Post your DIY additives here!

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Well , thank you, but I was only trying to reproduce some of the Aquaforest additives for myself and was looking for some help deciding what chemical was a better choose for each additive. I have read many forums and threads but I am not chemist nor oceanographer, my only capability is to calculate how much of each product I should add to an aquarium based on the ICP results. The problem is that I do not know if the chemicals listed above are good enough or there are better options.

OK, that simplifies things, but still, I doubt Aquaforest tells you the form of the additives in it. Hence the need to look deeper than simply elements.

 

[elysics]

Would Ammoniummetavanadate (NH4VO3) be a good choice for a vanadium supplement? Thats the only one i could probably get my hands on above board/in not super sketchy ways here in germany.

 

[zachtos]

Manganese	Manganese (II) Chloride Tetrahydrate	MnCl₂
Barium	Barium Chloride Dihydrate	BaCl2.2H2O
Zinc	Zinc Chloride	ZnCl₂
Strontium	Strontium Chloride, 6-Hydrate	SrCl2·6H2O
Fluorine	Sodium Fluoride	NaF
Iron	Fergon High Potency Iron Highly Soluble Tablets	C12H24FeO14
Molybdenum	Sodium Molybdate	Na₂MoO₄ * 2 H₂O
Iodine (and Potassium)	Potassium Iodide	KI
Vandium	Vanadium (V) Oxide	V2O5
Boron	Borax (10 mule team detergent booster)	Na₂[B₄O₅(OH)₄]·8H₂O

*this is what I've been using for my tank w/ links to amazon to buy. I have not had Randy verify that all of this is OK, but it has been working over 2 years now. my google doc has notes on how I calculate molar mass and how to dose etc.

 

[AlbertGF]

Would Ammoniummetavanadate (NH4VO3) be a good choice for a vanadium supplement? Thats the only one i could probably get my hands on above board/in not super sketchy ways here in germany.

I ordered the Vanadium that @zachtos listed in his post, the one from Amazon. I live in Catalonia and they say that they are going to send the product to here. I suppose they will send to Germany too.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Would Ammoniummetavanadate (NH4VO3) be a good choice for a vanadium supplement? Thats the only one i could probably get my hands on above board/in not super sketchy ways here in germany.

It's a different oxidation state of vanadium (VO3---) than what I think is is normally present in seawater (VO4---) . I do not know the implications of that difference from a toxicity or bioavailability perspective.

 

[elysics]

I ordered the Vanadium that @zachtos listed in his post, the one from Amazon. I live in Catalonia and they say that they are going to send the product to here. I suppose they will send to Germany too.

Yeah self importing restricted chemicals from a non-EU country and hoping it skips by customs is kinda what i meant with sketchy and i am not sure but i think actually illegal.

Maybe ill find a vendor inside the EU somehwere, not sure whether that's legal either though

 

[AlbertGF]

Manganese	Manganese (II) Chloride Tetrahydrate	MnCl₂
Barium	Barium Chloride Dihydrate	BaCl2.2H2O
Zinc	Zinc Chloride	ZnCl₂
Strontium	Strontium Chloride, 6-Hydrate	SrCl2·6H2O
Fluorine	Sodium Fluoride	NaF
Iron	Fergon High Potency Iron Highly Soluble Tablets	C12H24FeO14
Molybdenum	Sodium Molybdate	Na₂MoO₄ * 2 H₂O
Iodine (and Potassium)	Potassium Iodide	KI
Vandium	Vanadium (V) Oxide	V2O5
Boron	Borax (10 mule team detergent booster)	Na₂[B₄O₅(OH)₄]·8H₂O

*this is what I've been using for my tank w/ links to amazon to buy. I have not had Randy verify that all of this is OK, but it has been working over 2 years now. my google doc has notes on how I calculate molar mass and how to dose etc.

Hi @zachtos,

I ordered the same Vanadium as you at Amazon.com and it arrived last week. Today I was doing the mixes and the product that has arrived does not dissolve nor turns water yellowish. I tried to dissolve 2.68 grams of that product to 1.5 liters of water and it precipitates to the bottom and does not dye the water.
Does it dissolve well for you? The resultant water should be yellowish, isn't it?

Maybe there is an error with the chemical, I don't know.

Thank you!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Hi @zachtos,

I ordered the same Vanadium as you at Amazon.com and it arrived last week. Today I was doing the mixes and the product that has arrived does not dissolve nor turns water yellowish. I tried to dissolve 2.68 grams of that product to 1.5 liters of water and it precipitates to the bottom and does not dye the water.
Does it dissolve well for you? The resultant water should be yellowish, isn't it?

Maybe there is an error with the chemical, I don't know.

Thank you!

Do you have a link to the exact chemical?

 

[AlbertGF]

Do you have a link to the exact chemical?

Yes, I ordered this item:


I have new news. This morning I found maybe all powder settled at the bottom of the recipient so it wasn't dissolved. Then I looked for the Sodium orthovanadate formula and it seems that adding 6 to 1 moles of NaOH to V2O5 forms it. So I added 3.54gr of NaOH to the 2.68gr of V2O5 and all dissolved good letting a transparent like water liquid.
But the vanadium pentoxide alone did not dissolve, at least not totally.

