Adding tropic marin c to two part

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Greetings all.
I'm considering adding part c to Randy/Jim's true two part. I'm concerned that it would be adding too much magnesium. I guess that the question is do you think it's beneficial over what I am doing now including 10% weekly water changes?

I imagine that I would just eliminate the mag chloride and sulfate from the recipe and it would be fine.

Anyone else doing this?

you can’t just add it to the two parts.

Use it as a third part just as balling does.

If you do that, just use sodium carbonate and calcium chloride. Anything else may overload whatever you add.

 

[GregOyeah]

so theres a lot of talk about whether this actually contains the trace elements were looking to replenish, has there ever been any more info about this? An ICP test on the stuff would be great.

some folks have said it only contains magnesium and sulfate

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

so theres a lot of talk about whether this actually contains the trace elements were looking to replenish, has there ever been any more info about this? An ICP test on the stuff would be great.

some folks have said it only contains magnesium and sulfate

Some folks are wrong lol

We have a perfect understanding of what is in the Tropic Marin Balling part 3. It is much more than mag and sulfate, BUT, it is not intended to boost these other things, and doesn’t. It is intended to keep the calcium and alk addition method itself from lowering them, not to offset any other demand in the tank. In that sense, it is like a very small water change.

 

[A_Blind_Reefer]

I asked on the asbrstv page but haven’t heard an answer. I switched from Red Sea Coral Pro Salt, BRS 2-Part, and Red Sea Colors based on the BRS info. I now run Tropic Marin Pro Salt, BRS 2-Part plus Tropic Marin Part C (7.5 scoops per gallon, 1:1:1). After 5 months, my ICP result are low on the following:
Boron 2.28
Bromine 48
Iodine 21
Iron 0
Lithium 145
Manganese 0
Molybdenum 4.46
Nickel 0
Strontium 3.05
Vanadium 0

I still have to make manual magnesium adjustments as TMC does not keep up. I’m wondering why I’m running Part C. My numbers were much better running RS Colors. I was under the impression, from the BRS videos, that TMC would replenish all the trace elements. I’m wondering if bumping up the concentration from 7.5 scoops to 10-12 would help? Otherwise it’s back to the RS Colors for me. Bummer, as I was really digging the simplicity of a 3 part system. Any one else notice a deficiency in trace elements?

 

[A_Blind_Reefer]

Deleted a duplicate post....it posted again for some reason

 

[Dennis Cartier]

I asked on the asbrstv page but haven’t heard an answer. I switched from Red Sea Coral Pro Salt, BRS 2-Part, and Red Sea Colors based on the BRS info. I now run Tropic Marin Pro Salt, BRS 2-Part plus Tropic Marin Part C (7.5 scoops per gallon, 1:1:1). After 5 months, my ICP result are low on the following:
Boron 2.28
Bromine 48
Iodine 21
Iron 0
Lithium 145
Manganese 0
Molybdenum 4.46
Nickel 0
Strontium 3.05
Vanadium 0

I still have to make manual magnesium adjustments as TMC does not keep up. I’m wondering why I’m running Part C. My numbers were much better running RS Colors. I was under the impression, from the BRS videos, that TMC would replenish all the trace elements. I’m wondering if bumping up the concentration from 7.5 scoops to 10-12 would help? Otherwise it’s back to the RS Colors for me. Bummer, as I was really digging the simplicity of a 3 part system. Any one else notice a deficiency in trace elements?

I think Randy suggested earlier that using this method is like doing a small water change. Probably not what you had in mind. From what I understand, the TMC Part C is to keep the trace elements balanced against the addition of the Calcium and Alkalinity. This does not strike me as to what is required though to replace elements consumed due to growth? If this method was boosted to keep the elements used up due to growth at appropriate levels, would this not result in other non-essential traces at elevated levels?

The Red Sea Coral Colors approaches this from the point of adding only the traces that are expected to be depleted by growth. As Randy has pointed out, even that is not linear depending on exactly what growth (coral, algae, clams, etc.) is the consumer of the traces.

