my new baby... AKA The Café

[sp1187]

Great news. Are you looking for bonfire safe shish kabob skewers?

just in case

 

[James_O]

All good. No better time than now to start learning. I'm using all for reef as backbone dosing. I'm having hard time with kits myself being colorblind. Actually have all the hanna kits just to lazy or adhd to actually use them(gonna change that this week) out of pure stubbornness.
Baby steps man. Its easier to eat pizza one slice at a time I guess.

If I had the Hanna testers, I think it would be a lot easier.

 

[Jaden9933]

If I had the Hanna testers, I think it would be a lot easier.

For Hanna tests, you have to be extremely diligent and precise. Because of this, they aren’t something you can rush. Maybe try Red Sea tests or Salifert

 

[James_O]

For Hanna tests, you have to be extremely diligent and precise. Because of this, they aren’t something you can rush. Maybe try Red Sea tests or Salifert

I use salifert for the alkalinity and that’s the one I don’t like. Having to add the drops and mix it until it turns blue? And the remembering the number of drops and trying to convert it.

It’s just confusing to me. ;Wacky

 

[elorablue]

If I had the Hanna testers, I think it would be a lot easier.

I really like the Hanna testers but they aren’t cheap. If I was to get just one I’d get the Alkalinity. The phosphate is the other one I have.
I got the API kit to start with and it’s done the job but deciphering those colours is really stooopid so I’ll change when they run out.
for Calcium and Magnesium I have the salifert kits which I hate but again they do the job.
also don’t even think about dosing anything until you know where your tank is at.
last thing… water change water change water change! It’s what keeps a nano going

 

[dvgyfresh]

For Hanna tests, you have to be extremely diligent and precise. Because of this, they aren’t something you can rush. Maybe try Red Sea tests or Salifert

Whhhat Hanna is the easiest for me lol alk takes like two minutes tops! Red Sea tests made me feel like I had to be a chemist , useful for the MG test tho

 

[LRT]

I definitely do want to see growth.

How do I manage these levels? Is it a chemical I add to the water? Or?



Also, how do I get rid of the nitrates? I hate algae, so I really want to get this figured out and exterminated. :/

James the reason I've been stressing scrubbing rocks and sand. And what she is eluding to is. Algae using and storing nutrients. Not just the stuff you see physically. It binds and starts growing and using these nutrients at surface level. Thats why I cant stress hard enough at how important it is to scrub and rinse especially once infested. You will see immediate reduction in nutrients from on that surface level. And once system starts coming around you can physically watch the coraline take its place from light cycle to light cycle. Pretty much overnight in my experience. Your stripping the bad so the good can take its place. And it will but it just happened to take me 6 months to get there because I let it go so long.

 

[dvgyfresh]

One time I didn’t test for two weeks ( ran out of reagent )and was dosing all for reef, well my alkalinity went over 20 lol somehow no losses tho

 

[Jaden9933]

I use salifert for the alkalinity and that’s the one I don’t like. Having to add the drops and mix it until it turns blue? And the remembering the number of drops and trying to convert it.

It’s just confusing to me. ;Wacky

Yikes…this will be almost any test for you other than Hanna, as far as I’m aware. If remembering drops and reading a table is too difficult, a tank may not be the best option for you, as there will surely be many things that are more difficult than testing. Not to discourage you away from a hobby, but it’s only fair to provide your fish and coral with a tank and water they can not only survive in, but thrive in. That means taking a couple minutes out of your day to test water and remembering drops. If you can’t seem to remember the drops no matter what, tally them as you drop them. There’s a millions way to fix a problem if you actually want it to be fixed. Where there’s a will, there’s a way! And tanks are a lot of work so you gotta have the will!

 

[Jaden9933]

Whhhat Hanna is the easiest for me lol alk takes like two minutes tops! Red Sea tests made me feel like I had to be a chemist , useful for the MG test tho

I’ve always heard and read that they’re very easy to mess up if you aren’t very careful! Also, I don’t disagree about the Red Sea test they make me feel like I should be running a meth lab

 

[Jaden9933]

On a side note, I went to the Aquarium of the Pacific yesterday! I’ve been there many times when I was younger but never paid any attention to the coral! Sorry for the spam

I got pics of every kind of coral so there’s something for everyone to appreciate! definitely the only reason I took so many pics…lol

 

[James_O]

On a side note, I went to the Aquarium of the Pacific yesterday! I’ve been there many times when I was younger but never paid any attention to the coral! Sorry for the spam

I got pics of every kind of coral so there’s something for everyone to appreciate! definitely the only reason I took so many pics…lol

It makes me wonder if they bought those huge colonies like that, or if they r get we then out. Probably the first.

Wouldn’t that be incredibly expensive??

 

[dvgyfresh]

On a side note, I went to the Aquarium of the Pacific yesterday! I’ve been there many times when I was younger but never paid any attention to the coral! Sorry for the spam

I got pics of every kind of coral so there’s something for everyone to appreciate! definitely the only reason I took so many pics…lol

Love it! Went for my bday , I’m jealous of all the nems!

 

[Jaden9933]

Love it! Went for my bday , I’m jealous of all the nems!

Me too! I was amazed at how big some of them are and that a lot of the BTA still have their bubbles!

 

[dvgyfresh]

Me too! I was amazed at how big some of them are and that a lot of the BTA still have their bubbles!

The second Nemo movie used aquarium of the pacific as a model lol kinda cool , I only have one nem out of 10 that likes to bubble I wish I could figure out the secret

 

[James_O]

Would this be something to use to maintain alk and cal levels, once I get the test list for them?

 

[Jaden9933]

The second Nemo movie used aquarium of the pacific as a model lol kinda cool , I only have one nem out of 10 that likes to bubble I wish I could figure out the secret

Oh wow that’s really cool I never knew that! Or paid attention enough to notice but now I wanna watch it again

 

[LRT]

Would this be something to use to maintain alk and cal levels, once I get the test list for them?

Reef fusion is a 2 part. Cal and alk.
You would be better off going with powder form all 4 reef. And use red sea base to supplement what your lacking from all for reef. I wouldnt do any of these besides weekly water changes until you can actually test for them.

 

[LRT]

@James_O


Come to think of it all 4 reef alone would most likely be plenty sufficient for your system. Until its packed with corals I cant see that tank depleting what you can't replenish with biweekly water changes.

 

[Jaden9933]

You

Would this be something to use to maintain alk and cal levels, once I get the test list for them?

shouldn’t need to dose anything unless you have SPS in your tank, and usually a good amount of it. Otherwise, water changes should replenish everything and keep it steady. Your job then, is to determine how often your tank requires these water changes. It’s different for everyone depending on tank size, types/size/amount of coral, how fast water evaporates from your tank etc. for a nano tank I’d recommend 1-2 changes a week at least in the early stages. However, if you’re adamant about dosing instead of water changes, seachem is not the brand I’d go with. Tried these in my earlier days and they work, but not the easiest to dose