AFR and alk

[Liam's tank]

I began dosing AFR 12/30/23, at that time my alk was 8.0 & cal 432 & were stable for some time before I started dosing AFR. Everything that I've read about AFR basically says that once I get my numbers stable & where I want them then I can start dosing AFR. Yesterday my alk was 12.1 & cal 434. My alk has been consistently climbing while my cal stays around the same number. How do I balance the two? I started with good numbers but can't seem to keep the alk down. I have a 25g tank & have been dosing 5ml daily. I do 10% wc every week using tropic marin salt.
Thanks for any guidance you can provide!
Nitrate 10ppm
Phos 0.003
SG 1.026

 

[TX_REEF]

Can I ask what was the catalyst for you to start dosing? It may be that you are dosing too much, or don't need to dose at all...

 

[twentyleagues]

I began dosing AFR 12/30/23, at that time my alk was 8.0 & cal 432 & were stable for some time before I started dosing AFR. Everything that I've read about AFR basically says that once I get my numbers stable & where I want them then I can start dosing AFR. Yesterday my alk was 12.1 & cal 434. My alk has been consistently climbing while my cal stays around the same number. How do I balance the two? I started with good numbers but can't seem to keep the alk down. I have a 25g tank & have been dosing 5ml daily. I do 10% wc every week using tropic marin salt.
Thanks for any guidance you can provide!
Nitrate 10ppm
Phos 0.003
SG 1.026

Stable is good. You have to calculate your daily usage then find a dosage that fills the void. If you have no usage then no dosing.

 

[Liam's tank]

I have several corals in the tank, 3- sps, 7- lps and 10 various softies. I felt it might be time to feed

 

[TX_REEF]

I have several corals in the tank, 3- sps, 7- lps and 10 various softies. I felt it might be time to feed

if your chemistry is stable, no need to dose. If you wanna feed, try some targeted feeding with reef roids!

Generally speaking, if everything is happy, don't change anything! As attentive hobbyists, we often fall into the bad habit of simply doing too much :)

 

[twentyleagues]

I have several corals in the tank, 3- sps, 7- lps and 10 various softies. I felt it might be time to feed

gotta test sometimes daily at first.

 

[Liam's tank]

if your chemistry is stable, no need to dose. If you wanna feed, try some targeted feeding with reef roids!

Generally speaking, if everything is happy, don't change anything! As attentive hobbyists, we often fall into the bad habit of simply doing too much :)

I read a lot of good things about afr and that it does a nice job of replacing that which is used by the corals in the tank. With as many animals that I have in a small 25g tank I felt it would be beneficial. My main question is what would cause the alk to rise while all else is stable?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

You have been dosing too much. I'd stop dosing, wait for alk to decline to where you want it, then restart at a substantially lower dose.

 

[TX_REEF]

I'm not sure about what would cause it to rise while other parameters stay stable, but I would recommend stopping dosing, water changes should be able to handle the needs of your corals. And if weekly testing indicates that depletion is occuring faster than water changes can compensate for, then you can start dosing, but you have to calculate how much to dose - AFR, and all other supplements, are not a plug and play solution where you can just dose a set amount without calculating for what you're trying to replace.

 

[Liam's tank]

Thank You, what dose would you recommend & how often?

 

[Liam's tank]

I'm not sure about what would cause it to rise while other parameters stay stable, but I would recommend stopping dosing, water changes should be able to handle the needs of your corals. And if weekly testing indicates that depletion is occuring faster than water changes can compensate for, then you can start dosing, but you have to calculate how much to dose - AFR, and all other supplements, are not a plug and play solution where you can just dose a set amount without calculating for what you're trying to replace.

Thank you

 

[exnisstech]

Your dosing too much. The TM calculator says 0.24ml daily starting dosage for a 25g volume which you dont even have if its a 25g tank with rock. I started AFR not too long ago and am dosing 3ml daily (65g total) and my alk is dropping just a bit so I will be increasing it a little.
Tropic Marin has a calculator here toward the bottom of the page,

https://www.tropic-marin-smartinfo.com/np-bacto-balance?lang=en
EDIT wrong calculator and info. I'll be back :face-with-hand-over-mouth: That was my BB dosage , I'm dosing 10ml AFR daily on the 65g tank

Here you go.

https://www.tropic-marin-smartinfo.com/all-for-reef?lang=en

 

[Liam's tank]

Your dosing too much. The TM calculator says 0.24ml daily starting dosage for a 25g volume which you dont even have if its a 25g tank with rock. I started AFR not too long ago and am dosing 3ml daily (65g total) and my alk is dropping just a bit so I will be increasing it a little.
Tropic Marin has a calculator here toward the bottom of the page,

https://www.tropic-marin-smartinfo.com/np-bacto-balance?lang=en
EDIT wrong calculator and info. I'll be back :face-with-hand-over-mouth: That was my BB dosage , I'm dosing 10ml AFR daily on the 65g tank

Here you go.

https://www.tropic-marin-smartinfo.com/all-for-reef?lang=en

Thank you!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I'm not sure about what would cause it to rise while other parameters stay stable,

The expected calcium rise is too small to accurately measure with a kit.