Tank Issues - Help interpret my ATI ICP test results (attached)

vokrey09 · Mar 25, 2022

Hello everyone,

I'm looking for some help interpreting my ATI ICP analysis and seeing if anything jumps out to anyone. These two photos were taken almost a year apart. I have lost a ton of coral in that time and have been attempting to get the tank on track via weekly 20% water changes (coral seems to just be surviving). Nothing has really changed with my tank maintenance that would have caused this. I am wondering if it is a lighting or flow issue at this point.

If anyone is able to give me any advice based on these results or anything in general I'd appreciate it.

Thanks!

blaxsun · Mar 25, 2022

Have you been using Vibrant at all? A quick glance at the results seems to indicate that you may be lacking in trace elements (Aquaforest, Red Sea, Nyos, etc. make these).

vokrey09 · Mar 25, 2022

blaxsun said:
Have you been using Vibrant at all? A quick glance at the results seems to indicate that you may be lacking in trace elements (Aquaforest, Red Sea, Nyos, etc. make these).

I actually was dosing vibrant for roughly two months. But that was about 6months ago.

I had assumed my trace elements were being replenished by my weekly water changes. I guess that wasn't enough

Would you recommend a trace element supplement from my results?

vokrey09 · Mar 25, 2022

blaxsun said:
Have you been using Vibrant at all? A quick glance at the results seems to indicate that you may be lacking in trace elements (Aquaforest, Red Sea, Nyos, etc. make these).

Also, just curious about how you came to ask if I was using Vibrant? Which surplus or lack of nutrients led you to that?

blaxsun · Mar 25, 2022

vokrey09 said:
Also, just curious about how you came to ask if I was using Vibrant? Which surplus or lack of nutrients led you to that?

The thread(s) are now locked, but there's been a lively discussion on what Vibrant actually contains - and if the independent testing is correct, it's primarily an algaecide (which can be harmful to corals). I myself have seen certain corals really struggle and have lost quite a few in the past 6 months - but this stopped happening after I discontinued using Vibrant. I can't say for certain if Vibrant was harming my reef and some inhabitants - but it seems more than a coincidence that things have really rebounded.

I like and use Nyos myself but have used Red Sea in the past. Aquaforest also has a product line tailored to specific trace elements that is worth checking out.

taricha · Mar 27, 2022

test says most things are pretty normal, but your sulfur is double what it ought to be. I don't know how that happens.
I guess if you always used epsom salt for Mg, you might get super high S over time.

lucky7 · Mar 27, 2022

My opinion is you’d benefit from raising your nutrients . Id also lower salinity closer to 35ppt and lower calcium . You also have silicates in your ro water . Replacing di should help with that . The sulfur being that high is strange not sure what to think of that

Reefahholic · Mar 28, 2022

Honestly not too bad, but Barium, Moly, and Fluoride are all low.

N&P is very low.

Time to dose it up bro.

lucky7 · Mar 28, 2022

What are those lights your running ?

vokrey09 · Mar 28, 2022

taricha said:
test says most things are pretty normal, but your sulfur is double what it ought to be. I don't know how that happens.
I guess if you always used epsom salt for Mg, you might get super high S over time.

Yeah, that's strange because I have never dosed Mg. Only replenished from water changes

vokrey09 · Mar 28, 2022

lucky7 said:
My opinion is you’d benefit from raising your nutrients . Id also lower salinity closer to 35ppt and lower calcium . You also have silicates in your ro water . Replacing di should help with that . The sulfur being that high is strange not sure what to think of that

By nutrients do you mean nitrates? I havent been dosing anything calcium included for the past few months, so calc is coming from water changes of reef crystals.

Going to replace my rodi filters and reduce salinty. Thanks for the advice there

Also, those are two AI primes with diffusers on them

vokrey09 · Mar 28, 2022

Reefahholic said:
Honestly not too bad, but Barium, Moly, and Fluoride are all low.

N&P is very low.

Time to dose it up bro.

Appreciate the feedback. Could I add those via trace elements supplement? Or should I dose those specifically?

Also same for N&P, would that be something I should dose? Or could I try adding another fish (pretty light stock rn) or removing some filter media? (I have a lot of media/LR for a nano imo)

Randy Holmes-Farley · Mar 28, 2022

Salinity is high and I’d lower it. A little tin, but probably not enough to be a problem.

vokrey09 · Mar 28, 2022

lucky7 said:
My opinion is you’d benefit from raising your nutrients . Id also lower salinity closer to 35ppt and lower calcium . You also have silicates in your ro water . Replacing di should help with that . The sulfur being that high is strange not sure what to think of that

Maybe stop running my skimmer as well?

vokrey09 · Mar 28, 2022

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
Salinity is high and I’d lower it. A little tin, but probably not enough to be a problem.

Thanks, Randy, I am going to address this first and go from there. Thank you!

Randy Holmes-Farley · Mar 28, 2022

vokrey09 said:
Maybe stop running my skimmer as well?

I wouldn’t change skimming

Reefahholic · Mar 28, 2022

vokrey09 said:
Appreciate the feedback. Could I add those via trace elements supplement? Or should I dose those specifically?

vokrey09 said:
Also same for N&P, would that be something I should dose? Or could I try adding another fish (pretty light stock rn) or removing some filter media? (I have a lot of media/LR for a nano imo)

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