New dosing setup help

[Ernie C]

Hi,

Recently decided to try and automate dosing. Used to use a kalk drip but just upgraded to a new red sea tank and want to make everything as nice as the setup. got a dosing set up hooked up but not sure what products to use. I'm used to the capful method. Any help or pointers would be helpful. I bought the following but don't think this is what i should be using in a doser.

Kent Tech M Magnesium
Seachem Reef Carbonate
Seachem Reef Calcium (not ionic)
ordered some Reef Complete

Salinity 1.025
Ph - 8.1
Mag - 1350
Cal - 380
Alk - 9dKH

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I'm not a fan of reef calcium, and I think it will complicate dosing as it adds an uncertain amount of alkalinity along with the calcium. Not even Seachem can tell you how much alk it adds per unit of calcium since it depends on the ultimate fate of the polygluconate in your tank.

My suggestion is that by far the easiest path forward is to use a 1:1 designed two part (my DIY, as at BRS, or a commercial one like B-ionic) and set up one channel with alk and one with calcium. Dose both equally based on alk demand, and adjust calcium over time as needed.

 

[Ernie C]

Thank you, probably should have asked before i bought some of this stuff. Any suggestion what to use the third chamber for?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Thank you, probably should have asked before i bought some of this stuff. Any suggestion what to use the third chamber for?

If you choose a 3 part (like some of my DIY or some commercial systems) you could put magneisum there, but it is also pretty easily dosed manually since it depletes slowly and need not be added nearly as frequently.

A trace element mix could also be put there if you want. Or organic carbon dosing.

FWIW, you can certainly use two channels on the Reef Complete and the Reef Carbonate, you'll just have to set and control them independently since they are not close to 1:1 dosing.