auto dosing CA, MG and ALK

[ddc0715]

HELLO ALL
this is my first post to the forum. my facebook groups are not doing it for me as i advance in the hobby.
ok 2 weeks ago i upgraded from 90G to a 150g. and place it in the wall,

manually dosed the big three to set the numbers. where i want for my mixed reef. I like
alk 9-10, ca 450-500, mag 1400. im not married to these numbers, anyway this post is about my MG. I Started the dose out at 20 ml, 4x a day, everyday,then tested three days later, and saw a drop in the MG of 40, i then upped the dose to 40 ml, 4x a day, then tested three days later, no movement in the mg, still 1360. i then upped the dose to 60 ml, 6x a day, then tested three days later, and BINGO 1400. i left my pump alone. i have been dosing 60 ml, 6x a day, since Christmas. when i tested today my mg went from 1400 to 1520.. im not understanding why it has blown up.. Advise needed? i just know reduced the doser to 30 ml, 6x a day. im ok with a mg of 1520, but the blow action of the mg concerns me.i will fill in any blanks you may have when they are asked.

 

[Brad Miller]

Did you think about the accuracy of you test kit you're using?

 

[ddc0715]

using redsea kits and i seee buy seach this issue here that the red sea mg kits are not dependable
( did not know this) and all my LFS use them as well

 

[Brad Miller]

Salifert or Red Sea pro are good ones for me
Maybe start with a new test kit and go from there, or have a LFS test for you

 

[ckalupa]

Don’t forget that when you increase a dosage to increase the overall levels, once you are at the desired higher level you will need to reduce the addition rate to match the consumption rate or you will continue to climb.

 

[DivingTheWorld]

Slightly off topic, but I started out auto dosing Mag along with Alk and Cal, but soon realized auto dosing Mag is not necessary. Once you achieve the Mag level you want, it doesn't move much over time. I just maintain it with my water changes now and manually add a little every few months if needed. I'd suggest just manually dosing (no more that 100ppm/day) up to the level you want, then test every few days and see if you notice any change over time. My guess is you won't and will cease needing to auto dose.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

HELLO ALL
this is my first post to the forum. my facebook groups are not doing it for me as i advance in the hobby.

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

anyway this post is about my MG. I Started the dose out at 20 ml, 4x a day, everyday,then tested three days later, and saw a drop in the MG of 40, i then upped the dose to 40 ml, 4x a day, then tested three days later, no movement in the mg, still 1360. i then upped the dose to 60 ml, 6x a day, then tested three days later, and BINGO 1400. i left my pump alone. i have been dosing 60 ml, 6x a day, since Christmas. when i tested today my mg went from 1400 to 1520.. im not understanding why it has blown up.. Advise needed? i just know reduced the doser to 30 ml, 6x a day. im ok with a mg of 1520, but the blow action of the mg concerns me.i will fill in any blanks you may have when they are asked.

The drop in magnesium is testing error, assuming the salinity did not drop.

Real magnesium depletion does not exceed 2 ppm per day, and is usually about 1/10th of the calcium drop, so often much less than 1 ppm per day.

We can also calculate how much it would rise from your addition of you tell us what product you dosed. It never suddenly rises on its own.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Slightly off topic, but I started out auto dosing Mag along with Alk and Cal, but soon realized auto dosing Mag is not necessary. Once you achieve the Mag level you want, it doesn't move much over time.

That is certainly true. :)

 

[ddc0715]

i agrre i believe this was a testing error. srry all

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

i agrre i believe this was a testing error. srry all

No problem.

Happy Reefing. :)