This is what happens when you do not change your water!!

[Bbaz123456]

What do you guys think?
I am getting a salinity of 1.027 so I am not sure where the deviation is coming from. I think the higher Mg and Ca would cause this?
The LI-group makes me a bit nervous....
I do use IO salt but have not been doing very much for water changes over the last year. Maybe 2-3% a month.
Does this call for a series of massive water changes?
The system is over 2500 gallons now

 

[Bbaz123456]

I did bring salinity down to 1.026 since the test was sent in

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Your magnesium and sulfate are through the roof and is really skewing your salinity.

Are you adding sulfate additives?

Have you overdosed magnesium?

 

[JimWelsh]

The estimated salinity of your Triton sample is more like S=34.08, or 1.0257 SG at 25C. I agree with Randy, both Mg and SO4 are about twice NSW levels; did you somehow double your Mg concentration using Epsom Salts alone? This doesn't look to me like a problem created by no water changes. It looks more like a problem from incorrect dosing.

But, you also take the prize perhaps for highest lithium, and your phosphate is in @Thales territory! And, let's not let all that distract us from the highest copper reading I've seen posted so far in Triton results. There looks to be a small handful of different problems here.

 

[Bbaz123456]

Your magnesium and sulfate are through the roof and is really skewing your salinity.

Are you adding sulfate additives?

Have you overdosed magnesium?

Yes I battled Briopsis with mag and wanted to make sure it stayed away. I used Mgso4 and MgCl

 

[Bbaz123456]

The estimated salinity of your Triton sample is more like S=34.08, or 1.0257 SG at 25C. I agree with Randy, both Mg and SO4 are about twice NSW levels; did you somehow double your Mg concentration using Epsom Salts alone? This doesn't look to me like a problem created by no water changes. It looks more like a problem from incorrect dosing.

But, you also take the prize perhaps for highest lithium, and your phosphate is in @Thales territory! And, let's not let all that distract us from the highest copper reading I've seen posted so far in Triton results. There looks to be a small handful of different problems here.

Am I nearing dangerous levels on copper? Carbon should pull that down, right?
What does the phosphate level convert to in PPM? I was getting 1.5 on the hanna. Which is actually pretty good for me. It has not been abnormal to bottom out at 2.5ppm. For some reason I grow corals very well and always have, including SPS. I do use Lanthanum to reduce PO4 but usually get it down to 1ppm or so and let it bounce back. I grow tons of macros and they keep nitrates down below 10 but do not keep up on the phosphates.
I am also a passionate overfeeder

 

[JimWelsh]

Yes I battled Briopsis with mag and wanted to make sure it stayed away. I used Mgso4 and MgCl

Just curious -- what brands?

There is a hypothesis that it is the not the magnesium, per se, but rather, lithium in certain magnesium products that kills Bryopsis, but that hypothesis has not been well tested. Is your Bryopsis gone?

 

[Bbaz123456]

I do not know the brand. The epsom salts is from a feed store and the MgCl is used as an ice melter. I have used it on and off for years and yes it has worked but the bryopsis would come back 6 months or so later. It is gone now and has been for 3-4 months but I do have some small patches that may not be bryopsis but something similar popping up.

 

[jason2459]

I'm sorry I have nothing to add other then I find your Triton results rather impressive and makes me chuckle at the same time.

I would look at adding a polyfilter (not polyfill), GAC, ciprisorb, or a combination of those.

Water changes and reduce/stop dosing can help bring the rest of the numbers inline. I would do multiple smaller water changes opposed to one large one.

Oh, how I remember the days of having over 2 ppm of phosphates. Decimal after the 2 not before. Introducing a carbon source to feed bacteria was the best thing I did for helping to reduce the PO4 along with GFO changed out every few days until eventually I didn't need to use GFO anymore to maintain low PO4 levels. I to went through Bryopsis, hair algae of all kinds, cyano, diatoms, Dinos, etc

 

[Cory]

Im shocked you can grow sps!

 

[Habib(Salifert)]

The positive part is that bromide and strontium are at the right level...

 

[Squamosa]

I take offence at your thread title!

This is blatantly not a result of not doing water changes, you even state yourself you do infrequent changes, but rather, suffering from a bad case of causing more problems trying to fix another problem.

As someone who has not done a water change in 2 years, I can say my Triton test looks vastly different from yours.

With high Cu readings like yours, your sps should be nice and white, just ask the ZeoSpur crowd.

Go back to the basics of reefkeeping and keep things simple.

 

[Bbaz123456]

Ok, so I picked up some poly filters and 10 boxes of salt to start doing some water changes to bring down lithium. I threw in some carbon and poly filers for the cu. Not sure if either will help on the lithium.
I have a question about dosing manganese. I believe that is my limiting element on my macro growth that has screeched to a halt. I have not been able to come up with a Mn supplement but do have some Kent iron and manganese. I think I remember reading Randy saying that it is pretty hard to overdose iron....is this true? Would it be safe to dose the iron to bring up Mn?

 

[Bbaz123456]

I take offence at your thread title!

This is blatantly not a result of not doing water changes, you even state yourself you do infrequent changes, but rather, suffering from a bad case of causing more problems trying to fix another problem.

As someone who has not done a water change in 2 years, I can say my Triton test looks vastly different from yours.

With high Cu readings like yours, your sps should be nice and white, just ask the ZeoSpur crowd.

Go back to the basics of reefkeeping and keep things simple.

Sorry to offend you. You are right, it is not from water changes, just what came to my head.
Definitely no white sps here. Growth has not been fantastic but colors are great. I should also mention that the sps I do have, have been with me for years and have developed quite a tolerance to abuse.

 

[JimWelsh]

I have a question about dosing manganese. I believe that is my limiting element on my macro growth that has screeched to a halt. I have not been able to come up with a Mn supplement but do have some Kent iron and manganese. I think I remember reading Randy saying that it is pretty hard to overdose iron....is this true? Would it be safe to dose the iron to bring up Mn?

Go back to the basics of reefkeeping and keep things simple.

+1

 

[hung52]

Which program are you using to getting those stats?

 

[Bbaz123456]

Which program are you using to getting those stats?

Triton lab test

 

[Bbaz123456]

Ok, so I picked up some poly filters and 10 boxes of salt to start doing some water changes to bring down lithium. I threw in some carbon and poly filers for the cu. Not sure if either will help on the lithium.
I have a question about dosing manganese. I believe that is my limiting element on my macro growth that has screeched to a halt. I have not been able to come up with a Mn supplement but do have some Kent iron and manganese. I think I remember reading Randy saying that it is pretty hard to overdose iron....is this true? Would it be safe to dose the iron to bring up Mn?

Oops my iron is at 0 too, so I will dose some

 

[hung52]

Thank you!!

 

[hung52]

Oh you send your water to a lab?