Lets play a game. Find the Arsenic!

[DesertReefT4r]

My recent ICP test came back with high Arsenic at 12.25 ppb not a typo. My previous test on 10-26-21 was 1.91 ppb and all older tests are under 0.015 ppb. My RODI tested with my latest ICP sample came back at 0 ppb Arsenic so it's not my source water. I only dose BRS pharma kalk, Logols and Acro Power. So I don't think it's coming from dosing and nothing with my dosing has changed. I use HW Reefer salt unless I can't get any and my fall back is Fritz blue box. Maybe it's the salt but I have never had high Arsenic from either salts and I have done ICP tests in the past while using both. Not ruling it out though. I did just open a new box of HW and have done about 25 gallons in water changes on my reef which is a 75g 28th 20g sump, estimate 80-85 gallons total water volume. I will need to do an ICP of new mixed saltwater to confirm or eliminate the new salt. With high quality pharma grade salt mix I would not expect any toxic contaminants. Not having any issues and my reef looks great so I'm not freaking out and changing 100 things. I did toss a bag of Chemi Pure Elite in the sump which has carbon and GFO, LFS did not have GFO. That should remove or reduce the Arsenic. Let's locate the source of this toxin so I can prevent any future toxic build ups.

 

[brandon429]

First possible
Something in the feed or prep water for the system and the right ro filtration leaks to pass it

Wolfforth TX has straight up arsenic water, ground contam. Nobody in town brushed teeth with it, when showering they hold breath lol not joking the town is nice enough to offer one arsenic - free / tested spigot mid town, my ex and I used to make trips there daily to load up drinking water vs always buying it at United.

 

[Cory]

Did you use icpanalysis.com? If you believe the result is real id be looking into walls in your house.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Natural ocean water has around 2 ppb arsenic.

I personally would not spend much effort looking for a source as it may just be test error. It is only moderately toxic.

This has more, especially on

https://setac.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/etc.5620160511

"The U.S. EPA acute and chronic water quality criteria (protection of marine life) for arsenite are 69 μg/L and 36 μg/L, respectively "

 

[DesertReefT4r]

Did you use icpanalysis.com? If you believe the result is real id be looking into walls in your house.

Yes I did. My house is not that old, 15 years. Don't see how my walls would have Arsenic.

First possible
Something in the feed or prep water for the system and the right ro filtration leaks to pass it

Wolfforth TX has straight up arsenic water, ground contam. Nobody in town brushed teeth with it, when showering they hold breath lol not joking the town is nice enough to offer one arsenic - free / tested spigot mid town, my ex and I used to make trips there daily to load up drinking water vs always buying it at United.

My RODI has 0 ppb Arsenic so it not my source water.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Yes I did. My house is not that old, 15 years. Don't see how my walls would have Arsenic.

My RODI has 0 ppb Arsenic so it not my source water.

Gypsum - Nature's Way Resources

Gypsum is a naturally occurring mineral that is made up of calcium sulfate and water (CaSO4+2H2O) that is sometimes called hydrous calcium sulfate. It is the mineral calcium sulfate with two water molecules attached. By weight it is 79% calcium sulfate and 21% water. Gypsum has 23% calcium and...

www.natureswayresources.com

Mined gypsum is found at various locations around the world. In North America there are gypsum deposits from Canada to Texas and in many Western States. Chemically raw mined gypsum is primarily calcium sulfate hydrated with water molecules in its chemical structure. Other materials and chemicals in mined gypsum may be small amounts of sand or clay particles and a few trace elements. The trace elements may be boron or iron to arsenic and lead and varies with each deposit. Many deposits in Canada have arsenic while those in Texas may have very little.


Also many years ago arsenic was added to drywall and used to help strengthen the wall board.

 

[brandon429]

if we could have only had asbestos-based arsenic paneling in addition to smog-in windows up family road trips on unfiltered winstons that would have made the 80s better

 

[Cory]

Yes I did. My house is not that old, 15 years. Don't see how my walls would have Arsenic.

My RODI has 0 ppb Arsenic so it not my source water.

They frequently have test results come back with arsenic while other companies dont. I wouldn't believe it

 

[DesertReefT4r]

Not fully sure I believe the Arsenic results but the increase over the last few tests makes me wonder if it's near correct. Pretty sure there is no Arsenic or asbestos in my home. No dry wall work has been done so there is no way any could be in my reef. I am think about doing a 2nd round of ICP with tank water and new saltwater.

 

[Cory]

Maybe go with triton and see what comes up.

Im curious if the color that shows for Arsenic could be confused for something else in icp?

