Salifert calcium

[jdpeters]

does anyone trust results from salifert calcium? I got a 2.5 year old tank lightly stocked with some softies and a few large torch/hammers 4 inch favia and a galaxy coral the size of my palm. I do weekly or bi weekly 10 percent water changes and have never dosed. Salifert is showing my calcium being 480~ both times I’ve ran the test and i followed instructions closely/watched videos.

I cant imagine my calcium would be that high even though I don’t have anything super demanding. I have magnesium and alk test I need to do to. Do these results seem accurate or possible? I also have minimal Coraline growth even for being 2.5 years old. Thanks guys

 

[Crabs McJones]

does anyone trust results from salifert calcium? I got a 2.5 year old tank lightly stocked with some softies and a few large torch/hammers 4 inch favia and a galaxy coral the size of my palm. I do weekly or bi weekly 10 percent water changes and have never dosed. Salifert is showing my calcium being 480~ both times I’ve ran the test and i followed instructions closely/watched videos.

I cant imagine my calcium would be that high even though I don’t have anything super demanding. I have magnesium and alk test I need to do to. Do these results seem accurate or possible? I also have minimal Coraline growth even for being 2.5 years old. Thanks guys

What salt mix are you using?

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

Do you have any historical test data against which you can compare this result? If this was an acute spike out of the blue without dosing, I would be tempted to say it's probably testing error. In the absence of historical data or a baseline, if the test kit isn't expired, I don't see any reason to not trust the result. What are your alkalinity and magnesium levels? How do you measure salinity? Have you calibrated your salinity measurement tool lately? If your salinity measurement device is off and your tank is about 10% higher in salinity than it's supposed to be (about 3.5 ppt), that would easily take calcium from about 440 ppm to 480 ppm.

As @Crabs Mcjones asked, the salt mix might tell us a lot here. Also, salt mixes can settle and separate over time. If you use a large bucket of salt, are you physically stirring the dry salt before you portion it out?

 

[jdpeters]

What salt mix are you using?

Reef crystals . Both my torch colonies seem to be dying and one of my montipora frags is bleacbjnf but every thing else looks great

 

[jdpeters]

Reef crystals . Both my torch colonies seem to be dying and one of my montipora frags is bleacbjnf but every thing else looks great

I don’t see any pest

 

[Crabs McJones]

Is it reef Crystal's in the bucket as chipmunk said above they tend to settle out and cause weird readings.

 

[jdpeters]

Do you have any historical test data against which you can compare this result? If this was an acute spike out of the blue without dosing, I would be tempted to say it's probably testing error. In the absence of historical data or a baseline, if the test kit isn't expired, I don't see any reason to not trust the result. What are your alkalinity and magnesium levels? How do you measure salinity? Have you calibrated your salinity measurement tool lately? If your salinity measurement device is off and your tank is about 10% higher in salinity than it's supposed to be (about 3.5 ppt), that would easily take calcium from about 440 ppm to 480 ppm.

As @Crabs Mcjones asked, the salt mix might tell us a lot here. Also, salt mixes can settle and separate over time. If you use a large bucket of salt, are you physically stirring the dry salt before you portion it out?

It was the bottom of the bucket that I slowly went through. I did not stir it and the last 2 water changes took extra scoops to get my salinity right. I probably should of known that was wrong. I have never got into testing but recently I’ve been reinspired to take better care of my reef, continue to learn and better my practices. I use a hydrometer

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

It was the bottom of the bucket that I slowly went through. I did not stir it and the last 2 water changes took extra scoops to get my salinity right. I probably should of known that was wrong. I have never got into testing but recently I’ve been reinspired to take better care of my reef, continue to learn and better my practices. I use a hydrometer

It could be that the calcium was more concentrated at the bottom of the bucket. It also could be that your salinity is off. Hydrometers aren't always the most accurate, especially as they age and get built up with mineral deposits. As I mentioned above, salinity being off by just a few ppt would give you the anomalous calcium results you're seeing. If you would like to verify the accuracy of your hydrometer, you can make a salinity standard to do so with the following recipe:

1. Measure ¼ cup of Morton's Iodized Salt (about 73.1 g)
2. Add 1½ teaspoon of salt (making about 82.4 g total salt)
3. Measure the full volume of a plastic 2-L Coke or Diet Coke bottle filled with purified freshwater (about 2104.4 g)
4. Add an additional 2 tablespoons of purified freshwater (about 30 g)
5. Dissolve the total salt (82.4 g) in the total water volume (2134.4 g) to make an approximately 3.7 weight percent solution of NaCl. The volume of this solution is larger than the Coke bottle, so dissolve it in another container.

