Reef Calcium vs Reef Complete

[John Minnix]

Hello,

I've used Seachem's Reef Calcium in my doser for about 2 years. I've also got dosing bottles for Magnesium and Alkalinity.

I ordered Seachem's Reef Complete by mistake. I only noticed the difference when I poured it in the dosing container and saw that it was blue rather than Orange.

Can these two products be used interchangeably? Or, do I need to pour out the Reef Complete and swap with Reef Calcium?

Thanks for your advice!

 

[jda]

Reef Calcium is polygluconate and ionic calcium. Reef complete appears to be ionic calcium, magnesium and strontium. They might be interchangeable, but I have no idea the amounts or anything. If you don't need to raise the magnesium or strontium levels, then Reef Complete could take them too high.

I have no idea if SeaChem's claims that polygluconate make the calcium more available to corals, but I tend to doubt it... but the pros on here can weigh in.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

The polygluconate also adds alkalinity, in an amount that is unclear to anyone, and may vary tank to tank. The issue is how much polygluconate is metabolized to give slk, and how much is precipitated or exported without metabolism.

It’s a very poorly designed product, IMO.