Calcium consumption

[Zbass]

I have a 65 gallon reef system with roughly 20 frags and 1 small BTA . I dose about 3500 ML of kalk a day spread out every hour. My calcium consumption is 15ppm per day per my salfert test kit. ThAT seems to be very high consumption to me. Maybe it’s not. But does that sound right?

 

[JTP424]

What type of frags are we talking? Softies? Sticks?

 

[TX_REEF]

doesn't sound right to me. 3500 ml of kalk per day in a tank that size with just frags seems extreme. I could be wrong and am still learning about proper dosing myself, but something sounds off to me.

 

[Zbass]

What type of frags are we talking? Softies? Sticks?

2 acros. A bubblegum digi. A montipora setosa. The thing anacropora. 3 chalices. 2 cyphastrea 2 Gonapora, some zoa’s. A lobo. 2 favies and 3 mushrooms

 

[Zbass]

What type of frags are we talking? Softies? Sticks?

And it says my alk drops .15 per day as well. Trying to set up a doser

 

[Garf]

I have a 65 gallon reef system with roughly 20 frags and 1 small BTA . I dose about 3500 ML of kalk a day spread out every hour. My calcium consumption is 15ppm per day per my salfert test kit. ThAT seems to be very high consumption to me. Maybe it’s not. But does that sound right?

What is your Alkalinity at? It does seem a lot.

 

[rishma]

It’s high and it might be close to correct, but I suspect not quite.

3500 ml saturated Kalk is about 1.8 dKH added alkalinity per day. That’s at the high end but not extreme. It would correlated to about 13 ppm calcium added and about 12 ppm calcium consumed. So if your calcium and alkalinity was stable then that’s what’s being consumed. You should see calcium actually rise slightly over time if alkalinity is kept stable with Kalk.

 

[rishma]

I’ll add that I don’t test calcium except a couple times per year when using Kalk. I just test alkalinity, knowing if it’s stable then calcium is fine or possibly elevated

 

[Zbass]

What is your Alkalinity at? It does seem a lot.

8.15 and todays it’s 8

 

[Zbass]

8.15 and todays it’s 8

Yesterday it was 8.15

 

[KStatefan]

8.15 and todays it’s 8

So it is dropping 0.15 dkh per day while adding 3500 ml of kalk? Are you dosing saturated kalk?

 

[Zbass]

So it is dropping 0.15 dkh per day while adding 3500 ml of kalk? Are you dosing saturated kalk?

Yes. 146 ml every hour. Roughly 3500 ml a day

 

[Garf]

8.15 and todays it’s 8

Is your sand getting clumpy? White stuff on heaters, perhaps pumps?

 

[Zbass]

Is your sand getting clumpy? White stuff on heaters, perhaps pumps?

Nope. I have crushed coral

 

[Garf]

Nope. I have crushed coral

Can you measure pH?

 

[Jake_v]

that does seem a bit excessive.. I have a 60 gal system with about 20 1"-2" sps/acropora frags, a few chalices, and zoanthids and I'm dosing 15 ml per day of all for reef to maintain alk at 7.9~8.2 and calcium 495/500.

What are your targets for alk and calcium? there is a chance that it is out of balance and precipitating

 

[Zbass]

we

Can you measure pH?

yes 8.13. Every time I test it it’s above 8

 

[Zbass]

that does seem a bit excessive.. I have a 60 gal system with about 20 1"-2" sps/acropora frags, a few chalices, and zoanthids and I'm dosing 15 ml per day of all for reef to maintain alk at 7.9~8.2 and calcium 495/500.

What are your targets for alk and calcium? there is a chance that it is out of balance and precipitating

8 DKH and 450 ish for calcium

 

[Zbass]

8 DKH and 450 ish for

8 DKH and 450 ish for calcium

what would cause the precipitation. I lose about 1.19 gallons of water due to

Evaporation

. Could that be it

 

[Garf]

we

yes 8.13. Every time I test it it’s above 8

Ok, my first action would be to check pump calibration / setup, unless you've done that. I get nowhere near that amount of evaporation on my tank, but I'm in the UK, lol.