 

[DesertReefT4r]

Some new info has lead me to believe it may be the BRS kalk I use that's adding arsenic. I will be doing a test of the kalk water to confirm or deny this. If its the BRS kalk I will be switching back to Kent and dropping my support to corporate BRS.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

What info?

If it is the source, it would have to be a serious bad batch that would not be legally allowed to carry that grade. It would be tens of thousands of times higher than the allowed limit of the the grading specification guarantee for that material.

I show the allowable arsenic levels in various grades of calcium hydroxide here:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/index.htm

food and USP (pharmaceutical) grades have less than 3 ppm allowed.

Let's see how that translates into the aquarium in relation to the natural levels in seawater (2 ppb).

Limewater/kalkwasser is saturated when you dissolve exactly 1.5 g/L at 25 deg C.

If the solid calcium hydroxide contains 3 ppb (1 ppb = 1 ug/kg = 1 ng/g) arsenic, then 1 L of kalkwasser (containing 1.5 grams of solid calcium hydroxide) contains 1.5 ng of arsenic.

Let's say you add 2% of the tank volume each day to the aquarium in saturated limewater/kalkwasser. That's a moderate to high dose. It's about what I added.

In a 100 L aquarium, you are adding 2 L of kalkwasser, or 3 ng of arsenic.

That 3 ng of arsenic in 100 L is about 3 ng/100 kg or about 0.03 ng/kg each day.

1 ng/kg = 0.001 ppb

0.03 ng/kg = 0.00003 ppb of arsenic each day.

Thus, at the grade allowed limit of arsenic, it would take 182 years to simply double the NSW levels of 2 ppb.

 

[Cell]

if we could have only had asbestos-based arsenic paneling in addition to smog-in windows up family road trips on unfiltered winstons that would have made the 80s better

Hey, if we rolled the windows down it would have ruined the effect of my candy cigarettes.

 

[brandon429]

I forgot about those with the red dots on the end!


candy cigarettes would cause a woke meltdown in 22

any store that sold them / canceled


and after it all: I never smoke cigs not ever. When I was 12 messing around in alleys in El Paso lol my friend had some and it burned so bad I never tried again. I ate no less than 200 candy cigs while pretending to smoke them like my gramps, and literally every other person in 1985

 

[DesertReefT4r]

What info?

If it is the source, it would have to be a serious bad batch that would not be legally allowed to carry that grade. It would be tens of thousands of times higher than the allowed limit of the the grading specification guarantee for that material.

I show the allowable arsenic levels in various grades of calcium hydroxide here:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/index.htm

food and USP (pharmaceutical) grades have less than 3 ppm allowed.

Let's see how that translates into the aquarium in relation to the natural levels in seawater (2 ppb).

Limewater/kalkwasser is saturated when you dissolve exactly 1.5 g/L at 25 deg C.

If the solid calcium hydroxide contains 3 ppb (1 ppb = 1 ug/kg = 1 ng/g) arsenic, then 1 L of kalkwasser (containing 1.5 grams of solid calcium hydroxide) contains 1.5 ng of arsenic.

Let's say you add 2% of the tank volume each day to the aquarium in saturated limewater/kalkwasser. That's a moderate to high dose. It's about what I added.

In a 100 L aquarium, you are adding 2 L of kalkwasser, or 3 ng of arsenic.

That 3 ng of arsenic in 100 L is about 3 ng/100 kg or about 0.03 ng/kg each day.

1 ng/kg = 0.001 ppb

0.03 ng/kg = 0.00003 ppb of arsenic each day.

Thus, at the grade allowed limit of arsenic, it would take 182 years to simply double the NSW levels of 2 ppb.

Telegram shared this 8nfo on YouTube live stream. I am surprised at this myself being a pharmaceutical grade kalk. I don't know for sure and will be waiting for ICP testing. I don't do water changes very often and other than Acro Power and 1 drop of lugols iodine very couple of weeks kalk is the only thing I dose. I'm thinking the lack or water changes and lime water additions over time have cause a build up of arsenic.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Telegram shared this 8nfo on YouTube live stream. I am surprised at this myself being a pharmaceutical grade kalk. I don't know for sure and will be waiting for ICP testing. I don't do water changes very often and other than Acro Power and 1 drop of lugols iodine very couple of weeks kalk is the only thing I dose. I'm thinking the lack or water changes and lime water additions over time have cause a build up of arsenic.

What info though?

Did someone actually measure arsenic in it, or is someone just associating it with elevated arsenic in a tank?

 

[telegraham]

What info though?

Did someone actually measure arsenic in it, or is someone just associating it with elevated arsenic in a tank?

You asked, but I don't see a reply. My assumption is that the test returned an unexpected result due to an error, and not the kalk, but @DesertReefT4r is referring to this -