Gulf coast or florida keys water parameters

[Esquire805]

Just trying to mimic the environment. I know the salinity and temp are higher. Anyone have any info or articles

 

[Eggs]

@Ron Reefman would
be knowledgeable with this.

I’m on the Atlantic side, never checked specific parameters but the water temp is dropping, average around 75. Was just at beach today.

 

[Esquire805]

@Ron Reefman would
be knowledgeable with this.

I’m on the Atlantic side, never checked specific parameters but the water temp is dropping, average around 75. Was just at beach today.

Yeah I have a idea salinity is higher then .26

 

[C. Eymann]

Alk - 7.2
Cal 410
Mag 1250
Salinity 1.027

pH was 7.8 but I attribute that to being in a specimen container for 1 1/2 hrs between sample collection and testing.

I took this sample when out on my kayak by an inlet at high tide.
Banana for scale, lol

 

[Esquire805]

Alk - 7.2
Cal 410
Mag 1250
Salinity 1.027

pH was 7.8 but I attribute that to being in a specimen container for 1 1/2 hrs between sample collection and testing.

I took this sample when out on my kayak by an inlet at high tide.
Banana for scale, lol

That is low not what I expected

 

[C. Eymann]

That is low not what I expected

It will vary somewhat, but that is the composition of the water off the coast of S. Florida, I believe in the indo/aussie waters it's slightly higher in mineral content, but not by much, like only 10ppm more of calcium, maybe a few tenths of a DKh in alk.

We keep slightly elevated levels in our reef aquariums to add a bit of a "cushion"

 

[Ron Reefman]

Interesting question and thanks to you guys for calling me out!

To be perfectly honest, in 15 years of snorkeling the Keys and doing beach collecting along Sanibel Island, I've never tested the water. I know the water temp in the Keys goes up and down a lot between summer and winter. It's so cold (maybe 70F) that I won't even consider snorkeling from Nov thru April and more! And in August temps in the shallows I frequent can get up close to 90F.

I always bring home collections from the Keys in local water. And I do a 50% water change with water from my aquarium when I get them home. I rarely do much acclimation and move most of what I collect into a 16g 'holding' tank. I've never treated any collected animal (including corals) with anything before it goes into the holding tank. Some things move out of that tank and into my DT fairly quickly. Some stay in the holding tank for very long periods of time. In fact the holding tank kind of became a 2nd tank with mostly locally collected items.

When I do beach walks I take my tank water and put beach collections directly into it with no acclimation. I collect very small porcelain crabs, small pistol shrimp and occasionally other odds and ends that are actually on the beach and not even in the water (some are inside sponges on the beach). Most survive and end up in my tank.

But now they are all together in 2 big holding tanks (20g & 40g) while I'm replacing the 40g cube with a 90g (36" x 30" x 20") tank.

I keep my tanks at 78-80F, SG 1.025 to 1.027, Ca 400 to 425, alk ranges from 7.0 to 9.0 dKH. I haven't tested for pH, ammonia, nitrate or phosphate in several years! None of the animals that I have collected have struggled in my tank. In fact I just found a flame scallop I collected a few years ago that I thought I had lost (but never found the shell). It was under and between rocks and looked fat, dumb and happy!

Next time I'm in the water off Sanibel (this winter) or in the Keys (next May) I'll do some water testing for you.

 

[Esquire805]

Interesting question and thanks to you guys for calling me out!

To be perfectly honest, in 15 years of snorkeling the Keys and doing beach collecting along Sanibel Island, I've never tested the water. I know the water temp in the Keys goes up and down a lot between summer and winter. It's so cold (maybe 70F) that I won't even consider snorkeling from Nov thru April and more! And in August temps in the shallows I frequent can get up close to 90F.

I always bring home collections from the Keys in local water. And I do a 50% water change with water from my aquarium when I get them home. I rarely do much acclimation and move most of what I collect into a 16g 'holding' tank. I've never treated any collected animal (including corals) with anything before it goes into the holding tank. Some things move out of that tank and into my DT fairly quickly. Some stay in the holding tank for very long periods of time. In fact the holding tank kind of became a 2nd tank with mostly locally collected items.

When I do beach walks I take my tank water and put beach collections directly into it with no acclimation. I collect very small porcelain crabs, small pistol shrimp and occasionally other odds and ends that are actually on the beach and not even in the water (some are inside sponges on the beach). Most survive and end up in my tank.

But now they are all together in 2 big holding tanks (20g & 40g) while I'm replacing the 40g cube with a 90g (36" x 30" x 20") tank.

I keep my tanks at 78-80F, SG 1.025 to 1.027, Ca 400 to 425, alk ranges from 7.0 to 9.0 dKH. I haven't tested for pH, ammonia, nitrate or phosphate in several years! None of the animals that I have collected have struggled in my tank. In fact I just found a flame scallop I collected a few years ago that I thought I had lost (but never found the shell). It was under and between rocks and looked fat, dumb and happy!

Next time I'm in the water off Sanibel (this winter) or in the Keys (next May) I'll do some water testing for you.

Yes that would be awesome, I'm trying to set a tank to the exact parameters