Ca and KH not budging

nwfd98

nwfd98

Member
Okay so I have been trying to raise my Ca and KH Levels for the last few weeks and the product I am using is not working at all. I would like to know what your thoughts are on this.

Currently I am Dosing Brightwell Aquatics Reef Code Part A Calcium/Buffer Additive and Brightwell Aquatics Reef Code Part B Calcium/Buffer Additive. I have been adding 30 ml of each every 3 days. It says to add every other day till I have reached my numbers but life gets in the way sometimes.
My numbers when I started a few weeks ago are Ca 360 Kh 6 Mag 1130
Currently Ca 370 Kh 7 and mag 1130
I would like to get my Ca and Kh Higher but they have barely budged over the last few weeks. Is my low Mag affecting how the tank responds to the Ca. Am I using the wrong product? Any input would be appreciated.
Cause I Know someone is going to ask. All other parameters are within optimal range. Water changes are done weekly and all my corals and fish are happy and growing. It’s a RSM 250 60lb live sand 55 pounds rock. Running CPE and Rowaphose.
 
sasquatch

sasquatch

Brunt of all Jokes~
PREMIUM
when in doubt you do 2 things, get tests done independently, 2nd choice see first choice.
If tests are the same as yours add some mag and retest in 12 hrs
 
nwfd98

nwfd98

Member
Thank you I have run two test kits results the same. Looks like I'm going to bump up the mag. Is there a better product then what I'm current using.
 
Funlad3

Funlad3

Has been struck by the ban stick
First, I love your signature. :LOL:

Secondly, though the magnesium might have a small part in your CA and Alk levels, there's something much better going on here. :) You're dosing 30 mLs of each every three days. I dose 75 mLs of each (similar product, same brand) everyday on a system slightly larger than yours. Here's what you need to do:

1. Do a test for your Ca, Mag, and Alk. Write it down.
2. Don't dose anything for 1 week.
3. Retest everything. Write it all down.
4. Divide the Ca, Mag, and Alk draws by 7 (days).
5. Multiply that number by the number of gallons in your system.

You now have the number of "parts" of Ca, Alk, and Mg your system consumes on a daily basis. Now:

6. Read the instructions on the back of what you're using to dose. It should give some stat stating that one mL raises the Ca/Alk/Mg by ____ ppm/Gallon.
7. Divide the number you got in step five by the number you found in step six.

You now know the number of mL you need to dose per day to MAINTAIN each value. Now you still need to find out how many mLs you need to dose to get your Ca, Alk, and Mg back up to where you want them. That too, is easy.

A. Subtract your actual value from your ideal value.

Follow steps five six and seven using the number you just found in part A.

B. Divide this number by seven.
C. Add this (Needed) to the amount you found the FIRST time from step seven (Daily). (Needed + Daily = Value from step "C")
D. Dose the value from step C for seven days. From this point on, dose the "Daily" value from step seven.


Good luck and enjoy! :D (This is that real world application Math Teachers are always talking about...)
 
reeferman

reeferman

Well-Known Member
although slightly low,your water chemistry is perfectly in balance.your mag and kh is exactly where it should be if your calcium is 370.mag should be roughly 3x what calcium is.be sure whatever dosing regimen you maintain,do it balanced because your water is already ionically balanced,thats evidenced by your even numbers across the board.you run into BIG problems when you start adding more of one[calc,alk,mag] over the other when you are already ionically balanced.i would,as suggested above,just up your dosage of the a and b.when dosed at the same ratios,they will keep your water chemistry balanced as it already is.upping the dosage will raise all the numbers together.dont dose mag by itself when its already in line with calcium.
 
sasquatch

sasquatch

Brunt of all Jokes~
PREMIUM
I don't see mag at 1130 as balanced, its not even at nominal sea water level
nwfd98? what salt are you using?
 
nwfd98

nwfd98

Member
So if I understand correctly when I raise CA and kh I should watch my Mg and raise all three together. Makes total sense thanks for the info
 
reeferman

reeferman

Well-Known Member
it is balanced as far as the rest of the params go.you cant have higher mag as long as kh is 7 and calc is 370 without throwing the balance out of whack.bring them all up together or youre gonna upset the balance.no,youre numbers are not ideal but they are in balance with each other.mag,calc and alk all work together and you cant change one with out affecting the other.
out of balance params would look like
450 calc
7 kh
1500 mag
although those numbers are within range,they are not balanced.in order to maintain a higher calcium,you have to maintain a higher kh,yada,yada,yada.i wasnt saying the numbers were great,i was saying the water is ionically balanced as it should as in relation to one another and all three should be brought up together.
 
