High Magnesium

[AllanPritchard]

Hi All

I have an issue with Magnesium constantly being over 1600 (usually around 1650) and I believe it has killed off my Trochus Snails. I have read a lot of threads which say Magnesium just doesn't appear in a tank without being added and it must be a testing error, usually by Randy Holmes-Farley, The threads always go off topic and no answer is ever identified. I had been using Giesesmann test kits and brought a Nyos kit today. Same results (1650 in display and 1350 in mixed batch). I am using Red Sea Coral Pro and mixed up a batch and tested 1350.

I dose the Red Sea program of Cal, Alk, A(Iodine), B(Potassium) C(Iron) D(BioActive) and NoPox plus I am using Vibrant for algae issue. I do not does the Magnesium component.

I feed frozen Aqua One brine Shrimp and a product called Fish Fuel community (chopped up shrimp, mussels, clam, octopus, squid, zucchini, peas, spinach, spirulina, with some vitamin minerals and essential fatty acids) plus Nori and a small amount of flake. I don't know where it would be coming from.

Has anyone had this issue with the Red Sea programme and high magnesium? I'm not a chemist so I don't know why it is so high. I do a 15% water change weekly. Any ideas where the Magnesium is coming from?

Other parameters
Ph 8.2-8.4
Cal 450
Alk 11
Salinity 34.5
Temp 25.5 deg c
ORP 426
Nitrates 12 (trying to lower)
Phosphate - Undetectable (red sea test kit)
Potassium 430
Iron - Can't detect
Iodine .06


Cheers
Al

 

[steA]

I'm going to follow this, im running the red sea programme as well and I don't dose mag and my icp has come back at 1580. and I never dose mag?

 

[AllanPritchard]

I'm going to follow this, im running the red sea programme as well and I don't dose mag and my icp has come back at 1580. and I never dose mag?

I know its is bizarre and a lot of other threads the original poster was using red sea CP but then never shared much else and the topic runs off into the benefits of various salt brands and precipitants when mixing. Very frustrating.

 

[arking_mark]

I'm not sure the test kits will work, but have you tried testing and Red Sea additives? Maybe the calcium or one of the others has magnesium?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Hi All

I have an issue with Magnesium constantly being over 1600 (usually around 1650) and I believe it has killed off my Trochus Snails. I have read a lot of threads which say Magnesium just doesn't appear in a tank without being added and it must be a testing error, usually by Randy Holmes-Farley, The threads always go off topic and no answer is ever identified. I had been using Giesesmann test kits and brought a Nyos kit today. Same results (1650 in display and 1350 in mixed batch). I am using Red Sea Coral Pro and mixed up a batch and tested 1350.

Well, I guess I'll just repeat myself...

If the high magnsium did not come from your salt mix (perhaps from a past batch), and you did not add it in huge amounts, then it is either test error or your salinity is far higher than you think.

"no answer identified" means test error most of the time, because test error is identified most of the time. magnesium testing is very imprecise and often inaccurate.

 

[steA]

Well, I guess I'll just repeat myself...

If the high magnsium did not come from your salt mix (perhaps from a past batch), and you did not add it in huge amounts, then it is either test error or your salinity is far higher than you think.

"no answer identified" means test error most of the time, because test error is identified most of the time. magnesium testing is very imprecise and often inaccurate.

Your Magnesium levels are slightly elevated.


Please check your magnesium test kit for accuracy.

Na

Check salinity measuring equipment for accuracy and lower salinity and monitor.


Check salinity measuring equipment for accuracy and monitor.

thanks randy this is what my icp test told me to do as well.

 

[AllanPritchard]

Well, I guess I'll just repeat myself...

Thanks Randy, and I do appreciate the reply.

This is what is frustrating. A number of people are complaining about high Mag, and a number of them are using Red Sea.

My Salinity is well and truly checked. - I use a calibrated Hanna on every mix and main the display plus an Apex and a calibrated refractometer.

The ICP test for the red sea salt batch was 1402. I have had the batch sitting for 3 days and it tests as 1350.
And I have used multiple test kits of different brands, all within expiry. What thing to note with these test is they use 1ml syringe to drip in the reagent, 1ml of regent would be mag of 1500. neither test will change the colour with a full 1 ml.

Something I am adding to the tank has mag and it is not the salt mix itself. It can't magically appear but it is definitely high. I test every second week and it has steadily climbed since August last year from 1200 through to 1700.

I highly doubt I started doing the test correctly and slowly got worse at it over the last 7 months.

 

[AllanPritchard]

I'm not sure the test kits will work, but have you tried testing and Red Sea additives? Maybe the calcium or one of the others has magnesium?

What I might try is mixing 4 fresh batches of 1 lt of salt water, mixed accurately and see if I can test the 1402 that it reports to be. Then add 20ml one of A - D to each one and see if it has an effect on Mag. and do the same with cal, alk nopox and vibrant.

 

[Coral Bros]

following this thread as I am experiencing High mg too 1500+ tested with salifert consistently. salinity is 1.026 checked with both hanna and milwaukee digital refracts. I use regular IO salt and the last 10 bags i received all ran high mg (i test before doing a WC). IN the past, mg was always low, so I don't know what gives. anyways, tank seems to be doing just fine but I don't like the fact that i don't know what level my mg is at except somewhere above 1500. anyone use regular IO salt and experience this too?

 

[AllanPritchard]

following this thread as I am experiencing High mg too 1500+ tested with salifert consistently. salinity is 1.026 checked with both hanna and milwaukee digital refracts. I use regular IO salt and the last 10 bags i received all ran high mg (i test before doing a WC). IN the past, mg was always low, so I don't know what gives. anyways, tank seems to be doing just fine but I don't like the fact that i don't know what level my mg is at except somewhere above 1500. anyone use regular IO salt and experience this too?

