so, as the title states I think I might need to start dosing.
About 4-6 months ago I switched from a Kessil to a radeon light for my 35 gallon nano and I have seen the biggest growth improvement out of the 2-3 years I have owned the tank. Everything is growing and healthy and all the colors look good.
About 3 months ago I decided to start adding some SPS as those are my favorite and I wanted to make sure my growth and tank was consistent before starting down that path. My SPS have all been growing healthy and maintaining color for over 3 months now.
So, I decided to start doing some water testing again as I know SPS suck up all the Calcium and Alk in the tank as they are growing. I did a 3 week test before and after every water change. My calcium was definitely low, and is reducing by about the same amount each week in between water changes. Usually I do a 5 gallon water change every week like clock work, but last week I did a 10 gallon change to help increase salinity and stabilize parameters. I will list my test results below for you to view, but it does seem like my calcium and alkalinity are reducing at the same pace roughly.
So, my question lies, do I need to dose? If so what? and how often? and how much? I hope my tests save me some research time, and hopefully help determine where I need to go next.....
Also, I use Instant Ocean water mix that is pre-mixed from my LFS to help keep things consistent. I use the Red Sea test kit for alk, Mg, Ca.
Test Results:
2/29 (before 5 gallon water change):
Ca -- 380
Alk -- ~7.4 dKH
Mg -- 1330 (It always stays around there so I stopped testing after this test)
3/1 (24 hours after water change):
Ca -- 380
Alk -- ~9.1 dKH
3/3:
Ca -- 360
Alk -- ~9.1 dKH
3/7 (before 10 gallon water change):
Ca -- 350
Alk -- ~8.6 dKH
⅜ (24 hours after water change):
Cal -- 470
Alk -- ~9.6 dKH
3/14 (before 10 gallon water change):
Cal -- 365-370
Alk -- ~8.1 dKH
3/15 (24 hours after water change):
TBD
About 4-6 months ago I switched from a Kessil to a radeon light for my 35 gallon nano and I have seen the biggest growth improvement out of the 2-3 years I have owned the tank. Everything is growing and healthy and all the colors look good.
About 3 months ago I decided to start adding some SPS as those are my favorite and I wanted to make sure my growth and tank was consistent before starting down that path. My SPS have all been growing healthy and maintaining color for over 3 months now.
So, I decided to start doing some water testing again as I know SPS suck up all the Calcium and Alk in the tank as they are growing. I did a 3 week test before and after every water change. My calcium was definitely low, and is reducing by about the same amount each week in between water changes. Usually I do a 5 gallon water change every week like clock work, but last week I did a 10 gallon change to help increase salinity and stabilize parameters. I will list my test results below for you to view, but it does seem like my calcium and alkalinity are reducing at the same pace roughly.
So, my question lies, do I need to dose? If so what? and how often? and how much? I hope my tests save me some research time, and hopefully help determine where I need to go next.....
Also, I use Instant Ocean water mix that is pre-mixed from my LFS to help keep things consistent. I use the Red Sea test kit for alk, Mg, Ca.
Test Results:
2/29 (before 5 gallon water change):
Ca -- 380
Alk -- ~7.4 dKH
Mg -- 1330 (It always stays around there so I stopped testing after this test)
3/1 (24 hours after water change):
Ca -- 380
Alk -- ~9.1 dKH
3/3:
Ca -- 360
Alk -- ~9.1 dKH
3/7 (before 10 gallon water change):
Ca -- 350
Alk -- ~8.6 dKH
⅜ (24 hours after water change):
Cal -- 470
Alk -- ~9.6 dKH
3/14 (before 10 gallon water change):
Cal -- 365-370
Alk -- ~8.1 dKH
3/15 (24 hours after water change):
TBD