Calcium fluctuations!

Been having a weird issue these past few days with my calcium literally dropping a significant amount nearly everyday. Anywhere from 80-140ppm a day.

I typically like to keep the Calcium at 460-500 and check weekly.

Now I understand that relationship between Mag/Alk/Calcium

I am double checking myself to really say is my system seriously using this much calcium everyday?

dkh: 10
Mag: 1500
Calcium: 420 this morning and 360 as of right now
pH: 8.2
Salinity 1.026
Temp: 79
Phosphates/Nitrates: 0

System voume 200 gallons
Using High Capacity GFO/ Rox 0.8 Carbon in the BRS reactor system

Using Salifert test kit for Mag and API for Calcium and dkh

I have been supplementing the system with Liquid calcium reactor from Kent Marine in about 16oz doses a night spread out to ease the change in calcium/alk

Only other difference was dkh was 9 yesterday.

Help!

Thanks in advance

 

What do you have that uses calcium (coralline, LPS, SPS, clams, etc)? As these things grow, so do their needs.

 

Well I have 16 frags of SPS Coral and only 3 moderately sized colonies. Goniopora, multiple duncans, moon coral, and a small colony of candy canes.

I am assuming it is just that time where I need to upgrade I guess I can no longer rely on water changes and small supplements.

Already ordered a Ca Reactor system as I figured the 2 part dosing was not for me since I have 6 more fairly decently sized Sps colonies coming in tomorrow.

 

Is that right ?? 16 ounces of Kent product a day? It's probably precipitating out stop adding that much. I'm not sure what's in that, but you need to be adding just calcium chloride to your tank to bring up the calcium levels not a mixed supplement.

 

No I was doing that throughout the course of the night in small increments. I have already ordered a calcium reactor so I won't have this issue.

Today the tank has stayed at 360ppm for Ca and the dkh is now 11.

I will probably dose again tonight since I did not dose last night and no major changes occurred.

 

I think liquid calcium is just calcium chloride and water but 16oz is a lot. doesn't liquid calcium call for 5ml per 50 gallons a day? i might be wrong.

 

Liquid calcium reactor adds both parts, ca and alk. But you need to add small doses of a ca chloride product to raise ca only. You alk is fine, for the moment anyway. Adding both in large quantities just causes it to precipitate out. I forget the exact numbers but corals use something like 20 calcium to 2 dkh.
Calcium reactors are good, I like them myself and have used them for years. For a smaller system with fewer sps it might be more economical to invest in a 2 part system with dosing pumps. 2 part system with dosing pumps work just as well as a reactor.

 

I am somewhat suspicious of this stuff; at the very least, I feel like an idiot for going to the trouble of dosing two part if there is one magic product that does it all.

Let's leave my reservations aside for a second though.

You are dosing 16oz a day to your system. That equals roughly 473 ml.

The recommended dose for this product is 5-10ml per 55 gallons, or roughly a maximum of 40ml.

You're dosing more than 10 times the recommended dose.

This stuff is percipitating out; I'll bet if you looked you could find it settled out on surfaces and caked onto equipment.

Stop dosing, you're wasting money. Get a good calcium, magnesium, and alkalinity suplement.

Raise your Mag to an appropriate level (look it up, but 1350 is a good start). Take a few days getting there, don't rush. Once your mag is stable, get your calcium up to about 400 - 450. Once that is stable, get your alkalinity right.

Then wait a week and see how much they fall. Use that information to calculate how much to dose. There are many good threads and articles on proper dosing. Read them; I've given a very, very short and incomplete overview. The additional information will be helpful.

 

I am not dosing 16oz a day it was a one time supplement spread out over the course of 16 hours.

 

It is still way, way too much. It's throwing your chemistry out of whack.