Levels all over the place

[Jl330]

55 gallon sumpless

Calcium 500
Alk 6.4-7.8 depending on how you look at it
Mg 1600

I'm using reef crystals salt at 1.026 and manually topping with rodi water

Haven't changed in about 13 days


I've been losing some things.

 

[Crabs McJones]

55 gallon sumpless

Calcium 500
Alk 6.4-7.8 depending on how you look at it
Mg 1600

I'm using reef crystals salt at 1.026 and manually topping with rodi water

Haven't changed in about 13 days


I've been losing some things.

What about the rest of your parameters? Ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, as well as Phosphate. How long has the tank been running? And are you loosing corals? Fish?

 

[reeferfoxx]

How are you measuring salinity? What test kit are you using for alkalinity?

 

[Jl330]

How are you measuring salinity? What test kit are you using for alkalinity?

Swing arm (I know)

Red sea kit for measuring

Nitrate is over 20 but that's as high as I'm testing
Haven't been testing phosphate
Everything ammonia is zero

All I lost was a torch coral and a candy cane.

I have a couple acans and a trach that aren't happy.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Swing arm (I know)

Red sea kit for measuring

Nitrate is over 20 but that's as high as I'm testing
Haven't been testing phosphate
Everything ammonia is zero

All I lost was a torch coral and a candy cane.

I have a couple acans and a trach that aren't happy.

What is your lighting and settings

 

[Jl330]

What is your lighting and settings

Chinese black boxes.

2 of them.

Whites at 5-10%

Blues at 15-20%

Im guessing at those figures. I played with it til it looked good and everything showed color. I had them much higher and things bleached out.

I have no sps and my lps seem pretty happy.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I don't think the chemical parameters that you've posted so far are killing corals.

 

[Jl330]

I don't think the chemical parameters that you've posted so far are killing corals.

Perhaps it could be the swings from my water level fluctuating from no ato and me traveling for work and my eow water changes.

I'm trying to make things more stable.

 

[Marcio Gielfi]

Chinese black boxes.

2 of them.

Whites at 5-10%

Blues at 15-20%

Im guessing at those figures. I played with it til it looked good and everything showed color. I had them much higher and things bleached out.

I have no sps and my lps seem pretty happy.

I think you are lacking PAR with those settings

Take a look at BRS video measuring black box
https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/vide...lack-box-led-lights-are-they-worth-the-price/

Good PAR at the center at full power, low PAR out off the center.

 

[vegamedic]

Swing arm (I know)

See if you can borrow a refractometer from somebody or scrounge the $20 together to grab one. I'd imagine you could find one used on ebay or locally for cheaper too

 

[Jl330]

See if you can borrow a refractometer from somebody or scrounge the $20 together to grab one. I'd imagine you could find one used on ebay or locally for cheaper too

I didn't realize they were that cheap. I was looking at the digital thing that was $100 or so.

 

[vegamedic]

I didn't realize they were that cheap. I was looking at the digital thing that was $100 or so.

Yeah I'm talking about the handheld ones. The digital refractometers are cool (I have one) but not necessary. Just make sure you get one for saltwater as there's refractometers for other applications like brewing

 

[Dawgvet]

+1 on the hand held refractometer. I would also add to make sure that you calibrate it frequently. I now calibrate mine before each new batch of saltwater as I learned the hard way they don't hold their calibration forever.
I got slack on my refractometer calibration and what I thought was a 1.026 tank salinity was actually 1.019