Noobie Dosing Ca & Mg

[CastAway]

With water changes and running my Ca reactor, my parameters have remained pretty constant over the last year. My dKH may run a little high. I’m getting a handle on nutrients, and wanted to improve my Ca and Mg levels. My plan was to manually dose to desired levels, then through daily testing find the daily maintenance level dosing requirements.

Sunday, 03/08/2015
dKH – 10.9
Ca – 420 (added 110ml aquavitro Calcification™)
Mg – 1220 (added 150ml aquavitro Ions™)

Monday, 03/09/2015
dKH – 10.6
Ca – 435 (added 100ml aquavitro Calcification™)
Mg – 1300 (added 50ml aquavitro Ions™)

Tuesday, 03/10/2015
dKH – 10.9
Ca – 455
Mg – 1320

As a sanity check at this point, I wanted to ask:
I was expecting my alk to drop as I raised the Ca levels and it did not. Should it have?
Also, what might be a practical range of daily dosing amounts for both Ca and Mg? I know it will depend on total volume and consumption by calcifying inhabitants, but is there a ball park, or can someone provide an example?

Total water volume – 210g
SPS load is “lightâ€.

Be gentle

 

[CastAway]

Bump

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

If the reactor is maintaining alkalinity, then it will keep calcium from declining, so you should not need any maintenance dose.

What salinity are you using? That may be why calcium and magnesium seem low.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

No, alk will not drop just because you added calcium.

 

[CastAway]

I use the Red Sea Coral Pro

 

[CastAway]

I use the Red Sea Coral Pro

At 1.026

 

[CastAway]

If the reactor is maintaining alkalinity, then it will keep calcium from declining, so you should not need any maintenance dose.

Well, I confess I don't understand. If without dosing, and relying upon water changes and the Ca reactor only, I maintain Ca at 400-420, then how can I expect to maintain 450 without dosing?

Although I suspect some margin of error in my testing, Ca was at 445 today. Could this be?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Hobbyist kits are fraught with errors and many people see calcium and magnesium changes that can only be testing errors.

Once you use calcium chloride to boost calcium to your target, the reactor should keep it there unless a water change with a low calcium mix lowers it.

 

[CastAway]

What about the Ca that gets consumed, won't that result in a tendency to continually decrease the level?

 

[beaslbob]

the calcium reactor should replace the consumption.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

The calcium reactor adds both calcium and alkalinity in the exact ratio that they are being used.

So if it is maintaining alkalinity, it should be maintaining calcium (barring things like water changes messing with the ratio).