My 55g 2.0

Discussion in 'Show Off Your Fish Tanks!' started by mdbostwick, Mar 16, 2014.

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  1. mdbostwick

    mdbostwick Vlamingii Tang

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    Just wondering how often everyone out there does water tests. Also needing to know a safe amount to raise Kh. I am at 6.7 and am not real comfortable with it being that low. I can calculate how much I need to add to get the Kh to from x to x+y, i just need to know how much y i can increase and how often until i get to a better range which i would also like to know what the desired Kh is for my setup.
     
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  3. Marshall O

    Marshall O Giant Squid

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    I assume you are at 6.7 dKH. If so, you can safely raise it 1.0 dKH per day, so up to 7.7. You can go slower than that if you want obviously.
     
  4. mdbostwick

    mdbostwick Vlamingii Tang

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    And what would be ideal to have? I understand 8-12 but that just seems like a large range when we are talking about 1/3 of the total number. its like saying 66% to 100% is good.
     
  5. Marshall O

    Marshall O Giant Squid

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    Depends on what your goals are. For max growth, you can and likely should go on the high end on Alk. This allows you to keep your calcium higher as well without precipitating out. For "stability" I would shoot for 9. Gives you a little buffer in case it drops a bit.
     
  6. Vinnyboombatz

    Vinnyboombatz Giant Squid

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    Magnesium is actually the key to keeping Alk. and Calcium in solution.;)
    You want the value to be roughly three times your desired Calcium level.
     
  7. mdbostwick

    mdbostwick Vlamingii Tang

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    Is there a ratio for alk to cal similar to the 1:3 for cal Mg?
     
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  9. Marshall O

    Marshall O Giant Squid

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    Here is a good read for you:

    Chemistry And The Aquarium: Solving Calcium And Alkalinity Problems — Advanced Aquarist | Aquarist Magazine and Blog

    Taken from it, here is a nice graph to show Calc & Alk:

    [​IMG]

    As noted, you need both to be in the "red zone". The article goes into how to correct one vs. the other. As Vinny mentioned, before you can correct either, you need your Mag to be in the correct range as well (3X your Calcium).
     
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  10. mdbostwick

    mdbostwick Vlamingii Tang

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    So I had my first fatality in my tank the other day.

    My Samsung Galaxy S3 drown in there.

    I had 2 strokes of luck though. The insurance my wife said we didn't have, We do have. It doesn't cover water damage but the thing that changes color when it gets wet, didn't get wet! ;D New phone for free!!
     
  11. mdbostwick

    mdbostwick Vlamingii Tang

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    Does anyone use Randy's 2 part recipe? I am facing a hard truth that my system is requiring dosing and wanted to know how viable this is. It seems too good to be true that you can dose some crazy chemicals and get the same result as dosing crazy expensive chemicals, so I wanted to know of other people's experience with it.
     
  12. mdbostwick

    mdbostwick Vlamingii Tang

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    Been a while since i updated this post.

    I am still battling the blue green cyano, but i think i am heading in the right direction. I have added a second wp25 and built an algae turf scrubber to begin addressing my nutrient issue. Also increased to 20 WCs weekly.

    I have also ordered Dr Tim's waste away and well follow the advice given to by them.

    My DT is already looking better so i am hoping these steps will do the trick.

    I don't think I put it in this forum but i have added a lawnmower blenny and now a skunk shrimp as well. Also added some more frags and had to move a couple things with adding the second wp25. Hopefully, there well be no other adjustments to coral locations.

    So here are some pictures to sum up all the words.

    20140612_145028.jpg 20140612_144915.jpg 20140612_144748.jpg 20140521_180504.jpg 20140612_144656.jpg 20140612_144734.jpg 20140612_144805.jpg 20140612_144814.jpg
     

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