New to having to worry about calcium and magnesium

[livinlifeinBKK]

Hey everyone, I just got my first hard coral frags (besides sun corals) today and I also have kept a clam for a while. Since I knew I was introducing hard corals today, yesterday I tested my water and found:
Calcium- 400
Magnesium- 1250
Alkalinity-10
I admit my test kit is off brand and probably not the most accurate but it would be weird for it to measure both parameters out of range. I just did a water change recently. What should I be dosing with and just to be sure, I might buy one of the Red Sea Pro test kits either alkalinity, calcium or magnesium...they're pretty expensive so if I had to only buy one, which should it be? Also, what should I use to supplement the low calcium and magnesium?

Thanks!

 

[ying yang]

Im new to saltwater and have no hard corals yet.
But from my reading/ research it says dont dose anything that you cant test as if cant test you dont know whats going on.
And as for dosing first need to find out if doing water changes to add elements isnt enough.
So test at same time off day and see what your corals are depleting and test before water change and after water change.
As if your corals/ coralline algae or anything that uses the elements isnt using that much then just water changes will replinish for you.

Edit: just re- read your post. I read some test daily everything and get fun out off it and some dont test at all but i find quite a few test magnesium only occasionally so i would say buy better calcium test kit first with intention off buying magnesium asap but as i say im new and dont test these at moment.good luck on your first hard corals

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Im new to saltwater and have no hard corals yet.
But from my reading/ research it says dont dose anything that you cant test as if cant test you dont know whats going on.
And as for dosing first need to find out if doing water changes to add elements isnt enough.
So test at same time off day and see what your corals are depleting and test before water change and after water change.
As if your corals/ coralline algae or anything that uses the elements isnt using that much then just water changes will replinish for you.

I mentioned I had very recently changed the water so it is not enough to replenish the levels and your calcium and magnesium have established levels that you should keep them at. I also said I tested for calcium, magnesium, and alkalinity so I would be dosing something I tested multiple times.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Im new to saltwater and have no hard corals yet.
But from my reading/ research it says dont dose anything that you cant test as if cant test you dont know whats going on.
And as for dosing first need to find out if doing water changes to add elements isnt enough.
So test at same time off day and see what your corals are depleting and test before water change and after water change.
As if your corals/ coralline algae or anything that uses the elements isnt using that much then just water changes will replinish for you.

Edit: just re- read your post. I read some test daily everything and get fun out off it and some dont test at all but i find quite a few test magnesium only occasionally so i would say buy better calcium test kit first with intention off buying magnesium asap but as i say im new and dont test these at moment.good luck on your first hard corals

Thanks! I certainly don't have all the answers either haha

 

[ying yang]

Ive got it all to come as i progress further into reefing.its exciting but sometimes anxious at times if doing things right hey.
The levels of your calcium and magnesium seem to be in the ranges alot say keep them at.so imo just keep testing at same time every day over a given period like once a day for a week inbetween water changes and see how they get used up either fast or slow.maybe your water changes are enough as cant see you saying they get depleted fast or not.
I read some also say use a salt that got levels that you want to keep yours at so no big jumps/ spikes up or down after water changes

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Ive got it all to come as i progress further into reefing.its exciting but sometimes anxious at times if doing things right hey.
The levels of your calcium and magnesium seem to be in the ranges alot say keep them at.so imo just keep testing at same time every day over a given period like once a day for a week inbetween water changes and see how they get used up either fast or slow.maybe your water changes are enough as cant see you saying they get depleted fast or not.
I read some also say use a salt that got levels that you want to keep yours at so no big jumps/ spikes up or down after water changes

yeah, I'm sticking to the same salt...it seems like switching between salts could present a problem

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Ive got it all to come as i progress further into reefing.its exciting but sometimes anxious at times if doing things right hey.
The levels of your calcium and magnesium seem to be in the ranges alot say keep them at.so imo just keep testing at same time every day over a given period like once a day for a week inbetween water changes and see how they get used up either fast or slow.maybe your water changes are enough as cant see you saying they get depleted fast or not.
I read some also say use a salt that got levels that you want to keep yours at so no big jumps/ spikes up or down after water changes

The reason I was concerned is because the salt I use leads the buyer to believe that the salt will have calcium levels of 430 and magnesium levels of 1280 which would have meant the elements were being consumed more than expected. Having said that, I don't know if what they advertise would actually prove true if you tested only the salt mixed with RODI water. I just got a message from a friend of mine who said the important thing is stability of the levels which makes sense.

