Low alk

[calimatty]

I did a 15% water change yesterday. I am switching over from Red Sea Salt to Red Sea Coral Pro. I am in my second week of switching over and did a 3/5 RS Coral Pro to 2/5 RS Salt. My alkalinity when I tested this morning was about 7.5-8 (I use API tests) I am curious if I should raise my alk. I know it is only slightly low but I switched to RS Coral Pro because the Cal and Alk were hovering in the low range (360-380cal/8-9alk).
I have a 69gal Res Sea Max
Corals:
3 Acan (1 that was just decimated by a Peppermint Shrimp)
4 Zoa Frags
2 Mushrooms
2 Montipora
1 Candy Cane
1 GSP
Fish:
2 Clowns
3 PJ Cardinals
1 Royal Gramma
1 Lawnmower Blenny
1 Watchman Goby
2 Pistol Shrimp (I think)
5 Hermit Crabs
7 Snails (various)
2 Peppermint Shrimp (AKA Acan Killers)

My parameters are:
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 2
Phosphate 0
Calcium 400
Alk 7.5-8
Salinity 1.0259
PH 8.2

Thoughts?

 

[nereefpat]

I would call alk of 7.5-8 perfect.

 

[biophilia]

The difference in alkalinity between the two ranges you gave is within the margin of error of your API test kit. Keeping your alkalinity lower in general though will help if you are keeping phosphate and nitrate on the low side. With hobby test kits (and especially API kits) they're not really accurate enough to determine very specific information. You'll have less of a headache overall if you use them as a vague indicator and focus more on stability of those parameters over time rather than keeping a specific number.

 

[calimatty]

I would call alk of 7.5-8 perfect.

Really even only a day after the water change? I seen a lot of people talk about 9 as ideal and also having a bit of a buffer to account for drops. I am relatively new (5 months) but my understanding is that will drop over the course of the week (I do weekly 15% water changes) with top off and usage. Am I over thinking/ over estimating the drop?

 

[calimatty]

The difference in alkalinity between the two ranges you gave is within the margin of error of your API test kit. Keeping your alkalinity lower in general though will help if you are keeping phosphate and nitrate on the low side. With hobby test kits (and especially API kits) they're not really accurate enough to determine very specific information. You'll have less of a headache overall if you use them as a vague indicator and focus more on stability of those parameters over time rather than keeping a specific number.

Thanks. I know I always hear that API is not great. I've only been at this for 5 months and am planning on switching I just haven't decide to which tests yet. I think I like the idea of digital but know that other brands are even better regarded than the Hanna tests.

 

[nereefpat]

Really even only a day after the water change? I seen a lot of people talk about 9 as ideal and also having a bit of a buffer to account for drops. I am relatively new (5 months) but my understanding is that will drop over the course of the week (I do weekly 15% water changes) with top off and usage. Am I over thinking/ over estimating the drop?

Do you know how much alk is being consumed over a week?

Natural seawater is below 8, closer to 7.

Some people keep their tanks higher than that.

Some people can keep up on alk by water changes, but it depends on demand. With you owning stony corals, I would look into some kind of dosing.

 

[calimatty]

Do you know how much alk is being consumed over a week?

Natural seawater is below 8, closer to 7.

Some people keep their tanks higher than that.

Some people can keep up on alk by water changes, but it depends on demand. With you owning stony corals, I would look into some kind of dosing.

I don't really know. I was testing a lot more frequently early on then I went to once a week. I figured I'd be able to keep track if it was dropping by keeping testing regular. I guess I freaked out a bit because I was expecting it to go up with the new salt but it dropped a bit from what I could tell. Maybe I should start testing later in the week as well to track how muck is being consumed. All my Stonies are small right now and I just haven't seen much growth in the weeks since I got them and I would like to. I guess that was the root question of this post: Am I in need of dosing at this point or should I let it ride?

 

[homer1475]

Test before your WC, then do a WC, then test again. Then you'll see how much your WC is effecting your parameters.

Honestly with the amount and type of corals you have, I would think you should be close to start dosing.