make it unnatural or bad. In fact I would die without it.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

The universe is made of "chemicals". In a lab we combine elements into the "chemicals" the organisms need to grow.
And yes a bunch are just junk with pretty labels. Calcium is not one that is junk.

If you could plumb your tank into the ocean for automatic water changes, it would work quite well at replacing the elements the organisms use up quite well.

 

[Theo15]

I understand guys ,but my thing is these stuff are so concentrated that if you put a little over or not enough ,it will cause problems and sometimes nuke your aquarium

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I understand guys ,but my thing is these stuff are so concentrated that if you put a little over or not enough ,it will cause problems and sometimes nuke your aquarium

Same happens if you drink too much water or eat copper, lead, salt, carbon, iron etc.