Nano tank doseing question

biggen · Dec 16, 2016

Going to start checking Alk levels of my 10g AIO tank. Net water volume is approx 8g. This is a new tank (two months old) and all LPS with some Zoas. Currently using IO salt and doing 10% - 20% water changes weekly. I keep 5g of IO salt mixed and ready to go in the garage at all times.

I have a Hanna Alk ULR on order. I'm wanting to use ESV B-Ionic as I don't really want to mess with Kalk and I think using a liquid 2-part would be fine since I'll be using such small quantities of it for such a small tank anyway. A gallon of B-Ionic 2-part each should last me a looong time I would imagine.

My thoughts are to first check my newly mixed salt that I keep on hand to see if any adjustments need to be made to that. If I find it is below 7dKH, I assume I can add the appropriate 2-part according to the calculator here to boost to ~8dKH or I could add just regular baking soda according to the same calculator. Is this a correct assumption? Although, I think it will be hard to measure out baking soda for amounts less than 1/2 teaspoon which is what the calculator is recommending if I needed to boost from 6.5dKH to 8dKH in 5g of water.

Secondly, once my newly mixed saltwater is at the correct ALK level, I now assume I want to get the tank up to that same ALK level, correct? I can use the same reef calculator to find the appropriate level of B-ionic to boost with, and then continue testing to determine what my daily maintenance dose would be. Does this sound like an accurate plan?

I don't currently have a Ca test. However, if I'm dosing equal parts of B-ionic I guess I don't really understand the need for the Ca test anyway.

Thoughts?

Randy Holmes-Farley · Dec 16, 2016

You definitely do not need to boost alk in the IO. It will be 11+ dKH.

B-ionic is a perfect way to go in a small tank.

You will be fine for quite a while if you use equal parts dosing for calcium and alkalinity with B-ionic based on alk measurement alone.

biggen · Dec 16, 2016

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
You definitely do not need to boost alk in the IO. It will be 11+ dKH.
B-ionic is a perfect way to go in a small tank.
You will be fine for quite a while if you use equal parts dosing for calcium and alkalinity with B-ionic based on alk measurement alone.

Holy crap that was fast Randy! That is good to hear about not needing to boost Alk in newly mixed water. I really wasn't wanting to mess with that.

So this *should* be an easy process then. Test for Alk in the tank, boost to appropriate level I desire, test for a few days to determine usage, and then figure the maintenance dose. Like everything in life, it sounds much easier than it turns out to be.

I also don't want to mess with dosing pumps for such small amounts of B-ionic that I imagine I'll be using. If I am adding a few ml per day of both 2-parts, will it be safe to dump it all in at once with a some time separation between the two? Like 10 minutes between the two doses?

Randy Holmes-Farley · Dec 16, 2016

Whether all at once is OK or not will depend on the demand.

It is OK for 0.5 dKH or less. Not so desirable for 2 dKH per day or more.

10 min between the parts is fine if there's no sump.

biggen · Dec 16, 2016

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
Whether all at once is OK or not will depend on the demand.
It is OK for 0.5 dKH or less. Not so desirable for 2 dKH per day or more.
10 min between the parts is fine if there's no sump.

Gotcha. Ok, is there a simple calculator that will tell me how much "x"ml of 2-part Alk will boost "x"dKH in 8g of water? Just curious what the cutoff in dosing 2-part in ml would be for a 1-2 dKH rise in 8g. And, correct, there is no sump.

Edit: Actually, I played with the numbers on that reefing calculator and 3.5ml of B-ionic raises dKH by 1 in 8g. So I guess if I'm adding 3.5ml or less per day of Alk and Ca 2-part, I should be safe to dump that all in at once.