Two part issues

mannyhernz · Oct 7, 2015

Hello forum..
Iately i have been having issues keeping my alk and cal in check..
Switch from kent nano reef 2 part to bionic and cant seem to get it right..i used to dose 15ml of kent to put me at 9.5dkh in the a.m. and by 7pm my alk was at 7.8dkh which was perfect. Since switching i dosed and tested but cant seem to catch the same swing. Seems like the bionic is getting depleted much quicker than the kent.
Also i noticed i need to dose more bionic than the kent to get me at previous level in the a.m.
What am i missing?
Bionic parts 1 and 2 i am currently dosing 40ml in a.m. that puts me at 10.5dkh and by 7pm i am at 6.5!
My reef is really using that much alk? I am going through a bad GHA bloom would that cause the major alk swing? Cal seems to be used at same rate.
My current test params as of today
Alk - 10.5dkh
Cal - 450
Mag -1480
Ph - 8.3

Please help!

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 7, 2015

The Kent product and the Original B-ionic (not B-ionic Bicarbonate, which is considerably weaker) are similarly potent, so I'm not sure why you see the effect you do.

Perhaps the B-ionic is helping raise the pH more, which increases demand.

Or perhaps your corals have grown more. 4 dKH per day is on the higher end of average, but not unreasonably so if you have fast growing corals. Do you?

Algae won't impact alkalinity.

If I were you, I'd dose at least twice a day to even out the alkalinity.

mannyhernz · Oct 7, 2015

Thank you Randy..appreciate your input..
On that note..
I do have around 15 sps frags that are growing very well, encrusting bases, branching out etc..i do use the original bionic calcium buffer so maybe ill try what you suggested and do a couple of doses a day instead of one big one..should i spread it out through the whole day or 2 doses? Thank you for the help!

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 7, 2015

I'd spread it out as much as you can.

mannyhernz · Oct 9, 2015

Ok..so quick update
I spread out my 2 part dosing throughout the day..random testings give me stable-ish results..7.5 - 7.8dkh for alk
410 - 430 for calcium
Only one thing..im starting to see precipitation spots on my glass..is this normal? Will it dissipate on its own? Wondering if this is just a phase i have to pass?
Thanks in advance for any input..

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 10, 2015

Precipitation on the glass is not normal.

Are you sure it is precipitation and not something like coralline or other organism?

Are you dosing near these spots?

How much are you dosing?

Have you measured magnesium?

mannyhernz · Oct 10, 2015

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
Precipitation on the glass is not normal.

Are you sure it is precipitation and not something like coralline or other organism?

Are you dosing near these spots?

How much are you dosing?

Have you measured magnesium?

It for sure is not coraline..
It is a white-ish film that turns into dust looking particle when scraped with scraper..also has a rough feeling when i touch it.
Mag is 1480 now..
I am dosing 20ml 5 times a day keeps my cal at 410-430
My alk stays at around 7.7dkh
Also noticed my bio pellets are starting to freeze up..
Thanks in advance..

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 10, 2015

How much of what are you dosing each day to maintain that alkalinity?

mannyhernz · Oct 10, 2015

I'm dosing bionic 2 parts 1 and 2. 5 times a day

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 10, 2015

How much volume of each part of B-ionic?

mannyhernz · Oct 10, 2015

Im dosing 20 mL
5 times a day of each part
Part 1 at following times
6am
8am
10am
1pm
3pm
Part
2 at following times
6:15am
8:15am
10:15am
1:15pm
3:15pm
That helps keep my alk and cal stable throught out the day. But like mentioned before started to get precipitate

gmastr85 · Oct 10, 2015

Just wanted to throw this out there... how old are your test kits? Not saying that is the issue... but I've had inaccurate results from old test kits before... just a thought...

mannyhernz · Oct 11, 2015

Just replaced them for the same reason. Wanted to throw testing errors out the window.
Had water tested at a couple of locations and purchased new reagent for my cal and alk hannas. For mag im using salifert

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 11, 2015

Sorry, it isn't clear to me if you are dosing a total of 20 mL total of each part of B-ionic each day or 100 mL total of each part each day.

mannyhernz · Oct 11, 2015

Sorry wasnt clear enough.
But yes it is a total of 100mL
5 times a day of each part.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 11, 2015

How much total water volume do you estimate?

What I'm getting at is determining if the total amount of you part you are adding seems excessive. For some reason that is not understood, some people get into a cycle where they seem to need to add a large amount of two part, and presumably it is going into precipitation somewhere. That is not usually on the glass, but more often it is probably in sand and rock and goes unnoticed until the sand hardens.

mannyhernz · Oct 12, 2015

Well its a 20g IM fusion
30lbs live rock
About 17 sps frags
Zoas about 5 frags
2 frags of acan ( 3 heads each frag) coraline on rock wherever GHA isnt growing
Sand is def. Hardened already. So Randy with what i have in tank you think i dose too much? If i dont do thise type of dosing my alk slips into the 5's (dkh) and my cal into the low 300's. What is it thats eating up the 2 part?

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 12, 2015

In 20 gallons of water, if you dose 100 mL of each part of B-ionic each day, that is WAY too much and certainly is the issue. That's equivalent to 11 dKH of alkalinity added per day.

I'd stop dosing for 2 days and let the precipitated solids "cool off" (which essentially means give them a chance to get coated with magnesium, organics, phosphate, etc, all of which reduce ongoing precipitation).

Then I'd restart dosing at a much lower dose, such as 2 mL 5 times a day and see what that does after a few days.

ThePriceSeliger · Oct 12, 2015

Randy, I seem to be having a similar issue. I'm dosing around 140mL per day of BRS 2-Part, and my levels are stuck at 7.6 dKH and Ca at 410 in about 70 gallons. with 20ish SPS frags. Would you recommend the same solution for me if I'm noticing precipitation?

mannyhernz · Oct 12, 2015

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
In 20 gallons of water, if you dose 100 mL of each part of B-ionic each day, that is WAY too much and certainly is the issue. That's equivalent to 11 dKH of alkalinity added per day.

I'd stop dosing for 2 days and let the precipitated solids "cool off" (which essentially means give them a chance to get coated with magnesium, organics, phosphate, etc, all of which reduce ongoing precipitation).

Then I'd restart dosing at a much lower dose, such as 2 mL 5 times a day and see what that does after a few days.

Ok ill try that..
One question..will my sps be ok if my alk and cal plummet?
Usually by 7pm im around 5ish dkh