Where are the auto dosing pros? I need help. Pleeeease.

[Stv]

Hey guys, have a 31 biocube and have gotten to the point where I’ve got enough stock that numbers are depleting with water changes. I invested in a four head auto dosing system to step up my game and learn dosing. I have the app installed and will be dosing Red Sea foundation. Cal, KH, mag. Also probs some Kent essential elements.

my tank is mostly LPS and softies. No SPS. I guess what I could use some advise on is that are the proper numbers to try and sustain for my tank now that I can dose it properly?

best parameters for:
Cal?
KH?
Mag?

forgive me I’m not knowing much. This is me trying to learn auto dosing and asking for what’s the best numbers to shoot to stabilize for my tank size and stock type.

A bit more about the tanks set up:
Upgraded 365 pump, co2 scrubber, stock v2 skimmer, UV. Lid off and AI Prime light (settings in pictures. Running carbon and chemipure for media with bio balls. The tank is through all the ugly stages and purple coralline is starting to take hold.

thanks in advance for any dosing advise or parameters to shoot for. .

 

[blaxsun]

"Best parameters" is going to be open to wide interpretation, but in my system (which is mostly soft and LPS) I aim for:

• Alkalinity: 7.5-8.5dKH
• Calcium: 400-450ppm
• Magnesium: 1400-1450ppm

Before you start dosing, I'd test these right before your next water change and 24 hours after. That should give you an idea of how much of each you're consuming each week. Then using the chart on the Red Sea supplements, you should be able to figure out how much you need to (approximately) dose every week to maintain this level and what you may need to temporarily adjust (±) to get to the desired levels.

 

[attiland]

You will get mixed responses for exact levels but here is what I would go for.

nitrates 5-10ppm
Phosphates 0.05-0.1ppm
Alk 8.2-9dkh
Mg 1350ppm
Ca 450ppm

you can use Red Sea calculator for more tuned recommendation

 

[PeterC99]

If your not dosing anything yet, why not start dosing with Kalkwasser? Cheaper and easier to start with.

 

[mdb_talon]

The target level is really not essential in my opinion. I target 9dkh/480 calc/1350 mg.

The key is figuring out the daily consumption and then dosing to keep stability. Start lower than you think it will take and gradually increase dosing until stabilizes. Then use manual supplemental doses to get it to your target. I dose alk 19 times a day and calc once a day. Dose MG manually whenever i think about i maybe once a month.

 

[Biokabe]

As far as your numbers go:

CA: 420-480 (higher is OK, but unnecessary)
Alk: 7-11 dKh (lower number tends to be more forgiving of higher nutrient loads)
Mag: 1275 - 1450 (more flexibility in here)

Something that's very important, especially when you first start dosing, is absolutely regular testing. When you first start dosing, I would test each of those parameters daily, preferably with multiple different test kits to make sure that your values are where you think they are. It's very easy to overdose and get your numbers far out of whack by autodosing.

Once you have things more in control, you can dial back your testing to every few days, or every week at a bare minimum. No matter what, though, you cannot give up testing all together. Some possible pitfalls:

• Your dosing solution can crystallize within your tubes, blocking flow and making it so that you don't replenish that element
• Your doser could slip out of calibration, dosing either too much or too little of a particular element.
• Something else could interfere with your corals' metabolism, leading to them not taking up as much of an element and building up your levels.

Autodosing doesn't mean you can put your tank on autopilot, it just makes it so you don't forget to dose on a particular day.

 

[G Santana]

The guide I go by

 

[Stv]

Here’s the set up so far.

 

[Stv]

As far as your numbers go:

CA: 420-480 (higher is OK, but unnecessary)
Alk: 7-11 dKh (lower number tends to be more forgiving of higher nutrient loads)
Mag: 1275 - 1450 (more flexibility in here)

Something that's very important, especially when you first start dosing, is absolutely regular testing. When you first start dosing, I would test each of those parameters daily, preferably with multiple different test kits to make sure that your values are where you think they are. It's very easy to overdose and get your numbers far out of whack by autodosing.

Once you have things more in control, you can dial back your testing to every few days, or every week at a bare minimum. No matter what, though, you cannot give up testing all together. Some possible pitfalls:

• Your dosing solution can crystallize within your tubes, blocking flow and making it so that you don't replenish that element
• Your doser could slip out of calibration, dosing either too much or too little of a particular element.
• Something else could interfere with your corals' metabolism, leading to them not taking up as much of an element and building up your levels.

Autodosing doesn't mean you can put your tank on autopilot, it just makes it so you don't forget to dose on a particular day.

That’s amazing. Thanks you so much. Yeah I still want to test regularly regardless but am trying to take that next step and keep them as stable as possible for the best health and look of everything and all the advise I got to do this led to auto dosing so I very much appreciate the advise.

 

[Stv]

The guide I go by

Thank you so much.

 

[Garf]

Here’s the set up so far.

Looks nice. You’ve got about 5 years worth of solution there, lol. Your only going to need a bit, for your tank.

 

[olonmv]

All for reef on a single head dosing pump was the route I went. Sooooooo easy.

 

[Stv]

As far as your numbers go:

CA: 420-480 (higher is OK, but unnecessary)
Alk: 7-11 dKh (lower number tends to be more forgiving of higher nutrient loads)
Mag: 1275 - 1450 (more flexibility in here)

Something that's very important, especially when you first start dosing, is absolutely regular testing. When you first start dosing, I would test each of those parameters daily, preferably with multiple different test kits to make sure that your values are where you think they are. It's very easy to overdose and get your numbers far out of whack by autodosing.

Once you have things more in control, you can dial back your testing to every few days, or every week at a bare minimum. No matter what, though, you cannot give up testing all together. Some possible pitfalls:

• Your dosing solution can crystallize within your tubes, blocking flow and making it so that you don't replenish that element
• Your doser could slip out of calibration, dosing either too much or too little of a particular element.
• Something else could interfere with your corals' metabolism, leading to them not taking up as much of an element and building up your levels.

Autodosing doesn't mean you can put your tank on autopilot, it just makes it so you don't forget to dose on a particular day.

I didn’t really know if after seeing the pics of what’s in my tank, anyone could have mastered the parameters to hold specific for what’s in the tank. Softies and LPS only. No SPS.

 

[Stv]

Looks nice. You’ve got about 5 years worth of solution there, lol. Your only going to need a bit, for your tank.

I know. Ha ha. Amazon only had the set available in 1000ml size. Ugh.

 

[Stv]

Installing an auto top off today and doing my water change too. I’ll monitor and chart depletion over the next four days before I set up dosing amounts and check daily until it shows holding on all fronts. Thanks for all the advise guys. Super happy to take a small biocube 31 this far. It’s really just a practice tank to learn all the ropes before I go big on a 125G + tank. That’s the goal but didn’t want to make mistakes and screw up a tank that big and stocked, not k owing what to do first.

 

[olonmv]

Looks really nice Btw.

 

[olonmv]

Installing an auto top off today and doing my water change too. I’ll monitor and chart depletion over the next four days before I set up dosing amounts and check daily until it shows holding on all fronts. Thanks for all the advise guys. Super happy to take a small biocube 31 this far. It’s really just a practice tank to learn all the ropes before I go big on a 125G + tank. That’s the goal but didn’t want to make mistakes and screw up a tank that big and stocked, not k owing what to do first.

That’s the same route I wanted to take. Not the upgrade to a 125 gallon part, but the start with a small tank part. I got an evo and from what I hear, if you can maintain a smaller tank, a large volume tank is a walk in the park. I’m days away from my 1 year tank anniversary. Aside from a few road bumps (good lessons learned) it’s been successful!