Tropic Marin All-for-Reef

[izzyishh]

I have a 45G, mixed reef, and SPS are just frags so I’m only dosing 4ml all-for-reef daily using a Neptune DOS. I only test alkalinity and it’s at 9.0dkh.
I also do a 5-gallon water change/week using Tropic Marin salt.

Nice tank you have there!

 

[izzyishh]

I have a 45G, mixed reef, and SPS are just frags so I’m only dosing 4ml all-for-reef daily using a Neptune DOS. I only test alkalinity and it’s at 9.0dkh.
I also do a 5-gallon water change/week using Tropic Marin salt.

That's a nice tank! Man surprised only 4ml

 

[Shaka_Reefer]

That's a nice tank! Man surprised only 4ml

Thank you!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Nice! I'm trying to see how long I can get away with only dosing all for Reef on my 100g. I'm not worried about the price since I purchased the diy option. Just throws me off that things sill stay "balanced" tank currently sucks up alk. Cal not so much

I don't see a reason to think you can't "get away" with it on any tank, aside from cost, which can be substantial.

 

[izzyishh]

I don't see a reason to think you can't "get away" with it on any tank, aside from cost, which can be substantial.

From using ESV 2 part I would always notice my alk consumption would be more than cal. My concern with the A4R is if my tank uses up more Alk I may have to still dose alk not used the single a4r

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

From using ESV 2 part I would always notice my alk consumption would be more than cal. My concern with the A4R is if my tank uses up more Alk I may have to still dose alk not used the single a4r

That might be due to water changes, or inaccurate dosing, or other factors, but one can always make occasional corrections with single parameter products.

I have to say it is really strange that so many people claim unbalanced demand in their tank when using two part systems, but I really cannot remember hearing anyone using a CaCO3/CO2 reactor make the same claim despite supposedly dosing the same ratio of alk and calcium.

 

[User1]

I don't see a reason to think you can't "get away" with it on any tank, aside from cost, which can be substantial.

In the BRS sub forum there is a DIY recipe for it. Seems pretty affordable but I guess it will depend on how much is dosed daily. I'm using ESV 2 part and while happy was considering swapping over to it just to see. My tank is still maturing and not using much more than 30 ml ALK a day. Cal seems to be in the same range more or less.

 

[NanoSteam]

Also running AFR. Had to more than double the dosage since adding the Maxima clam a couple weeks ago. Dosing 1ml 3 times a day for a total of 3ml/day with a Kamoer x1. It's a 20g with just a HOB and a Mame glass skimmer. I use IO Reef crystals and keep my Alk at 10 and Ca at around 430. Also have to separately dose nitrates twice a week to maintain 5ppm.

Really love the AFR but for some reason after about a week in the dosing container it's accumulated brown residue at the bottom of the container. Doesn't seem to have effected it at all but still odd.

 

[Rybren]

According to the folks at TM, the brown stuff is a harmless iron-based precipitate.

 

[NanoSteam]

According to the folks at TM, the brown stuff is a harmless iron-based precipitate.

Good to know, I couldn't find anything online about it. Thanks!

 

[135zman]

In the US, anyone know where to buy All For Reef right now? My normal go to online suppliers are out of stock and LFS doesn’t carry TM products.

 

[Isaac Alves]

In the US, anyone know where to buy All For Reef right now? My normal go to online suppliers are out of stock and LFS doesn’t carry TM products.

Seems to so be out of stock everywhere. I reached out to @TropicMarin and their reply was that they were having issues with supply chain to the U.S., and that they are preparing to release a mix-yourself powder of AFR that should be available soon(?)

 

[Rybren]

If you can get the TM Carbocalcium powder, you can make your own AFR. The folks from TM posted a recipe for it here on R2R and BRS has a video on it.

I use CarboCalcium and add Aquaforest trace elements to create my own.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Amazon says they have 1 unit of calcium formate in stock

 

[Rybren]

Amazon says they have 1 unit of calcium formate in stock

As usual, not available in Canada lol.
Factoring in the USD/CAD exchange rate and difference in amount sold, the price is pretty close to what my LFS charges for a 700g container of TM powder.

 

[5th Day]

Iv been dosing AFR for a couple months now and really like it over the 2 part I was using. Much more balanced consumption, but still need some tweaks, can you add CA to it, to meet your tanks consumption if so what CA product? I see TM has one for use with the balling method?

An additonal dosing question, can you add aminos and/or nitro to your dosing reservoir if it was continually mixed? I currently dose AFR mixed with my RODI top off water.

 

[Isaac Alves]

If you can get the TM Carbocalcium powder, you can make your own AFR. The folks from TM posted a recipe for it here on R2R and BRS has a video on it.

I use CarboCalcium and add Aquaforest trace elements to create my own.

wait... you make your own All-For-Reef? Do you guys have the link handy? Or does Mr. @Randy Holmes-Farley have a DIY All-For-Reef formula? Because I’ve been using it for a long while in a smaller 40 gallon setup and it’s perfect . I’d love to try a DIY of I can’t get the product from Tropic Marin.

Thanks

 

[damselindistress]

Late to the party but I use AFR in my 60 gallon mixed reef and dose at 10 ml a day. I dose .5 ml of TM Bacto Balance as well. It has turned my tank around. I'm on my 2nd 1,000 ml bottle and am nervous to see it out of stock everywhere at the moment.

 

[Rybren]

wait... you make your own All-For-Reef? Do you guys have the link handy? Or does Mr. @Randy Holmes-Farley have a DIY All-For-Reef formula? Because I’ve been using it for a long while in a smaller 40 gallon setup and it’s perfect . I’d love to try a DIY of I can’t get the product from Tropic Marin.

Thanks

Here you go

 

[The Opinionated Reefer]

I dose 50ml a day or DIY all for reef into a reefer 350 that is mainly sps to maintain an alk of 8dkh. The powdered version of carbocalcium is much better value and a 1400g tub makes 10L of solution which is enough to last 6 months. I am thinking of stopping adding the trace elements and just using Pro-coral Mineral instead for trace elements. One scoop a day contains all the trace elements found in natural sea water. Saves even more money.