 

[jdpeters]

It could be that the calcium was more concentrated at the bottom of the bucket. It also could be that your salinity is off. Hydrometers aren't always the most accurate, especially as they age and get built up with mineral deposits. As I mentioned above, salinity being off by just a few ppt would give you the anomalous calcium results you're seeing. If you would like to verify the accuracy of your hydrometer, you can make a salinity standard to do so with the following recipe:

1. Measure ¼ cup of Morton's Iodized Salt (about 73.1 g)
2. Add 1½ teaspoon of salt (making about 82.4 g total salt)
3. Measure the full volume of a plastic 2-L Coke or Diet Coke bottle filled with purified freshwater (about 2104.4 g)
4. Add an additional 2 tablespoons of purified freshwater (about 30 g)
5. Dissolve the total salt (82.4 g) in the total water volume (2134.4 g) to make an approximately 3.7 weight percent solution of NaCl. The volume of this solution is larger than the Coke bottle, so dissolve it in another container.

That’s some complicated stuff there lol. I always felt like the hydrometer was close enough right? Would you take the 20 dollar amazon refractometer over a hydrometer?

 

[dwest]

does anyone trust results from salifert calcium? I got a 2.5 year old tank lightly stocked with some softies and a few large torch/hammers 4 inch favia and a galaxy coral the size of my palm. I do weekly or bi weekly 10 percent water changes and have never dosed. Salifert is showing my calcium being 480~ both times I’ve ran the test and i followed instructions closely/watched videos.

I cant imagine my calcium would be that high even though I don’t have anything super demanding. I have magnesium and alk test I need to do to. Do these results seem accurate or possible? I also have minimal Coraline growth even for being 2.5 years old. Thanks guys

I trust my salifert calcium test. It matches well with Troton results.

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

That’s some complicated stuff there lol. I always felt like the hydrometer was close enough right? Would you take the 20 dollar amazon refractometer over a hydrometer?

It's not that complicated. I think it looks worse than it is because of the gram measurements Randy included. Here are the basic directions using measuring cups, measuring spoons, a gallon jug, and a 2 liter soda bottle:

1. Get a clean gallon jug and 2 liter soda bottle.
2. Measure a quarter cup of Morton's salt. Pour it in the 1 gallon jug
3. Measure a half tablespoon (1.5 tsp) of salt. Pour it in the gallon jug too.
4. Fill the 2L bottle to the top with deionized water. Pour it in the jug.
5. Add 2 more tbsp of deionized water to the jug.
6. Shake the gallon jug to mix
7. Measure with the hydrometer.

And yes, hydrometers are usually close enough. But being off by just 5% - 10% would account for the high calcium result. So it's worth checking.

With regards to the Amazon refractometers, I honestly can't say. They're sort of hit or miss for the cheap ones. The BRS refractometer, on the other hand, is only $35 and lots of reefers appear to have good success with it.

 

[jdpeters]

I trust my salifert calcium test. It matches well with Troton results.

I did it twice is was nearly identical. I’m baffled how it could be that spot on after neglecting this tank. I will do mag and alk test once the little ones are in bed

 

[jdpeters]

It's not that complicated. I think it looks worse than it is because of the gram measurements Randy included. Here are the basic directions using measuring cups, measuring spoons, a gallon jug, and a 2 liter soda bottle:

1. Get a clean gallon jug and 2 liter soda bottle.
2. Measure a quarter cup of Morton's salt. Pour it in the 1 gallon jug
3. Measure a half tablespoon (1.5 tsp) of salt. Pour it in the gallon jug too.
4. Fill the 2L bottle to the top with deionized water. Pour it in the jug.
5. Add 2 more tbsp of deionized water to the jug.
6. Shake the gallon jug to mix
7. Measure with the hydrometer.

And yes, hydrometers are usually close enough. But being off by just 5% - 10% would account for the high calcium result. So it's worth checking.

With regards to the Amazon refractometers, I honestly can't say. They're sort of hit or miss for the cheap ones. The BRS refractometer, on the other hand, is only $35 and lots of reefers appear to have good success with it.

Ok thank for you the great information appreciate your time

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

Ok thank for you the great information appreciate your time

Always glad to help let us know what the alkalinity and magnesium test results are. If those are high too, that further suggests that your salinity is high. If those are more normal, you might just have elevated calcium.

I think it's worth noting that 480 ppm is higher than most reefers keep calcium, but I don't think it's particularly problematic at those levels. So I don't think it's something to worry too much about provided all the other test results are normal.

 

[jdpeters]

The led refractometer from BRS is on sale due to a blemish. I might nab one

 

[jdpeters]

So just tested my alk twice. My alk is showing probably between 5.8-6. Would this possibly irritate my torches and montipora?

 

[Crabs McJones]

So just tested my alk twice. My alk is showing probably between 5.8-6. Would this possibly irritate my torches and montipora?

It can, 7+ is where it should be kept.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I agree. As the alk drops it gets harder and harder for them to deposit skeletons. In the 5-6 dKH range it is getting quite hard.

 

[jdpeters]

Magnesium is 1290

 

[jdpeters]

So with elevated cal low alk and moderate magnesium what’s the easiest yet most gradual options available? I don’t have a option to run any additional equipment