All for reef - Can I use it only based on kh levels??

[GuilhermeLba]

Heys guys, new to the saltwater world. I would like to know if I can use all for reef, by tropic marin, only seeking for a good kh and stay carefree about the other levels since its a product that will work on all other parameters.
If u r an user, tell me about ur experience.

 

[Shirak]

I use it and only monitor KH, 50g (roughly) frag/coral holding system and dosing about 30ml/day LPS and softies mostly. Corals look good and growing. I have to bump the Alk a little each week with some baking soda. I try to keep it around 8.8-9dkh when it drops to around 8.5 every few days or so I add a few grams of baking soda. I have not bothered to check Ca or Mg or anything else lately. I do about 20% water changes/month.

 

[GuilhermeLba]

I use it and only monitor KH, 50g (roughly) frag/coral holding system and dosing about 30ml/day LPS and softies mostly. Corals look good and growing. I have to bump the Alk a little each week with some baking soda. I try to keep it around 8.8-9dkh when it drops to around 8.5 every few days or so I add a few grams of baking soda. I have not bothered to check Ca or Mg or anything else lately. I do about 20% water changes/month.

Great, is baking soda enough to elevate kh? My kh is a lil bit low, but my Ca in on check and my Mg is low,dont know why

 

[Shirak]

Great, is baking soda enough to elevate kh? My kh is a lil bit low, but my Ca in on check and my Mg is low,dont know why

Sodium Bicarbonate yes. Will raise Alk but not affect pH very much. I use the BRS Alk calculator to figure out how much I need to add for the increase I am looking for.

 

[GuilhermeLba]

Sodium Bicarbonate yes. Will raise Alk but not affect pH very much. I use the BRS Alk calculator to figure out how much I need to add for the increase I am looking for.

Great, I will use it! Thanks! My ca looks fine, my mg a lil bit low n my kh too

 

[Shirak]

Great, I will use it! Thanks! My ca looks fine, my mg a lil bit low n my kh too

Just be aware, it can take several days before the AFR will start impacting your Alk test. When I adjust the amount I am dosing I monitor with my test kits over a week or more before adjusting the AFR dose again. During that time I will keep the Alk where I want it using other means, like the sodium bicarbonate.

 

[GuilhermeLba]

Just be aware, it can take several days before the AFR will start impacting your Alk test. When I adjust the amount I am dosing I monitor with my test kits over a week or more before adjusting the AFR dose again. During that time I will keep the Alk where I want it using other means, like the sodium bicarbonate.

Ok, how often do u test ur parameters to set the afr dose? Can u explain more about setting the dosing, the process n everything

 

[arking_mark]

My experience with AFR was not very smooth. However, I'm almost comfortable using AFR and may be close to automating dKH control with it.

I started with a small dosage to supplement 0.1 dKH daily loss above of my Kalkwasser dosing. Within about 2 days, I got an unexpected dKH spike. I attributed this to some effect that AFR has on abiotic precipitation or coral uptake.

I ended up stopping AFR and then restarting it at 1ml or about 0.014 dKH for my tank size. I then slowly raised it while maintaining my dKH with 3-part. I'm now at the point where I'm no longer using 3-part. My AFR dosing is now at 0.3dKH (21ml) and I'm experimenting with AFR for adjustments.

 

[GuilhermeLba]

My experience with AFR was not very smooth. However, I'm almost comfortable using AFR and may be close to automating dKH control with it.

I started with a small dosage to supplement 0.1 dKH daily loss above of my Kalkwasser dosing. Within about 2 days, I got an unexpected dKH spike. I attributed this to some effect that AFR has on abiotic precipitation or coral uptake.

I ended up stopping AFR and then restarting it at 1ml or about 0.014 dKH for my tank size. I then slowly raised it while maintaining my dKH with 3-part. I'm now at the point where I'm no longer using 3-part. My AFR dosing is now at 0.3dKH (21ml) and I'm experimenting with AFR for adjustments.

Ow, got it, I do have just 3 lps corals in my tank, is that enough to start dosing? Or water changes is enough? I have hammer, duncan n trumpet

 

[QuinnLee512]

My experience with AFR was not very smooth. However, I'm almost comfortable using AFR and may be close to automating dKH control with it.

I started with a small dosage to supplement 0.1 dKH daily loss above of my Kalkwasser dosing. Within about 2 days, I got an unexpected dKH spike. I attributed this to some effect that AFR has on abiotic precipitation or coral uptake.

