REEF BUFFER 8.3 RUINED MY AQUARIUM

[Thjhiggins]

hi,
I bought one of the last (TOM DECO 3 AQUARIUM) I USED IT TO BUILD A BEAUTIFUL CORAL GARDEN. MY LFS SAID I NEEDED TO USE SEACHEM 8.3 TO KEEP A SMALL TANK IN BALANCE. I TRIED IT IN A VERY SMALL DOSAGE, MIXED FOR 6HRS WITH RO WATER. THE PH & ALK WERE LOW. I WOKE UP TO EVERY SINGLE TANK WALL COVERED IN WHITE. I AM SURE ITS THE PRODUCT CAUSING THE SCALE BUT IT IS HARD AS A ROCK. A TOOTHBRUSH WILL NOT EVEN TOUCH IT NOR A SNAIL. EVEN IF I HAS A TOOTHBRUSH THAT WOULD WORK I CAN'T REACH 50% OF THE TANK. IF ANYONE KNOWS OF A WAY TO REMOVE THE WHITE SCALE FROM MY TANK WALLS I WOULD APPRECIATE ANY ADVICE! THE CORALS ARE ALL HAPPY BUT I CAN'T SEE THEM AND THE PH & ALK DID INCREASE A BIT BUT NOW I HABE A VERY EXPENSIVE PIECE OF GARBAGE........[email removed] with any advice...thanks so so much. Here is a picnof the product and tank but you can hardly see the tank due to lighting

 

[Tcook]

How high was the calcium in that tank?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

please don’t make multiple posts on the same topic in one forum.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

you clearly added too much.

The deposit is calcium carbonate. It can be dissolved easily by acid, but that cannot be done with the tank having creatures in it.

A razor blade might have to be used.

How much of the buffer did you add?
Do you know what your tank alkalinity was before adding it?

 

[Reefing102]

I agree with RFH, with creatures in the tank, a razor blade is likely your best bet.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

FWIW, I removed your email address from your post. Reef2Reef discourages putting email addresses in public because bots will read it and spam you with advertisements and scams

 

[Salty_Northerner]

That seachem pH 8.3 shouldn't even be sold. It's a sham of a product.

Heck I tossed any seachem products I had in the trash even though that's all the LFS around here sell. I'd sooner spend the extra and order a better product then seachem. I'd even go as far as not using anything if seachem was all I could get. Sorry for the rant but the I had bad experiences using their products and so glad I ditched them.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I’m certainly not a fan of Seachem either, but the problem the op had was not due to a bad product, but using it improperly.

 

[Coolcasino]

As much as id like to blame "Seascam" on this I cant. It did what it was suppose to do when used incorrectly. Any other product/brand would have yielded the same result. I hope you tested your ALK before you started to dose. Your ALK must be sky high. Like others have said get a razor blade and start scrapping. That is not the product I would have chosen to keep a small or any size tank in "balance". Have no idea what your LFS was talking about. You first need to test... and not just ALK, you need CAL and MAG also. Then you have an idea of what you should dose, Depending on your corals simple water changes would have been enough. Even tho that product says 8.3 on it... and maybe it will bring your PH to 8.3 in the speed of light (not good either) it will be a temporary jolt and will soon come right back down and you will be left behind with all ALK. Get your water tested and then we can figure out the best way to fix this.

 

[Thjhiggins]

How high was the calcium in that tank?

350, and I've used this product in glass tanks but nothing like this happened, the scale or whatever it is covered my entire tank overnight. They even claim (you can't overdose)

 

[Someshmuk]

Only way to really remove the calcium buildup on acrylic walls without going to town on it with a razor is to transplant/remove everything from the tank and run a freshwater citric acid bath through your tank.

I.E. break down the tank and do a deep clean.

Its not the preferrable option but acrylic is really easy to scratch and theres nothing you can add to saltwater that would dissolve the calcium buildup that wouldn't directly impact your corals.

 

[gbroadbridge]

350, and I've used this product in glass tanks but nothing like this happened, the scale or whatever it is covered my entire tank overnight. They even claim (you can't overdose)

Do you know what your magnesium level was?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

350, and I've used this product in glass tanks but nothing like this happened, the scale or whatever it is covered my entire tank overnight. They even claim (you can't overdose)

They certainly do say you should not overdose, and that is what you did.

Again, I'm not a fan of Seachem and they do intentionally mislead users with some products, but here is exactly what they say about dosing and overdosing.

"When used as directed Reef Buffer™ will raise the pH of your reef system to 8.3 without fear of accidentally overshooting the pH to a dangerous level."

That is certainly true. The pH will not get too high when using it, even at the highest recommended dose.

"DO NOT OVERDOSE: Excess alkalinity may enhance the loss of calcium, magnesium, and strontium. Do not directly mix with any calcium, magnesium, or strontium supplement. Best if calcium & carbonate additives are added on alternate days or at least 30 minutes apart."

Seachem - Reef Buffer

www.seachem.com

 

[Thjhiggins]

I floowed all directions and use nutri-seawater only. Plus Aquafina for top offs. The seachem buffer 8.3 completely ruined my tank with the white scale absolutely covering 100% of tank walls.

 

[Tuan’s Reef]

Aquafina as in the bottled water we drink? You want only RODI water for your reef tank

 

[Townes_Van_Camp]

Aquafina for top offs