Bearjohnson

Bearjohnson

Well-Known Member
PREMIUM
RS Ambassador
gareeferman said:
it is balanced as far as the rest of the params go.you cant have higher mag as long as kh is 7 and calc is 370 without throwing the balance out of whack.bring them all up together or youre gonna upset the balance.no,youre numbers are not ideal but they are in balance with each other.mag,calc and alk all work together and you cant change one with out affecting the other.
out of balance params would look like
450 calc
7 kh
1500 mag
although those numbers are within range,they are not balanced.in order to maintain a higher calcium,you have to maintain a higher kh,yada,yada,yada.i wasnt saying the numbers were great,i was saying the water is ionically balanced as it should as in relation to one another and all three should be brought up together.
Click to expand...

In the numbers you just posted:
450
7
1500

What is considered balanced? In other words what should the spread be between the 3 as a general rule?

Example:
If Calcium is 450, then what range should alkalinity be between to be considered balanced. And also Mag?
 
reeferman

reeferman

Well-Known Member
if calcium was 450 then kh should be around 11 and mag around 1350.i have a book with a table graph that shows what the numbers should be in relation to one another.ill find it and post the title and author for referencing.we always use a general rule with params like
380-450 calc
7-12 kh
1200-1350 mag
and that is very true but to be balanced,you cant have one at the far end of the spectrum and another on the other end of the spectrum.if your gonna run high calcium,you should run high mag and kh as well,same with running lower.
my comment was that ALL of his params were slightly low therefore he should bring them up together with an ionically balanced[equal parts of calc,mag,alk]product.by only dosing mag to try and bring up calcium and kh when all three are low is gonna really throw the water out of whack.
imho,you just need to up the dosage and figure out how much it takes to keep it at the levels you want.higher numbers doesnt always mean better,stability is the key.
 
sasquatch

sasquatch

Brunt of all Jokes~
PREMIUM
magnesium is almost always overlooked by new reefers, alk/cal/nitrate /phosphate are the standards but you cannot balance cal/alk without addressing magnesium first, you can't do it the other way round, chasing alk and cal without the magnesium base is what imbalance is all about
 
kbobling

kbobling

New Member
Sasquatch and gareeferman, did either of you ever post the "balanced" Ca/Mg/dKH ratio table or the source where we could find it. I definitely have high Mg-1600, . I have a RSM 250, T5s, and use instant ocean reef crystals with RO. My Ca ~ 400-450, but my KH has been low, so I have been titrating up to 9-10dKH with RS Foundation B to help my SPS. Seems I need to get my Mg in order first? Any suggestions to bring the tank back in balance.
 
reefer gladness

reefer gladness

Well-Known Member
Magnesium should be roughly 3x calcium, yes you are high with magnesium but nothing a few waterchanges shouldn't fix. It's not really feasible to have both high calcium and high alkalinity. If you have high calcium you'll likely be on the low range of alkalinity and versa. I try to keep around 440 calcium, 1320 magnesium and between 8-9dKH alkalinity using Salifert test kits.

Consistency is a good thing so rather than dosing larger amounts on a weekly basis try to dose smaller amounts more frequently if possible. For example, I dose 5ml Kent liquid calcium and 1/2 tspn Kent Superbuffer dKH (mixed in RO water) on a daily basis to keep my tank steady. Every tank is different so you'll need to test frequently to figure out what's right for you. Keeping a log really helps, pen and paper, Excel, whatever you have handy. I use a freeware program called Aqualog.

This may also help: Dosing Calcium, Alkalinity, and Magnesium - YouTube
 
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