Starting my Vodka Adventure

[kingfisherfleshy]

Thanks Patent...I will let you guys know either way.

I will be expecting a slight decrease at least due to the fact that I have been getting more skimmate...its pulling SOMETHING out of the water.

 

[Aquaph8]

I agree with patent. I've ramped my dose up and back down a few times looking for that sweet spot.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

Well here are the latest updates.

Didnt get to do h2o testing this weekend.

In the last couple days, one of my tangs came down with ich. This is the first time I have had a case of ich in 8 years where I thought that there was action necessary beyond a water change and better nutrition.

It was spurred on by suddenly increased aggression from a purple tang who had been living peaceably with my blue.

The ich came in on a chevron tang, who still had a couple barely visible spots. Purple had a dusting, and the blue (although otherwise seeming very robust) is covered with the raised bumps.

Because of this I tore down the whole tang, and QT'ed all three tangs. I have never done this before.

I am wondering if vodka might have been causing stress. I pride myself on never getting ich, and that when signs appear that I can usually remedy it in DT with good husbandry tactics.

Vodka dosing may continue...or it may not. Right now I have no other explanation for the sudden change in the state of things.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

Well, it works...I didnt get my nitrates "low, but exsistant" it went one week from being twenty to the next week being 0...you would have to do lots of testing and small increment increases I think to get something like 5ppm in your tank.

Vodka dosing works...minimal purple slime on a couple rocks. Nothing noticeable.

 

[Aquaph8]

Glad its working for you. Keep up the good work.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

Well, I added a bunch of fish a couple of weeks ago.

I heard that it was good for red slime prevention, and overall bacteria diversity to add vinegar. So I started adding a teaspoon a day.

I got cyano. Going to test for nitrates this weekend, and if there are none, Im going to cut the vodka dosing in half...I also have completely stopped with the vinegar.

Hoping things get better...how did everyone else fix the cyano issue?

This stuff is clinging to the rocks hard...otherwise I would just be air hose siphoning it out into a filter sock and then just washing the sock.

 

[SunnyX]

Hello, an appearance of cyano is usually an indication of the carbon(vodka) breaking the saturation point. Your best bet is to stop vodka and only dose in a bacterial source.

Cyano was the main reason behind my switch from vodka to biopellets.

Thanks,

Sonny

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

Care to explain how bio-pellets would be any better than vodka?

Carbon is carbon...creates a boom in bacteria either way.

The only difference I can see is that vodka dosing at least allows you control over how much carbon is entering your system.

 

[Aquaph8]

When I first started dosing cyano was an issue too. I stopped dosing vodka and never really won the battle till I broke down and treated with chemiclean. As soon as I finally beat it, I started over with vinegar and slowly added vodka back to my routine after a while and haven't had an issue since

 

[Oceanslayer18]

Dont do it!! I started small and my achilles died in the end :( use biopellets. Much safer

 

[Reef UP]

Dont do it!! I started small and my achilles died in the end :( use biopellets. Much safer

Careful I went BP from vodka and started losing a lot of stuff pulled them off line and went back to vodka no problems oh just to note I used 5 of the common brands and had almost the same experiences with each one

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

When I first started dosing cyano was an issue too. I stopped dosing vodka and never really won the battle till I broke down and treated with chemiclean. As soon as I finally beat it, I started over with vinegar and slowly added vodka back to my routine after a while and haven't had an issue since

Wont be going this route for sure...used chemi clean in the past...and honestly it doesnt fix the root of the problem.

Dont do it!! I started small and my achilles died in the end :( use biopellets. Much safer

I will admit that I noticed some stressful behavior out of my tangs when I started vodka dosing...which I blame with the resulting ich outbreak...however I have already been dosing, my tank is at zero nitrates, this is an established vodka tank. Its already been done. I also dont see how bio-pellets would be any better...as I have said before, carbon is carbon. Only difference is that I control how much enters my tank and people who are running pellets really cant.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

Anyone have some advice as to how they got rid of cyano while carbon dosing? Should I just add some sort of phosphate chemical media?

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

Tested today, and it would appear that my nitrates were in the 10-20 range.

I increased my vodka doseage...the red slime did show up after I almost doubled my stocking, so hopefully the extra vodka deals with the cyano and the nitrates.

 

[Aquaph8]

What Skimmer are you running? Any activated carbon? You said your nitrates were 0 a few days ago.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

They were the last time I tested, but that was probably before the new added bioload hit.

I have an AquaC EV400 skimmer on my 125g. Its run by a mag12...trying to upgrade to an 18...but money as tight as a college student.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

Well, now dosing a tablespoon morning and night, up from one half previously...I will report if there are any improvements.

I guess my logic right now is that if the vodka isnt getting rid of all the nitrates, its probably leaving behind phosphates as well.

I cant believe with how many carbon dosers there are that no one else is really chiming in on this.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

New question guys...would this be possible to do with watered down iso or ethyl? If it was watered down to 80 proof? Thanks

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

Bump

 

[Trebor]

Bump

I just caught up on your thread, I was wondering how everything is at this point? I was thinking of starting a carbon program, with vodka, glucose, and vinegar it's a recipe out of coral magazine. I would like to know if you can see improved color in your corals. What kind of corals do you have mainly? I have all sps, I have read that carbon dosing can cause bleaching in sps have you heard of this or seen it? Apparently Alk tends to drop or something to that effect. Thanks and good luck