Trying to raise Calcium

Discussion in 'Water Chemistry' started by quinstar, Apr 13, 2011.

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  1. quinstar

    quinstar Fire Worm

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    First off, just wanted to say thanks for all the help! I've gotten my SG up to 1.025. Rest of the readings are the same as they were except that my DkH has gone up to 12. I haven't been able to get anything to raise the mag up from 1260 since my LFS doesn't carry anything. I was going to order something today. The few corals that I have in my tank have seemed happier since the SG was raised as well. (Also, I just noticed that I posted my Mag at 1230. That was a typo. It was actually 1260)

    However, my calcium still seems to be stuck between 280 and 300. I believe that my Mag levels are high enough that they shouldn't be impeding the calcium. (though I still plan on raising them a bit) Am I wrong on this? I've been using the IO Calcium booster since that's all they had at the LFS. Is this a poor product choice? I'm kind of frustrated cause it doesn't really seem to be making a difference.
     
    Last edited: Apr 19, 2011
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  3. quinstar

    quinstar Fire Worm

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  4. M-Ocean Man

    M-Ocean Man Flame Angel

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    How long have you been using the new calcium supplement? Are you using at the recommended dose?

    It's generally not advisable to test every day and "chase results" by adjusting your dosages every day.

    Better way is to dose for a few days and then test - allowing the system to fully integrate the dose and allowing the inhabitants to uptake at a natural, stable rate.

    Also, what type of test kits are you using for calcium?

    I was using Salifert tests incorrectly and getting similar readings to yours when in actuality the calcium was actually right on.
     
  5. quinstar

    quinstar Fire Worm

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    Yes, I've been following the recommended dosing. I've been testing about every 3 days. I'm using API tests. I've heard that salifert are better and am switching all my testing equipment when I run out of the API. I'm sure I'm just being impatient. I expected to see a little more of an increase in two weeks. The name of the game in SW is patience. I think I just need a little more. As long as I'm sure that I'm doing everything correctly I guess there's nothing to do but sit back and wait.
     
  6. gabbagabbawill

    gabbagabbawill Pajama Cardinal

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    Your mag level is not that off at all... typical ocean values are 1280, so you really only need to raise it a little bit, if any... recommended mag values for reef aquaria are from 1250-1350.

    Some people raise theirs to be able to run high calcium concentrations... even then you'll want to run it at 3x the concentration, so if you're running 440 calcium, you'll only need 1320 magnesium.

    you may want to read this article, it will cover a lot of bases:

    Reef Aquarium Water Parameters by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
     
  7. gabbagabbawill

    gabbagabbawill Pajama Cardinal

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    IO Calcium booster may not be concentrated enough to raise your calcium... what is your system volume and what do the instructions on the bottle say for dosage?
     
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  9. M-Ocean Man

    M-Ocean Man Flame Angel

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    Good point - a lot of supplements are quite dilute and that is why I prefer to buy bulk dry supplemental calcium, alk, mag from places like Bulk Reef Supply.
     
  10. quinstar

    quinstar Fire Worm

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    I have a 46 gallon tank with a lot of LR. My canister filter probably has about 2 gallons in it. I'm not really sure what the exact system volume is.

    The instructions call for 5ml per every 50 gallons once a week. So i've been doing just under that.
     
  11. M-Ocean Man

    M-Ocean Man Flame Angel

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    That is probably the "maintenance dosage"
    That amount is likely not enough to raise the calcium when the value is so low.

    You need to get the calcium up first in order to maintain it.

    I'd go with a dry bulk calcium in order to raise the level about 200PPM first - then you can use the other stuff to maintain the dosage.
     
  12. quinstar

    quinstar Fire Worm

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    Thank you!!!! I thought that might be the case but wasn't sure what to do about it. Would Kent Marine Turbo Calcium be a good choice?