Water parameters okay?

[William Chiavetta]

I'm sort of new to the hobby and I'm wondering if these are good.
PH: 7.75
Kh: 9.5 dKH
Nh4: 0.5 mg/l
No2: 0 mg/l
No3: 10 mg/l
Po4: 0.1
Ca: 250 mg/l
Cu: 0

 

[William Chiavetta]

bump

 

[William Chiavetta]

I feel like I'm doing something wrong

 

[Miami Reef]

Parameters are within range.

 

[William Chiavetta]

Parameters are within range.

YAY! Thank you!

 

[Miami Reef]

What did you use to test calcium? It looks unusually low. Test error? That’s the only thing that caught my eye.

 

[William Chiavetta]

What did you use to test calcium? It looks unusually low. Test error? That’s the only thing that caught my eye.

Could be. I will test again in the morning

 

[PharmrJohn]

Yeah, I saw that too. What are you using to test?

 

[PharmrJohn]

I feel like I'm doing something wrong

And don't feel alone. There is SO much to know and the learning curve in this hobby is steep. Compared to 12 years ago, I know SO much more comparitvely. That being said, I'm still completely intimidated by most of the members here. Their knowledge base is just flat out vast. Just do your best and study every day. It's the best you can do.

 

[William Chiavetta]

Yeah, I saw that too. What are you using to test?

I'm using some brand that my LFS recommended me i'm not exactly sure of the brand but last night I remember thinking maybe I did a couple more drops than I was supposed to. When I get home I will test it and update the thread

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I'm using some brand that my LFS recommended me i'm not exactly sure of the brand but last night I remember thinking maybe I did a couple more drops than I was supposed to. When I get home I will test it and update the thread

What are you using for new salt water and are you dosing anything?

 

[eliaslikesfish]

Looks pretty good besides the calcium, do you have any corals or plan on getting any? remember that every tank can thrive at different parameters as long as things aren’t TOO out of whack and no exact number is going to be “perfect” I think maintaining those parameters is more important. for instance, my softies and corals all do very well and show good growth with Po4 in the .2-.3PPM range while it is recommended to keep it below .1PPM

 

[William Chiavetta]

What are you using for new salt water and are you dosing anything?

I mix nc well water and instant ocean salt. I'm not dosing anything

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I mix nc well water and instant ocean salt. I'm not dosing anything

The well water may be a problem. I’d suggest measuring alk and calcium on some freshly made IO.

 

[William Chiavetta]

The well water may be a problem. I’d suggest measuring alk and calcium on some freshly made IO.

I will! Thank you!

 

[William Chiavetta]

What did you use to test calcium? It looks unusually low. Test error? That’s the only thing that caught my eye.

Today when I tested again I got 280. Is that much better? I am planning to get corals. I am adding calcium around every week. Is this a good move?

 

[Miami Reef]

Today when I tested again I got 280. Is that much better? I am planning to get corals. I am adding calcium around every week. Is this a good move?

Are you using an API test kit? You said “drops.”

I would try the salifert or Red Sea test kit.

@Randy Holmes-Farley What are the concerns of well water? Do you think corals are a good idea for NY well water?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Well water can contain alkalinity, calcium, heavy metals, etc.

In this case, alkalinity in the well water might have been going into calcium carbonate production, lowering calcium.

But the low calcium may be test error, which is why we want to see testing of new salt water made from the well water.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Today when I tested again I got 280. Is that much better? I am planning to get corals. I am adding calcium around every week. Is this a good move?

Please test some new salt water. Any value in the 200’s is too low. You want about 400-550 ppm.

 

[William Chiavetta]

Are you using an API test kit? You said “drops.”

Im not using api and it is drops. I will test it at my LFS but I really do trust this test kit