My ICP test came in....7700+ Silicon....Help!

[Krixic]

So my ICP test to came in.....was greeted with high silicates and a few other random things. My RODI water seems fine other than the Silicon which it has 37. My TDS is pumping out at 0 so whats going on? Could it be the dry Rock? I bought the tank used and rinsed the rock but dident bleach it or anything. I have a few trace metals that are higher than normal....Should I be worried? Im thinking about dumping all the water and just refilling it with new saltwater as this tank has just cycled and has no livestock yet.

The first image with only silicon as a redflag is the RODI and the other two is the DT water

 

[Potatohead]

Did you put sand in the tank?

 

[Krixic]

Did you put sand in the tank?

Yes, I used Caribsea. About and inch and a half sand bed in a 45g

 

[Potatohead]

That is likely why. Your diatom bloom during cycling will take care of it.

 

[Krixic]

That is likely why. Your diatom bloom during cycling will take care of it.

Interesting. Can I ask why sand raises Silicates so high? Also should I be worries about the trace elements on my test? And Why is my Alk so low?

 

[Hincapiej4]

For Alk, what corals do you have? What is the ALK with the clean saltwater you're doing on water changes?
Trace elements are hard to say...are the coral happy?

 

[Krixic]

For Alk, what corals do you have? What is the ALK with the clean saltwater you're doing on water changes?
Trace elements are hard to say...are the coral happy?

Its a new tank, nothing in it yet. I wanted to test the water befor doing so to make sure everything was good to go. Im not quite sure what the dKH is with my clean water but I will test it later today. I know its 0 coming out the RODI tho.

 

[K7BMG]

Its a new tank, nothing in it yet. I wanted to test the water befor doing so to make sure everything was good to go. Im not quite sure what the dKH is with my clean water but I will test it later today. I know its 0 coming out the RODI tho.

Your RO/DI water should have no ALK in it.
Your salt mix is what introduces the ALK.
What is the ALK level on your salt mix? Does it match?
Depleted DI resins will allow silicates to pass through.

 

[Krixic]

Your RO/DI water should have no ALK in it.
Your salt mix is what introduces the ALK.
What is the ALK level on your salt mix? Does it match?
Depleted DI resins will allow silicates to pass through.

I use the Redsea blue bucket so it should be around 7 dKH. Also I change my DI resin as soon as it gets about 0 so I dont know about that. Maybe the RO system was not effect? Its an RO buddie with DI resin. Im planning on upgrading to a BRS 4 stange with water saving.

 

[K7BMG]

I use the Redsea blue bucket so it should be around 7 dKH. Also I change my DI resin as soon as it gets about 0 so I dont know about that. Maybe the RO system was not effect? Its an RO buddie with DI resin. Im planning on upgrading to a BRS 4 stange with water saving.

You are confusing me a bit.
You change your DI resin when "what" gets to 0


The BRS 4 stage plus water saver system is $265.00
The BRS 7 stage is another $75.00 more. That's what I would get.
You will save money and will never have to upgrade.
I know its a chunk of change but in the long run you will be so much better off.

If you test your freshly made saltwater (As you should) before it goes into the tank the ALK should match the bucket parameters listed.

 

[ReefLab]

lol. Silicon is 7000 micrograms per liter. or 7ppm. no big deal. diatom bloom will wipe that out in no time if you're not adding more.
Your RODI Water was 37 micrograms per liter - thats only .037ppm. beneficial to the tank imo. I actually dose sodium silicate to achieve 1000micrograms per liter weekly
Pay attention to the units

 

[Krixic]

lol. Silicon is 7000 micrograms per liter. or 7ppm. no big deal. diatom bloom will wipe that out in no time if you're not adding more.
Your RODI Water was 37 micrograms per liter - thats only .037ppm. beneficial to the tank imo. I actually dose sodium silicate to achieve 1000micrograms per liter weekly
Pay attention to the units

I see haha. I just always hear bad things associated with silicates so I was worried. Guess I was just misinformed

 

[Krixic]

You are confusing me a bit.
You change your DI resin when "what" gets to 0


The BRS 4 stage plus water saver system is $265.00
The BRS 7 stage is another $75.00 more. That's what I would get.
You will save money and will never have to upgrade.
I know its a chunk of change but in the long run you will be so much better off.

If you test your freshly made saltwater (As you should) before it goes into the tank the ALK should match the bucket parameters listed.

My TDS. And the 4 stage with water save is 200 I believe? 340 is a bit out of my budget.

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[K7BMG]

My TDS. And the 4 stage with water save is 200 I believe? 340 is a bit out of my budget.

I understand.
But you do have a system that's working for you at the moment so there's no rush.
Save up and buy it later.

 

[Krixic]

I understand.
But you do have a system that's working for you at the moment so there's no rush.
Save up and buy it later.

Gotcha, one of my main reasons for wanting to ug was due to how much water waste of was getting. I hated seeing 4 times my product water going down the drain lol

 

[ReefLab]

I see haha. I just always hear bad things associated with silicates so I was worried. Guess I was just misinformed

at high levels it may produce unsightly diatom blooms but my tank actually consumes .2ppm a day of silicate without any visible diatom growth.
Take a look at this article by Randy: https://reefs.com/magazine/silica-in-reef-aquariums/

 

[Krixic]

at high levels it may produce unsightly diatom blooms but my tank actually consumes .2ppm a day of silicate without any visible diatom growth.
Take a look at this article by Randy: https://reefs.com/magazine/silica-in-reef-aquariums/

Thanks!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Do you perceive a diatom problem? If not, there's no concern with elevated silicate that I am aware of. Some folks do have very high values of Si by ICP. I'm not sure what form it is taking in these cases. It may not be silicate at all, but something else (emulsified silicone oil, cyclic silicon oxide compounds, etc.).

 

[Krixic]

Do you perceive a diatom problem? If not, there's no concern with elevated silicate that I am aware of. Some folks do have very high values of Si by ICP. I'm not sure what form it is taking in these cases. It may not be silicate at all, but something else (emulsified silicone oil, cyclic silicon oxide compounds, etc.).

I see. I appreciate the response! I just always heard bad things about silicone so it freaked me out a little. I do have brown algae all over my tank right now (no live stock yet).

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I see. I appreciate the response! I just always heard bad things about silicone so it freaked me out a little. I do have brown algae all over my tank right now (no live stock yet).

Brown is not necessarily diatoms. Could by dinos, cyano, or other things.