I have not seen the BRS segment on using the TM Part C, but just thinking about it brings up a number of questions as to how effective it would be long term. Having a single additive to dose instead of 4 would be awesome though.

Update: You might want to compare the trace elements you are low on to the ones added by RS Coral Colors just to confirm that the growth is not being accounted for.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I asked on the asbrstv page but haven’t heard an answer. I switched from Red Sea Coral Pro Salt, BRS 2-Part, and Red Sea Colors based on the BRS info. I now run Tropic Marin Pro Salt, BRS 2-Part plus Tropic Marin Part C (7.5 scoops per gallon, 1:1:1). After 5 months, my ICP result are low on the following:
Boron 2.28
Bromine 48
Iodine 21
Iron 0
Lithium 145
Manganese 0
Molybdenum 4.46
Nickel 0
Strontium 3.05
Vanadium 0

I still have to make manual magnesium adjustments as TMC does not keep up. I’m wondering why I’m running Part C. My numbers were much better running RS Colors. I was under the impression, from the BRS videos, that TMC would replenish all the trace elements. I’m wondering if bumping up the concentration from 7.5 scoops to 10-12 would help? Otherwise it’s back to the RS Colors for me. Bummer, as I was really digging the simplicity of a 3 part system. Any one else notice a deficiency in trace elements?

Right. This is not a trace element maintenance method, as mentioned above. It does not do anything to offset uptake by, say, algae or other organisms. It is not intended to do that, doesn’t claim to do that, and it doesn’t do that. lol

It is perfectly appropriate to do what you are doing (which keeps things like sulfate, potassium, etc from dropping by displacement from sodium and chloride coupled with salinity maintenance) and worry about trace elements with a different supplement.

 

[A_Blind_Reefer]

Randy and Dennis,
Thank you guys for the replies. Totally correct. I was told this afternoon that Part C is only to add trace elements to the salt added by dosing 2-Part. I would think that is pretty inconsequential when considering how little that is, especially considering water changes. My take away from Ryan’s BRS/WWC Hybrid episode 13 was that it replaces trace elements. First time I’ve been steered in the wrong direction by a BRS video. I Know better than to add something that does not describe exactly what’s in it. For five months I was clueless and blind. Back to RS Colors for me as it worked and was simple for a dummy like me! Thanks again for all you do

 

[A_Blind_Reefer]

since you didn’t see the video, if your interested

Minutes 23:44-25;29 is where he talks about major/minor trace element “replenishment” using 2-Part with either RS Colors or TMC

How do you add major, minor and trace elements to your reef? - The BRS/WWC System Ep13 - BRStv

Let's face it, corals need major, minor and trace elements in order to grow and today Ryan talks through the various ways that reefers add these to the tank. Along with that, we explore what the most simple and stable approach will be for the BRS/WWC Hybrid System tanks! #BRSWWC #reefingmethods...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[ReefHog]

Some folks are wrong lol

We have a perfect understanding of what is in the Tropic Marin Balling part 3. It is much more than mag and sulfate, BUT, it is not intended to boost these other things, and doesn’t. It is intended to keep the calcium and alk addition method itself from lowering them, not to offset any other demand in the tank. In that sense, it is like a very small water change.

I am using Tropic Marin Carbo-Calcium which does not raise salinity? Would TM part C slightly raise those elements in this case?

 

[madweazl]

Got icp back on tm pro salt attached... pretty good for most trace...iron and manganese both high but my tank icp are low for both of these all the time so should be good...

Assuming part c is the same blend , should be good for trace element dosing...

Using the results, it looks like your salinity is about 36ppt so that would explain some of the elevated levels.

 

[Dennis Cartier]

I am using Tropic Marin Carbo-Calcium which does not raise salinity? Would TM part C slightly raise those elements in this case?

A better way of using your Carbo-Calcium would be to make the DIY All-For-Reef recipe found here DIY All-For-Reef. Unless you were wanting to raise all 70 of the trace elements that are in part C.