I ended up stopping AFR and then restarting it at 1ml or about 0.014 dKH for my tank size. I then slowly raised it while maintaining my dKH with 3-part. I'm now at the point where I'm no longer using 3-part. My AFR dosing is now at 0.3dKH (21ml) and I'm experimenting with AFR for adjustments.

Hi. Are you going to continue dosing Kalkwasser? I'm new to reefing. I only have 4 lps/softies in my QT at the moment. I bought AFR and a doser. I have not started dosing yet. My DT is still empty. I'm considering using Kalkwasser in addition to AFR because my PH is usually around 7.6-7.8.

 

[Shirak]

I know there is a formula for figuring out how much AFR based on current Daily Alk usage. I was not dosing anything prior to the AFR other than testing and adding sodium bicarbonate so I did not have a baseline on how much AFR I would need. Currently I test my Alk a few times a week with my Hanna tester to keep an eye on things because it's a frag tank and stuff comes and goes so usage can vary more over time.

When I first started with the AFR I was testing daily for a while. Started with a small dose (5ml day). In the morning each day I would test and bump the DKH to where I wanted it with sodium bicarbonate. After about a week I would increase the AFR 5ml/day and continue with daily testing and Alk adjustment as necessary. I continued until I was getting a fairly stable Alk measurement over the span of a week with maybe a slight downward trend of .4-.5dkh in 7 days. I can then bump it back up to the 8.8-9 range as necessary and leave it for a few days. Currently the Kamoer is set for 32ml/day. It doses every hour on the hour the appropriate amount to reach 32ml/24hrs.

 

[Cell]

I believe it's best to base your dosing off Ca+ levels given the way the product works in terms of alk. I'll try and find the post...

 

[Cell]

Lou from Tropic Marine instructed me to use calcium as the monitor for how much to use. Then if additional ALK is needed I add Balling part B. Im still working on stabilizing things but Ive been adding corals so its difficult to get things perfect right now.

 

[Pico bam]

Ow, got it, I do have just 3 lps corals in my tank, is that enough to start dosing? Or water changes is enough? I have hammer, duncan n trumpet

Water changes more than sufficient in this scenario. Untell you add alot more coral.

 

[GuilhermeLba]

Might no dose right now, IMO a lil complicated to dose it.

 

[arking_mark]

I believe it's best to base your dosing off Ca+ levels given the way the product works in terms of alk. I'll try and find the post...

You really can't use Ca as our hobby grade testers are no better than 15 to 20 ppm accurate/repeatable. Meaning 2-3dKH swings can happen using Ca measurements.

 

[arking_mark]

Hi. Are you going to continue dosing Kalkwasser? I'm new to reefing. I only have 4 lps/softies in my QT at the moment. I bought AFR and a doser. I have not started dosing yet. My DT is still empty. I'm considering using Kalkwasser in addition to AFR because my PH is usually around 7.6-7.8.

Yes. I'm using Kalkwasser to my evaporation limit which is ~0.9 dKH and AFR for the rest. About 0.3dKH. Thus provides me a nice pH boost with a simple 1-part dosing. Unfortunately, transitioning to AFR takes a little work.

 

[arking_mark]

Ow, got it, I do have just 3 lps corals in my tank, is that enough to start dosing? Or water changes is enough? I have hammer, duncan n trumpet

You need to track your Alk consumption to determine your dosing needs.

 

[Scuba Mike]

I believe it's best to base your dosing off Ca+ levels given the way the product works in terms of alk. I'll try and find the post...

Sorry, thus is incorrect. I spoke with Hans from TM a d you base dosing only on ALK. Calc and Mag will fall inline

 

[Scuba Mike]

Per TM
For my tank per calculater a dose of 13.25 ml per day, which will add 2 mg/l Ca and 0,28 °dH. You can see the small affect on Calc, just 2 mg/l

Use there calculator below and it will suggest a dose AND show you how much ALK it will put into your tank.

Check your alkalinity once or twice a day until you find the right dosage for your tank.

dosing calculator where you can find this data:

https://www.tropic-marin-smartinfo.com/en/minerals/all-for-reef.html

I have an all softie tank but my coraline algae uses Alk. I was using 30ml a day of BRS liquid sodium bicarbonate and have started with 13ml of AFR. While the AFR ramps up I dose the BRS ALK as needed. I am aiming for 9Dkh in my tank