Always adding supplements!

[FallChinook]

We have a RSM130 stocked with LR/LS, all sorts of corals (soft, LPS, SPS, etc), a few fish, some crustaceans, and of course a CUC. Anyway, we are ALWAYS adding Calcium, Buffer, and Magnesium. We do weekly 15 gallon water changes and use Oceanic salt. We've tried Tropic Marin and Instant Ocean salts to see if that makes a difference. We've also tried different brands of additives and are now using Reef Advantage. It seems that our Alk will be good one day and then three days later it is down to 1.5! I am so frustrated! Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated!:smack:

 

[BigAl07]

How long did you "Try" the other brands of salt? It takes many many water changes before you can know for sure of the difference.

Granted I don't have an RSM but I would imagine tank "chemistry" is fairly consistent and I have been using TM Pro and I dose nothing. I do 10% WC every week and my numbers come out almost ideal week in and week out.

 

[TylerHaworth]

Same here... I use reef crystals in my mixed reef tank... 10-20% every week keeps my water exactly where it should be.

 

[FallChinook]

We used Tropic Marin for about 4 months. We were told not to go with the Tropic Marin Pro because it is for people running calcium reactors and that the regular Tropic Marin should keep our levels up. So frustrated with adding buffer, calcium, and magnesium weekly (buffer 2x/week sometimes!) on top of the 15 gallon water change!

 

[BigAl07]

We used Tropic Marin for about 4 months. We were told not to go with the Tropic Marin Pro because it is for people running calcium reactors and that the regular Tropic Marin should keep our levels up. So frustrated with adding buffer, calcium, and magnesium weekly (buffer 2x/week sometimes!) on top of the 15 gallon water change!

What? Where? Why?

I don't run any reactors or anything. I have a decent population of SPS and stonies. I've not had ANY calcium issues in a long time and NONE since going to TM Pro. Actually it's gotten so popular around here that our LFS is stocking it and selling it like crazy. He used to keep one bucket on hand all the time for me and now he orders it in bulk because so many have gone to it.

I'll try to check into the "Cal Reactor" comment. As of right now I'm calling it "pooey" but like I said I'm gonna look into it.

 

[Frankie]

I think you answered your own question in that last post. Buy and setup a calcium reactor. you can replace 25% of the crushed coral used for reactors with dolomite to supplement magnesium and never have to dose again.
All systems are different. The aquarium itself has no effect on water quality but the live stock that is being kept in it.
If your live stock is up-taking more then you can support with water changes then I would consider a reactor. For that size tank you could use a nano reactor like one of these. nano calcium reactors - Google Product Search

 

[FallChinook]

Thanks Al!!

 

[BigAl07]

We used Tropic Marin for about 4 months. We were told not to go with the Tropic Marin Pro because it is for people running calcium reactors and that the regular Tropic Marin should keep our levels up. So frustrated with adding buffer, calcium, and magnesium weekly (buffer 2x/week sometimes!) on top of the 15 gallon water change!

Whew! Either my "searching skills" are out of calibration or it's not true. I can't find any mention of facts other than someone on another board said, "I heard that TM Pro can be low in Cal".


Anyone have anything to verify this? I'd love to see it since that's what I use and have for a long time now. I'd like to know if there is a problem

 

[FallChinook]

Here's another question--our alkalinity is always dropping. We did a 10 gallon water change 10 days ago, added super buffer in between because my alkalinity was low (1.5ish), and I just checked it and now it is close to O!!!
We never had trouble with any levels when we first set the tank up. We used bottled DI water, and have now purchased an RO/DI filter and make our own water. Could part of the problem be our RO/DI water (like hardness?)?
Any help is appreciated, because we are seriously about ready to get rid of our tank. The amount of additives and maintenance we have to do it ridiculous!

 

[TylerHaworth]

Something is horribly out of whack if your Alk is near zero... RO/DI is RO/DI... unless it is not functioning properly...

What kind of sand and rock do you have in your tank?

 

[FallChinook]

We have about 35-40lbs of live rock and we HAD about 2 large bags of live sand, but are down to half of that now due to the addition of a pistol shrimp. He would pile the sand up in the corners and so we removed some of it. We also have a new refugium with about 1" of mud plus some chaeto in it.

 

[TylerHaworth]

Specifically, where did the rock come from? And... what brand of sand did you use? Also, what type of mud did you add?

 

[FallChinook]

Got our rock from a LFS--pretty reputable place. I forget what brand of sand we went with......no doubt the 'best' stuff (that's how we like to roll--buy the most expensive stuff), and the mud was miracle mud and was highly recommended by the reputable LFS.....what do you think is going on????

 

[TylerHaworth]

I really can't begin to guess, using my RO/DI and ReefCrystals... I have stopped testing altogether... something along the way has to be horribly out of whack... maybe the rock is a different kind of rock... or the sand isnt sea sand... or this mystery mud sort of intrigues me as well... Something is seriously messing with your Alk/Mg/Ca

I dont have to dose anything, in fact everything is so stable that the only thing I bother testing would be Nitrates once per week...

 

[FallChinook]

Could the fact that our tank is bare under our LR (about 50% of the tank) be affecting our Alkalinity??????

 

[TylerHaworth]

It shouldn't, I have two tanks setup right now that are bare bottom with no issues

 

[Frankie]

Have you tested the new saltwater before doing the water change? You could be dealing with a bad batch of salt. Upon receiving a new supply of salt one should always test the water first before doing the water change and make sure it is testing to the manufacturers specifications or close. You don't need to test the new salt every water change just the first time. Also it is wise to thoroughly mix the salt because of settling from shipping.

 

[Sarah88]

well the description for Tropic Marin Pro on Drs FosternSmith says: Pro-Reef Salt is specifically formulated with optimized calcium and magnesium levels to promote optimal coral health and growth. Its unique buffering system and pH level have been adapted to accommodate the use of calcium supplements or calcium reactors to help simplify the care of even very sensitive hard corals.
but it doesnt saying anything about NOT using it unless you have one of these just says it helps buffer if you ARE using one, have no idea what would be causing such weird swings but hope you find the solution soon!

 

[TylerHaworth]

I wouldn't THINK this problem would be due to a bad batch of salt, since he has switched through at least three different types of salt that I can recall him mentioning... I could be wrong though

 

[mbdave]

Have you compared your alk results with another test kit? And whats your calcium level is it excessively high? That will make your alk drop but I really don't think thats the problem, check the test results...