Help could seachem reef salt be my problem

Last night it was 1325 I have been trying too keep it at 1350

 

OK Mag level is not terrible - but 1380 - 1450 would be better IME
and will help to stabilise the other ions in solution

bearing what inwall75 states above

what is your current Calcium and DKH in DT?

I am convinced we have a demand exceeded the amount supplied problem here
One of those montis you have seems to have a surface area equal to all my SPS corals LOL

Steve

 

read what this says. it helped me to understand what was happening with my ph Seachem. Reef Buffer

 

My cal is 420 and dkh has been running a little low at 7-8 I can't seem to keep it up what do you suggest I'm at a loss one of my montis the cup one started to bleach after the stupid stealth heater took a crap on me I worried I will lose it if my levels don't stop fluctuating now

 

420 and 8 are fine

if they are not fine - Im in a bit of trouble also , as those are almost identical to what I maintain

you have options, but inaddition to those water changes, you almost certainly need to be dosing your tank on a daily basis to compensate for utilisation

pink4miss put up a link to Seachems reef buffer- which is a PH buffer

IMHO if you want to stick with Seachem - then the better product for you would be Reef Builder - which is a carbonate alkalinity supplement, and it also increases PH
so you get a 2 for 1 , with that product

these dry products that you mix with RODI before dripping in your system are more cost effective than the bottled products (as Im in the process of finding out on another thread of mine)

you could consider the Reef Advantage Calcium also by Seachem and use that to maintain your calcium level

there are other options
many people use Bulk Reef Supply - which is probably a more cost effective, and equally effective method of maintaining these 2 ions calc and alk

you then need to test you DT a couple of hours after a water change and find out where you are
test again 3 days later and find out what has been used

divide the difference by 3 and you have your daily utilisation

using the instructions on your selected product, work out how much of the product you need to add each day to compensate for what is being utilised

test 3 days after commencing this dosing routine and double check you have not been adding to much or to little

you could look at automatic dosing using a dosing pump system (convenient)

or depending on how much you need to add, you could just mix up the required anount of chosen product and with a small bottle and clamped air line let it drip syphon into your DT (simple, effective and minimal investment)

alternatives

you may consider using Kalkwasser which delivers a balanced ratio of calc and Alk
and at present tank capacity, you may find that Kalkwasser would be perfectly adequate to keep up with demand

you could consider a calcium reactor- as this then means you are well set up for when your corals/ SPS corals have completely taken over the tank (which they will if you can keep up with their demand for calcium, alkalinity , magnesium)

hope that helps

Steve

 

I'm struggling to keep it at 8 it's mostly 7 I'm looking into doing a dosing system. What do you believe is the best ph buffer? Alk and cal?

 

I dont know which is the best to be honest Craigar

I use Seachem myself, simply as I feel its the best I have available where I reef keep

Seachem reef builder has worked great for me for 2 years plus
as has Reef Advantage Calcium

I did dose using a 500ml mineral water bottle with airline syphon (daily for calcium and after lights out for Alkalinity)

I use a Bubble Magus TM-01 doser now, and make 10 days worth of solution up at 1 time and the doser delivers the dissolved in RODI mixture in 6 equal parts over 24 hours (stability)
when my demand increases I may well set doser to release in 12 parts over 24 hours (increased stability)

I would suggest that the Seachem Reef Advantage magnesium may not be the best product to use to maintain that parameter- as its mostly epsom salts with a bit of sodium added (according to informed sources I have read)
you need to find a mag supplement that contains both Mag Sulfate and Mag chloride

the Seachem advantage magnesium contains Mag Sulfate and Sodium chloride which is not the same thing

but Kent, and ESV for example product mag supplement in a balanced ratio of sulfate and chloride so are probably better options

I use advantage Magnesium, but also use Magnesion from Brightwell in order to get more mag chloride into the equation.


Steve

 

What do you guys think of doing a kalkwasser drip to solve my problems?

 

Kalkwasser will help get your pH up but it will knock your Mg and Ca down so you will want to keep close track of them. In a system your size it is very expensive to dose kalk. A Calcium reactor would be a better bet.

 

I thought kalkwasser added calcium and helps with alkalinity all while bringing the ph up am I wrong?