Time to have some fun

[nick654377]

It’s been about 4 months and it’s time to start dosing. Let’s see how these corals look after a week. AB+ still has my tank glowing after 20 minutes.

I got the foundation just to have on hand as I haven’t seen a decrease in calcium or mg yet. But dkh will drop. I over dosed yesterday and it went from 8.5 to 12.1. I know it’s not good. Once it drops in two days I’ll start supplementing with this rather than baking soda.

 

[muzikalmatt]

Are you sure you need to be dosing? I know in your other thread you mentioned you like to keep your alkalinity above 9 dKH, but have you checked to see how much your tank is consuming on a daily basis? I only ask because the photo you provided looks like a light load of corals, especially stony corals. So I wouldn't expect your tank to be consuming your major elements quicker than water changes could replenish them.

Don't get me wrong, there's certainly nothing wrong with dosing assuming you determine your consumption rate and try to match that with your dosing rate, but you mentioned you accidentally overdosed from 8.5 dKH to 12.1 dKH. That's a massive alkalinity swing and something more sensitive corals likely won't tolerate. You may not see the effects of that swing for another week or even a month.

I'd recommend testing your alkalinity at the same time each day over the next few days as it comes down to see what your consumption rate actually is. Then you can use the reef calculator to determine how much to dose each day to match that rate.

Best of luck to you!

 

[nick654377]

Are you sure you need to be dosing? I know in your other thread you mentioned you like to keep your alkalinity above 9 dKH, but have you checked to see how much your tank is consuming on a daily basis? I only ask because the photo you provided looks like a light load of corals, especially stony corals. So I wouldn't expect your tank to be consuming your major elements quicker than water changes could replenish them.

Don't get me wrong, there's certainly nothing wrong with dosing assuming you determine your consumption rate and try to match that with your dosing rate, but you mentioned you accidentally overdosed from 8.5 dKH to 12.1 dKH. That's a massive alkalinity swing and something more sensitive corals likely won't tolerate. You may not see the effects of that swing for another week or even a month.

I'd recommend testing your alkalinity at the same time each day over the next few days as it comes down to see what your consumption rate actually is. Then you can use the reef calculator to determine how much to dose each day to match that rate.

Best of luck to you!

I do test every other day. My alkalinity drops .5-.8 over the week. Hense using 3tbsp to bring it up .5ppm. And I am only going to be keeping the calcium, mg, and alk on hand for when I need it rather than worrying about having it shipped I. No having to wait. The alk I will use 100% the trace elements I am dosing every other day .5ml of each. Very light dose. The no3-po4-x is needed every day as I do not have a fuge nor room for one to absorb the extra nutrients. And the ab+ we all know that it’s just good food that gives a neat color when added. ‍

 

[muzikalmatt]

I do test every other day. My alkalinity drops .5-.8 over the week. Hense using 3tbsp to bring it up .5ppm. And I am only going to be keeping the calcium, mg, and alk on hand for when I need it rather than worrying about having it shipped I. No having to wait. The alk I will use 100% the trace elements I am dosing every other day .5ml of each. Very light dose. The no3-po4-x is needed every day as I do not have a fuge nor room for one to absorb the extra nutrients. And the ab+ we all know that it’s just good food that gives a neat color when added. ‍

That's great that you're testing that frequently! That's the best way to stay on top of things, especially when you're dosing.

However, I'm not sure if you saw @Randy Holmes-Farley post in your other thread, but 3 tbsp of baking soda raises 65 gallons of alkalinity by 5.7 dKH, not 0.5 dKH. That's probably why you had that huge alkalinity spike.

Check out the reef chemistry/dosing calculator he linked here to help dial in your dosing. Hope this helps! (Thank Randy though! )