If you mix up a fresh batch and test that, does it correspond to what they say on the side of the bucket? I don't know what that is because we don't get IO here but should be less than 1500.

 

[Coral Bros]

If you mix up a fresh batch and test that, does it correspond to what they say on the side of the bucket? I don't know what that is because we don't get IO here but should be less than 1500.

surprisingly no for the mg. but i mix it to a salinity of 1.026. historically, regular IO always registered low mg for me (makes sense as mg is one of the more expensive ingredients) and i had to add mg, but in the last year, it reads consistently high- 1500+. I can't figure it out. I've tested with two salifert mg test kits and i have two refractometers (hanna and milwakee).

 

[William Morris]

All - have there been any noticeable side affects to having the elevated Magnesium?
I am actually raising mine after reading several posts on how elevated Mag levels are beneficial to hammers.

 

[arking_mark]

What I might try is mixing 4 fresh batches of 1 lt of salt water, mixed accurately and see if I can test the 1402 that it reports to be. Then add 20ml one of A - D to each one and see if it has an effect on Mag. and do the same with cal, alk nopox and vibrant.

Love it. Please share the results.

 

[AllanPritchard]

All - have there been any noticeable side affects to having the elevated Magnesium?
I am actually raising mine after reading several posts on how elevated Mag levels are beneficial to hammers.

Inconclusive for me - I have lost all of my snails which I have read can be cause by high magnesium (they go into a zombie state and eventually drop onto to sand, don't even try to flip) but there could be other factors to this as I'm trying to deal with turf algae and dinos form in their place, just trying to go slow, but some dinos can kill snails as well.
I have lost a hammer and frogspawn heads, once again could be other issues. I just want to target a mag of around 1300

 

[DDenny]

Just received my salifert test kits and tested my water this morning (finishing up cycling)

Alk 8.9-9.3
Ca 430
Mg 1470
Salinity 35ppt (refractometer)

Nothing in the tank just water, rock and sand didn't expect Mg to be that high. New kit obviously with a 12/2024 expiration date. Have to do a water change this weekend will test the mix and see what it says.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Just received my salifert test kits and tested my water this morning (finishing up cycling)

Alk 8.9-9.3
Ca 430
Mg 1470
Salinity 35ppt (refractometer)

Nothing in the tank just water, rock and sand didn't expect Mg to be that high. New kit obviously with a 12/2024 expiration date. Have to do a water change this weekend will test the mix and see what it says.

The value is reflecting the salt mix. Some are that high, and many are if the salinity is higher than 35 ppt. The kit also has an uncertainty associated with it.

 

[DDenny]

The value is reflecting the salt mix. Some are that high, and many are if the salinity is higher than 35 ppt. The kit also has an uncertainty associated with it.

Yes sir that is what i have been reading about as well once I tested. Thank you for the reply.

 

[Nano sapiens]

My experiences with Mg and testing:

1. As Randy mentioned, our hobby grade kits have a level of uncertainty and they are not at all forgiving of any user inaccuracies. I've tried a few (Salifert, SeaChem, AquaForest) and the most accurate one so far is the AquaForest kit (they provide a sample to compare your test results with and my testing had only a 30 ppm deviation). Best practice IME is to perform the test separately from others and slowly, following the instructions to the letter.

2. I had a SeaChem test kit that also had a reference sample. My testing started out being within 50 ppm of the sample, but unbeknownst to me drifted over a few months to a deviation of at least 200 ppm when compared to a new AF kit and a LFS's kit. I suspect the reagent may have somehow been contaminated, so that's why I now perform the Mag test when all other kits have been put away and at a distance from the tank itself.

3. At nearly 1800 ppm, all trochus family snails stopped moving and passed away within a few days. Only one stomatella and few collunista snails survived. I also lost all mini-brittle stars and my resident mysid population.

 

[Wannabe Reefer]

Hi All

I have an issue with Magnesium constantly being over 1600 (usually around 1650) and I believe it has killed off my Trochus Snails. I have read a lot of threads which say Magnesium just doesn't appear in a tank without being added and it must be a testing error, usually by Randy Holmes-Farley, The threads always go off topic and no answer is ever identified. I had been using Giesesmann test kits and brought a Nyos kit today. Same results (1650 in display and 1350 in mixed batch). I am using Red Sea Coral Pro and mixed up a batch and tested 1350.

I dose the Red Sea program of Cal, Alk, A(Iodine), B(Potassium) C(Iron) D(BioActive) and NoPox plus I am using Vibrant for algae issue. I do not does the Magnesium component.

I feed frozen Aqua One brine Shrimp and a product called Fish Fuel community (chopped up shrimp, mussels, clam, octopus, squid, zucchini, peas, spinach, spirulina, with some vitamin minerals and essential fatty acids) plus Nori and a small amount of flake. I don't know where it would be coming from.

Has anyone had this issue with the Red Sea programme and high magnesium? I'm not a chemist so I don't know why it is so high. I do a 15% water change weekly. Any ideas where the Magnesium is coming from?

Other parameters
Ph 8.2-8.4
Cal 450
Alk 11
Salinity 34.5
Temp 25.5 deg c
ORP 426
Nitrates 12 (trying to lower)
Phosphate - Undetectable (red sea test kit)
Potassium 430
Iron - Can't detect
Iodine .06


Cheers
Al

I have the same issue so following

 

[CMMorgan]

Same... just mixed a fresh batch of Tropic Marin SynBiotic and the Mag was 1480, my existing DT has been running at 1500 with no dosing. I'm thinking of testing my RO water.