 

[ying yang]

Yeah i read alot people saying stability is the key and dont go chasing numbers trying to get a certain reading.as best to keep stable and our livestock adapts to that.hopefully someone more experienced jumps in and gives you some real life experience as i have 0 lol

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Yeah i read alot people saying stability is the key and dont go chasing numbers trying to get a certain reading.as best to keep stable and our livestock adapts to that.hopefully someone more experienced jumps in and gives you some real life experience as i have 0 lol

I think the answer to my question is summed up by "stability"... btw, what's in your tank?

 

[Screwgunner]

First alkalinity it will go down the quickest
2 calcium next the more hard corals the faster it will go down but not as fast as alkalinity.
3 if you are doing water changes and not many corals magnesium should be fine .
I do not do water changes . It is to hard to keep up with what it needs when doing them.

 

[ying yang]

Not much at momemt as only 6 months into it so stocking slowly

2 clownfish
Ywg/tiger pistol shrimp
Tail spot blennie
Silver belly wrasse
Bi colour blennie
Blue streaked cleaner wrasse
Coral beauty
Copperband butterfly fish
Will add last fish in 1 week time and be 1 spot foxface

Cuc
2 cleaner shrimp
14 mini hermit crabs
3 red legged scarlet hermit crabs
6 nassarious snails
6 trochus snails
2 conchs snails
2 tuxedo urchins
Will get some more hermits next week when buy fish

Corals
Gsp
Orange zoa frag
Neon green paly's frag
Toadstool leather
Green torch
1 lobo
Will buy another colour torch next week also

Im just sticking to advice off stocking tank slowly so every 2- 3 weeks i buy something
So far so good no issues or no deaths at all.actually i lie as had a hermit crab definately kill another hermit as seen it and suspect him off killing another.
Also bought a halloween hermit crab but caught him eating spines/ tentacles off a urchin and he flipped a nassariuos snail and started eating so he went back to the lfs

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Not much at momemt as only 6 months into it so stocking slowly

2 clownfish
Ywg/tiger pistol shrimp
Tail spot blennie
Silver belly wrasse
Bi colour blennie
Blue streaked cleaner wrasse
Coral beauty
Copperband butterfly fish
Will add last fish in 1 week time and be 1 spot foxface

Cuc
2 cleaner shrimp
14 mini hermit crabs
3 red legged scarlet hermit crabs
6 nassarious snails
6 trochus snails
2 conchs snails
2 tuxedo urchins
Will get some more hermits next week when buy fish

Corals
Gsp
Orange zoa frag
Neon green paly's frag
Toadstool leather
Green torch
1 lobo
Will buy another colour torch next week also

Im just sticking to advice off stocking tank slowly so every 2- 3 weeks i buy something
So far so good no issues or no deaths at all.actually i lie as had a hermit crab definately kill another hermit as seen it and suspect him off killing another.
Also bought a halloween hermit crab but caught him eating spines/ tentacles off a urchin and he flipped a nassariuos snail and started eating so he went back to the lfs

Looks awesome! I just went through a fallow period so I only have one fish at the moment...I'm starting to add more corals now that I have the money

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

First alkalinity it will go down the quickest
2 calcium next the more hard corals the faster it will go down but not as fast as alkalinity.
3 if you are doing water changes and not many corals magnesium should be fine .
I do not do water changes . It is to hard to keep up with what it needs when doing them.

I have a Tetra brand alk test...is that reliable enough?

 

[Deep]

I have a Tetra brand alk test...is that reliable enough?

never heard/used. Buy salifert. What salt are you using?

 

[Deep]

The reason I was concerned is because the salt I use leads the buyer to believe that the salt will have calcium levels of 430 and magnesium levels of 1280 which would have meant the elements were being consumed more than expected. Having said that, I don't know if what they advertise would actually prove true if you tested only the salt mixed with RODI water. I just got a message from a friend of mine who said the important thing is stability of the levels which makes sense.

or most likely it means your salinity measure is wrong.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

never heard/used. Buy salifert. What salt are you using?

Red Sea (the regular one not Coral Pro) and I use Salifert for some things but I'm not a big fan because I'm never sure exactly what color matches best

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

or most likely it means your salinity measure is wrong.

No, I test the water after mixing and I test the DT salinity

 

[Deep]

No, I test the water after mixing and I test the DT salinity

I am not saying you dont test it. What are you using to measure salinity?

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

I am not saying you dont test it. What are you using to measure salinity?

A refractometer

 

[Deep]

Red Sea (the regular one not Coral Pro) and I use Salifert for some things but I'm not a big fan because I'm never sure exactly what color matches best

if it is red sea, how is your Alk at 10 ( assuming salinity is around 35 ppt)?