Alkalinity Question and Gen Parameter

[austinl]

Good Morning Chemistry Guru's,

Looking for a little help. I am starting to add corals to my system (4 frags yesterday) and I did a check this morning of all my parameters and they are listed below;

Temp 79
Alkalinity 7
Calcium 370
Magnesium 1350
PH 8.07
Nitrate 8
PO4 0

Salt being used currently is Salinity.

System is only housing the 4 frags from yesterday, two clownfish, some snails hermits and a emerald crab. The rock in the display and sump was all dry rock that was cured and then cycled in this tank. I have been religious with water changes during the whole start up and continue to do weekly changes.

What struck me right off the bat was my alkalinity seems low ( previous tests show 7.8-8.0 ) I also noticed my Calc is low as well.

I also just tested a batch of water I made up yesterday and it shows as below;

Alkalinity 7.8
Calcium 400


Am I chasing phantom numbers at this point? Or is there something that seems out of balance? Would or could the drop be attributed to coraline start up? (theorizing as I don't see any yet)

Look forward to hearing from you.

 

[jsker]

Good Morning Chemistry Guru's,

Looking for a little help. I am starting to add corals to my system (4 frags yesterday) and I did a check this morning of all my parameters and they are listed below;

Temp 79
Alkalinity 7
Calcium 370
Magnesium 1350
PH 8.07
Nitrate 8
PO4 0

Salt being used currently is Salinity.

System is only housing the 4 frags from yesterday, two clownfish, some snails hermits and a emerald crab. The rock in the display and sump was all dry rock that was cured and then cycled in this tank. I have been religious with water changes during the whole start up and continue to do weekly changes.

What struck me right off the bat was my alkalinity seems low ( previous tests show 7.8-8.0 ) I also noticed my Calc is low as well.

I also just tested a batch of water I made up yesterday and it shows as below;

Alkalinity 7.8
Calcium 400


Am I chasing phantom numbers at this point? Or is there something that seems out of balance? Would or could the drop be attributed to coraline start up? (theorizing as I don't see any yet)

Look forward to hearing from you.

From what I am reading the system is fairly new, correct? Newer systems the parameter bounce around a bit until the system settles in. Also adding new demand will effect the parameter a slight bit.

What test kit are you using to test your Alk? I would suggest using salifert or red sea test kits to tests if you are not already using one of those. FYI even the better test can have errors and you might want to check and see if you test kit is correct by going to your LFS or purchase another test kit. I found my reagent was not giving me a correct test until I starting using a fresh kit

My suggestion would to be to dose so kalkwasser in you ATO water and that will help with bring up your alk and keep your alk steady. Bring up your alk slowly though.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

It is certainly normal to consume some calcium and alkalinity in a reef tank, and looking to dose some to prevent levels from dropping further seems appropriate.

What is the salinity of the water?

 

[austinl]

Thanks Jsker and Randy...I thought i carefully made sure to include everything but forgot test kits and salinity. I am using all Red Sea test kits, all of them are brand new and I keep my salinity at 1.026.

I certainly understand adding new demand will have an effect but seeing as its 4 frags in a system volume of 100 gallons i wouldnt expect to see anything as of yet, but I may be wrong there.

I had thought of doing Kalkwasser in my ATO but hate the mess of it and am setup for Two Part with a doser just have yet to bring it online as i work on deciding which two part system I am going to employ.

 

[jsker]

Thanks Jsker and Randy...I thought i carefully made sure to include everything but forgot test kits and salinity. I am using all Red Sea test kits, all of them are brand new and I keep my salinity at 1.026.

I certainly understand adding new demand will have an effect but seeing as its 4 frags in a system volume of 100 gallons i wouldnt expect to see anything as of yet, but I may be wrong there.

I had thought of doing Kalkwasser in my ATO but hate the mess of it and am setup for Two Part with a doser just have yet to bring it online as i work on deciding which two part system I am going to employ.

Kind of in the same boat with you on kalkwasser in the ATO. 4 frags are not going to make a difference in your size of the tank. Dosing the two part will fix you're balancing issues once you decide.

Here are some threads on what two part to use
link
link Randy is involved in this thread
link Article on two part.

 

[austinl]

Kind of in the same boat with you on kalkwasser in the ATO. 4 frags are not going to make a difference in your size of the tank. Dosing the two part will fix you're balancing issues once you decide.

Here are some threads on what two part to use
link
link Randy is involved in this thread
link Article on two part.

Thank you sir.... I will head there to read up.

 

[austinl]

So I have brought up my levels slowly to a reset level so to speak using bulk two part ( had some kicking around does far affect these components?)

I set a target of the below

Alk. 8
Calcium 440

I have tested again today and the only parameter that has dropped is Alk.

Alk has dropped down to 7 again but Calcium remains at 440

My understanding is these should drop in unison. Also does the drop seem like a lot given the light bioload for a 24 hour period?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

So I have brought up my levels slowly to a reset level so to speak using bulk two part ( had some kicking around does far affect these components?)

I set a target of the below

Alk. 8
Calcium 440

I have tested again today and the only parameter that has dropped is Alk.

Alk has dropped down to 7 again but Calcium remains at 440

My understanding is these should drop in unison. Also does the drop seem like a lot given the light bioload for a 24 hour period?

A drop of 1 dKH per day is on the low end of reef tanks, and you likely cannot detect the expected drop in calcium that goes along with that 1 dKH, being only about 6 ppm calcium.

 

[austinl]

A drop of 1 dKH per day is on the low end of reef tanks, and you likely cannot detect the expected drop in calcium that goes along with that 1 dKH, being only about 6 ppm calcium.

Thanks for the clarification Randy.
Looks like I'm setting up my doser earlier than expected.


So at this point whatever amount i add for Alk I should add equal to calcium at varying times throughout the day on opposite schedules and keep up with the testing.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

So at this point whatever amount i add for Alk I should add equal to calcium at varying times throughout the day on opposite schedules and keep up with the testing.

I would, yes.