Low ALK in Reef Crystals

[ImGoingCoastal]

Has anyone ever had low alk in reef crystals?

I have had to dose my tanks to bring them up above 7. I started wondering what the heck was going on as alk was low even after a WC. Decided to check my mixing can and found the alk is less than 6 dkh. I'm baffled because alk is supposed to be high right?

pH has stayed pretty steady around 8.

Calcium is ~420

Salinity is 1.026

Temp is 78

Anything I am doing wrong? Maybe a bad batch?

 

[Flippers4pups]

Could be a bad batch, but before we go there, what test kit are you using for alkalinity?

 

[Fishingandreefing]

Usually rc alk is off the chart at around 11 that’s why I switched. What test kit?

 

[xabo]

My experience has been the lower the salinity you mix, the lower the ALK/Ca.

 

[Fishingandreefing]

My experience has been the lower the salinity you mix, the lower the ALK/Ca.

That apply to every salt but you can’t rely on that.

 

[ImGoingCoastal]

Hanna dKH

 

[Fishingandreefing]

Hanna dKH

Hmmm that should be good to go. Rinse with rodi and test again to see?

 

[lpsouth1978]

It could be a bad batch, or it could simply be that there was some settling of the ingredients in the bucket or bag. If it is in the bucket, try rolling the bucket around on the floor a bit to mix things up. If it is in the bag... well I think you get the idea.

My last water change, almost 2 weeks ago, my new saltwater using Reef Crystals tested 9.5dkH with a Hanna Checker.

 

[35ppt]

Could be settling. But a bad batch wouldn't surprise me either. I got two bad batches of regular IO in a row. Ended up switching because of it. My boxes had high parameters though. One box had 18 dKH or so and like 700 Ca, precipitated so bad it took two days to clear and settle out. I complained and the replacement box had 12 dKH and 550 or 600 Ca, which was usable but still annoying with the high Ca and I keep my Alk at about 9.2 dKH so I switched to another salt.

 

[ImGoingCoastal]

Just tested again. 6.0

The checker is fairly new (maybe 1-2 months old) Reagent expires in 06/21 and I just watched the Hanna test video to make sure I was doing it right.

Water has been mixed for a little bit (maybe 2 weeks?) but I also just watched a BRS video that said that alk in Reef Crystals increased during storage.

I can't see the alk nearly being cut in half by it settling. I think I'll reach out to IO and see what they say.

Thanks for the help!

 

[ImGoingCoastal]

I may try switching to Tropic Marin or Fritz, I'm tired of the crap that appears when mixing RC.

 

[lpsouth1978]

Could be settling. But a bad batch wouldn't surprise me either. I got two bad batches of regular IO in a row. Ended up switching because of it. My boxes had high parameters though. One box had 18 dKH or so and like 700 Ca, precipitated so bad it took two days to clear and settle out. I complained and the replacement box had 12 dKH and 550 or 600 Ca, which was usable but still annoying with the high Ca and I keep my Alk at about 9.2 dKH so I switched to another salt.

Which salt are you using now? I have been considering a change, but haven't decided what to switch to. I am leaning toward HW-Marinemix Reefer because the cost is not outrageous, it gets good reviews, and has parameter near where I keep my tank.

 

[lpsouth1978]

I may try switching to Tropic Marin or Fritz, I'm tired of the crap that appears when mixing RC.

Yes, the brown crud is one of the worst parts of using RC.

 

[35ppt]

Just tested again. 6.0

The checker is fairly new (maybe 1-2 months old) Reagent expires in 06/21 and I just watched the Hanna test video to make sure I was doing it right.

Water has been mixed for a little bit (maybe 2 weeks?) but I also just watched a BRS video that said that alk in Reef Crystals increased during storage.

I can't see the alk nearly being cut in half by it settling. I think I'll reach out to IO and see what they say.

Thanks for the help!

I've had Alk drop over time, I think may be the reason. Mix up some fresh and test it.

I may try switching to Tropic Marin or Fritz, I'm tired of the crap that appears when mixing RC.

That is true. I don't miss the precipitation and buildup that comes with IO. I recently mixed up a bag of the IO I had leftover for a WC on a brute of rocks I'm cooking and the precipitation was so bad I had to muriatic acid my pumps to get them to start again and the bottom of the barrel covered.

Which salt are you using now? I have been considering a change, but haven't decided what to switch to. I am leaning toward HW-Marinemix Reefer because the cost is not outrageous, it gets good reviews, and has parameter near where I keep my tank.

I've been using HW, I like it. It mixes very clean. I'm about done with my first box of it making 10-15 gallons at a time. Every batch tested at ~9.2 dKH and like 490-500 Ca. I wasn't thrilled with the higher Ca again so I got a box of Fritz. I'll try it and then decide if I get Fritz or HW next time. With all the high Ca reading I was questioning my test kit but it's not just one kit.

/I just want something that has about 9.2dKH Alk and 420-450 Ca every time. If something is off I'd rather it be low Alk because I can easily fix that.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I may try switching to Tropic Marin or Fritz, I'm tired of the crap that appears when mixing RC.

I'd suggest keeping the salt in case the measurement is the error and you discover that later.

 

[muzikalmatt]

I'd suggest keeping the salt in case the measurement is the error and you discover that later.

^ This. I had a similar issue with Reef Crystals not long ago and it turned out my Hanna Checker reagent was bad (even though it was not expired per the date on the bottle). I was getting crazy low alk readings in my tank (under 6 dKH) and could not seem to get it back up no matter how much I dosed. So I tested a freshly mixed batch of RC saltwater and like you I got a reading below 6. I knew something was up then, so I opened a fresh bottle of reagent, retested, and sure enough the alkalinity was up around 9 where I expected to be. I retested my tank and it had skyrocketed to 10.5 due to all the dosing I had been doing.

With all that said, I would highly recommend trying another bottle of Hanna reagent before assuming it's the salt. I try to keep at least two bottles on hand for this very reason as from what I've read it seems to be a common problem.

 

[ImGoingCoastal]

I'd love to keep my Alk from 8.5-9.5.

Right now I am debating between Fritz and HW but I'm just learning about HW.

Are there any adverse affects from the high Ca?

I actually just bought another bottle of reagent last night, so I'll have a new one soon.