I think I read somewhere that you (@Randy Holmes-Farley) wrote that Sodium orthovanadate is a good choice and that VO4 is the form of vanadate that is naturally present in seawater.

So, if I am not wrong, finally, I am happy with it.

Just after mixing:

After one night settling (here I had added 1.5gr of NaOH):

After adding all NaOH (two grams more):

 

[zachtos]

Hi @zachtos,

I ordered the same Vanadium as you at Amazon.com and it arrived last week. Today I was doing the mixes and the product that has arrived does not dissolve nor turns water yellowish. I tried to dissolve 2.68 grams of that product to 1.5 liters of water and it precipitates to the bottom and does not dye the water.
Does it dissolve well for you? The resultant water should be yellowish, isn't it?

Maybe there is an error with the chemical, I don't know.

Thank you!

Sorry, I actually got mine on ebay for Vanadium. The link was gone so I found comparable source on Amazon, but perhaps it's not the same? I was able to dissolve 1gram in 1L of water with ease, and it makes a bright yellow liquid. This is what the description was in my email history:​

VANADIUM PENTOXIDE 2 oz Lab Ceramic Chemical V2O5 RARE EARTH 99.9% purity​

rakugoldpottery was the ebay user name for seller

Let us know if a solution is found, as I will run out eventually myself.

 

[Cory]

Im curious if you guys noticed any benefits dosing vanadium?

 

[zachtos]

Im curious if you guys noticed any benefits dosing vanadium?

I'm not sure. I dose too many things to be certain. I try to keep all parameters similar to natural sea water. My reward is bright colored SPS coral. I am starting to encounter nitrate creep though, but I think that's unrelated to dosing.

 

[AlbertGF]

Sorry, I actually got mine on ebay for Vanadium. The link was gone so I found comparable source on Amazon, but perhaps it's not the same? I was able to dissolve 1gram in 1L of water with ease, and it makes a bright yellow liquid. This is what the description was in my email history:​

VANADIUM PENTOXIDE 2 oz Lab Ceramic Chemical V2O5 RARE EARTH 99.9% purity​

rakugoldpottery was the ebay user name for seller

Let us know if a solution is found, as I will run out eventually myself.

I messaged the seller and I'm still waiting for an answer. So I don't know anything new yet.

Im curious if you guys noticed any benefits dosing vanadium?

I still haven't dosed, so I don't know. But all those methods like Aquaforest, Triton, etc. recommend it.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I messaged the seller and I'm still waiting for an answer. So I don't know anything new yet.


I still haven't dosed, so I don't know. But all those methods like Aquaforest, Triton, etc. recommend it.

Vanadium is used by every organism, so it needed at some (undetermined) level, but bear in mind that they also recommend things with no known biological use, just for the sake of matching natural seawater levels of things.

 

[Fourstars]

after my most recent test it was suggested I dose
Single Element Fluoride 790 ml total split over 14 days
Single Element Molybdenum 90 ml total split over 8 days

I found molybdenum on Amazon but can’t seem to find fluoride without paying a ridiculous amount of cash, any suggestions. I also included my full report.

 

[agv180]

Manganese	Manganese (II) Chloride Tetrahydrate	MnCl₂
Barium	Barium Chloride Dihydrate	BaCl2.2H2O
Zinc	Zinc Chloride	ZnCl₂
Strontium	Strontium Chloride, 6-Hydrate	SrCl2·6H2O
Fluorine	Sodium Fluoride	NaF
Iron	Fergon High Potency Iron Highly Soluble Tablets	C12H24FeO14
Molybdenum	Sodium Molybdate	Na₂MoO₄ * 2 H₂O
Iodine (and Potassium)	Potassium Iodide	KI
Vandium	Vanadium (V) Oxide	V2O5
Boron	Borax (10 mule team detergent booster)	Na₂[B₄O₅(OH)₄]·8H₂O

*this is what I've been using for my tank w/ links to amazon to buy. I have not had Randy verify that all of this is OK, but it has been working over 2 years now. my google doc has notes on how I calculate molar mass and how to dose etc.

Hello, I saw your page about additives, I wanted to know if a mix similar to infusion is possible. the one used to supplement the calcium reactor?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Hello, I saw your page about additives, I wanted to know if a mix similar to infusion is possible. the one used to supplement the calcium reactor?

Infusion means what to you? A brand of supplement? The word literally just means to add something.

 

[agv180]

Infusion means what to you? A brand of supplement? The word literally just means to add something.

Hi randy, infusion by triton https://www.triton-reagents.de/en/corechem/infusion It is used to complement the traces, since its mean of the reactor is somewhat similar to limestone.

 

[Texasnanoreef345]

Where could I find sodium orthovanadate today ?

 

[Reefology1]

Trying to boost my fluoride levels with this recipe and wondering if anyone sees a problem with the info below?

Sodium Fluoride – NaF is 45% fluoride by weight?

Dissolve 10g of NaF in 1 L of RO/DI. That solution contains 4.5 g/L of fluoride or 4.5 mg/ml.

Adding 10 mL (45mg) to 300 L (80 gallons) of tank water will boost aquarium Fluoride levels by 0.15 mg/l