Concerns.

Jimmyman

Jimmyman

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I used a API test to test my alk. And it's low what do you guys use to raise it. All my fish and soft coral are doing amazing. I tested because one of my bubble tips split. They look just fine but it raised concern. From my understanding that usually means the tank is doing great or my anemones are stressed
 
Firstly:
  • Tell us a bit about your tank. What size is it? How old? What livestock do you currently have?
  • Also, instead of telling us it is low, it is better always to include actual numbers.
  • Anytime you're talking about Alk, its highly important to include numbers for Calcium (and sometimes Magnesium).

Depending on if you need to raise alk, you can buy Calcium and Alkalinity supplements. And either manually dose them, or use a doser.

However, and I could be wrong, given that you're using API and are asking this very good question, I'm guessing the tank may be relatively young. If that's so, it probably doesn't have a big demand for Calcium or Alkalinity right now. This would mean that the API maybe didn't test it accurately (which doesn't surprise me for that brand).

API is great for its affordability. Not for is accuracy or precision.

Shoot us those answers though, and we'll all be happy to help with some general guidance!
 
Yeah I didn't know what to get honesty and it what the guy at the pet store suggested. But things do long much happier in my tank. I did go ahead and order a calcium test and calcium supplement should be here Saturday I'll attach pics of what I got.Screenshot_20200426-143011.pngScreenshot_20200426-143028.png
 
ActiveAngel said:
Firstly:
  • Tell us a bit about your tank. What size is it? How old? What livestock do you currently have?
  • Also, instead of telling us it is low, it is better always to include actual numbers.
  • Anytime you're talking about Alk, its highly important to include numbers for Calcium (and sometimes Magnesium).

Depending on if you need to raise alk, you can buy Calcium and Alkalinity supplements. And either manually dose them, or use a doser.

However, and I could be wrong, given that you're using API and are asking this very good question, I'm guessing the tank may be relatively young. If that's so, it probably doesn't have a big demand for Calcium or Alkalinity right now. This would mean that the API maybe didn't test it accurately (which doesn't surprise me for that brand).

API is great for its affordability. Not for is accuracy or precision.

Shoot us those answers though, and we'll all be happy to help with some general guidance!
Click to expand...
The tank is a yr establish,d never lost on fish. Corals only thing I've ever lost were hard corals hope I am wording that right. I have gsp,s mushrooms, anenomes and zoes.oh and Duncan's.
 
Hannah checkers are also a great way to check. I don't like to use tests that change color because everyone perceives colors slightly different.
 
Jimmyman said:
The tank is a yr establish,d never lost on fish. Corals only thing I've ever lost were hard corals hope I am wording that right. I have gsp,s mushrooms, anenomes and zoes.oh and Duncan's.
Click to expand...

  • Great, so it’s a 150 gallon. Good size.
  • Of the corals you listed, most are softies. Which tells us there probably isn’t much demand for calcium.
  • And the tank is 1 year old, so still very young.
Based on the information you provided, I doubt that you need to begin dosing just yet. Regular minimal water changes will probably replace all the calcium that you need at this point.

Dosing now... it may throw off the balance and hurt severely your tank. I think you’re making a good call by ordering a new test kit. But I highly recommend not to add the supplement just yet. Let us know the numbers for your calcium and Alkalinity with the new kit first.

Also, what type of salt do you use? What salinity do you mix your water at? And what do you use to test your salinity: a hydrometer, Refractometer, or digital refract.
 
ActiveAngel said:
  • Great, so it’s a 150 gallon. Good size.
  • Of the corals you listed, most are softies. Which tells us there probably isn’t much demand for calcium.
  • And the tank is 1 year old, so still very young.
Based on the information you provided, I doubt that you need to begin dosing just yet. Regular minimal water changes will probably replace all the calcium that you need at this point.

Dosing now... it may throw off the balance and hurt severely your tank. I think you’re making a good call by ordering a new test kit. But I highly recommend not to add the supplement just yet. Let us know the numbers for your calcium and Alkalinity with the new kit first.

Also, what type of salt do you use? What salinity do you mix your water at? And what do you use to test your salinity: a hydrometer, Refractometer, or digital refract.
Click to expand...
I use a hydrometer, reef crystals, 1.026 is what my tank stays at
 
Cool. For starters, I would recommend switching to a Refractometer (of some sort). These are often on Amazon for $15 - $25. It’ll be some of the best investment spent in this hobby. Hydrometers have lots of error. There’s a reason why companies give them away for free... they’re cheap quality.

Aiming for 1.026 is high in my opinion. But is within the range that some others will recommend as ok. That said, because you’re using a hydrometer, I wouldn’t recommend decreasing it until you get a Refractometer and know for certain. It’s very possible/likely that your hydrometer is giving you false readings. When you read 1.026, it could potentially be 1.022, which would be very low and could be affecting your calcium. If so, lowering your salinity would be a bad move.
 
It’s also not uncommon for newer tanks to use more alkalinity than calcium.

Your magnesium impacts both, and while it won’t get used up fast, is important to be at the right level.

Perhaps someone could run a check of your water for you, to help see where things are?
 
Jimmyman said:
Hopefully it's easy to use lol
Click to expand...
Very easy to use. Pit a drop or 2 on the glass give it a few sec and look through. Then be sure to wipe it down well to get all the salt water off the glass. If there any that remains it could affect the next test.
 
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