Am I doing okay ? Will these parameters work for sps ?

[cpach]

Will the my water parameters lead to long term success in mixed reef ? I’m concerned with my ALK being high
I use Red Sea pro salt in this 25 gal
I drop in a bit of mag & Cal and alk
After a water change mixed at 10.24

After doing. More reading Ive definitely realized I’ve been doing a few things wrong this is a lot more complicated than freshwater haha .

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I’d let the alk decline before dosing any more.

 

[Uncle99]

Alk is on the higher end, phosphate low…..nitrate not posted?

 

[Reign1]

alk a little high.

 

[Pod_01]

Just a guess, I suspect you are following RedSea recipe. When I started I did the same, unfortunately it didn’t work for me.
Over years I found more success when running NSW levels (Natural Sea Water levels) for the big three.
Alk: 7-8
Calcium: 420-450
Mag: 1200-1400
PO4: 0.1-0.2
NO3: 1-5
The Phosphate and Nitrate is my preference or I tend to kill least amount of corals at those levels.

pH I tend to be low 7.8 to 8.1.

Good luck,

 

[JayM]

The more I read, the more I think the answer is “maybe”.

It seems your best chance for success is to keep your parameters close to the parameters that your coral supplier does so you don’t shock them with a drastic change, then let your tank find its balance over time. It’s not an exact science.

 

[cpach]

The more I read, the more I think the answer is “maybe”.

It seems your best chance for success is to keep your parameters close to the parameters that your coral supplier does so you don’t shock them with a drastic change, then let your tank find its balance over time. It’s not an exact science.

Tank is young at 6mo and I’ve killed gonis and monticap frags and all my other coral has been gifted in attempts to revive them from failing tanks ! I’ve been able to keep things alive but not noticing much growth besides mushrooms splitting

 

[cpach]

Just a guess, I suspect you are following RedSea recipe. When I started I did the same, unfortunately it didn’t work for me.
Over years I found more success when running NSW levels (Natural Sea Water levels) for the big three.
Alk: 7-8
Calcium: 420-450
Mag: 1200-1400
PO4: 0.1-0.2
NO3: 1-5
The Phosphate and Nitrate is my preference or I tend to kill least amount of corals at those levels.

pH I tend to be low 7.8 to 8.1.

Good luck,

So for your water do you use something like instant ocean and dose ? Because I’ve definitely been in a way blindly dosing some chems and the more I read the more I’m realizing my early mistakes and its been a learning curve

 

[cpach]

Alk is on the higher end, phosphate low…..nitrate not posted?

I have two versions of nitrate test and I can’t tell the other APItest reads zero … I’m trying to get another test for phosphate I use salifert test and it’s tough to tell but it looks like 0.03 maybe higher
I’m also terrified to try to add either of those to the tank, I’m thinking of turning off my skimmer for a bit

 

[Pod_01]

So for your water do you use something like instant ocean and dose ? Because I’ve definitely been in a way blindly dosing some chems and the more I read the more I’m realizing my early mistakes and its been a learning curve

I use Tropic Marin Pro Reef salt, the big 3 are in the range I like. There are other salts as well that are at NSW levels.

I only dose what is consumed by corals and use TM Original Balling method. There are other systems but for new reefer TM AFR (All For Reef) is an easy system to start with. One solution that provides Alk, Calcium , Mg and trace elements.

Yes there is lot to learn, hence my suggestion to use TM AFR once your Alk starts to be consumed. With AFR you can concentrate on other things while not being overwhelmed with Alk, calcium, Mg and trace elements… Fun stuff to understand but it can be a lot of information at the start. Once your corals look happy you can explore other systems…

 

[Uncle99]

I have two versions of nitrate test and I can’t tell the other APItest reads zero … I’m trying to get another test for phosphate I use salifert test and it’s tough to tell but it looks like 0.03 maybe higher
I’m also terrified to try to add either of those to the tank, I’m thinking of turning off my skimmer for a bit

Sticks not going to help much.
Nothing to be worried about except if using API or Dip sticks.

 

[bubbgee]

Sticks not going to help much.
Nothing to be worried about except if using API or Dip sticks.

This. Have to upgrade to hanna or Salifert test kits at the minimum for SPS. Or let the LFS test it.