ICP Test, Dead CUC, Dead Stylo

[bzb]

A few weeks ago, I bought a couple emeralds and hermits. I have no idea if the hermits are good, but, yet again, I have a mysteriously dead emerald crab. That mixed with the mysteriously dying (now dead) stylo made me send in a new ICP.

Not much different this time around, but Calcium is a good bit lower (and that aligns with my Alk getting consumed down to the 7 range, as well). Here's the new results of anything that was detected.

Aluminum: 0.02ppm (0.00 target)
Boron: 4.91ppm (4.0 target)
Barium: 0.01ppm (0.00)
Calcium: 313.16ppm (400)
Chlorine: 17271.49 (19000)
Iodine: 0.29 (0.06)
Potassium: 303.57 (380)
Lithium: 0.33 (0.30)
Magnesium 1380.35 (1250)
Sodium: 9298.28 (10500)
Sulfur 970.81 (800)
Strontium: 5.34 (12)


Iodine poisoning maybe? I haven't dosed iodine since I got rid of that giant anthelia and the first emerald died a few months back. Is iodine in larger quantities in HW Marinemix salt?

Strontium is pretty low. Outside of that, nothing is crazy off my numbers.

So... what now?

 

[ActiveAngel]

What is your salinity? I ask because Sodium, Chlorine, and Magnesium are noticeably low, and your other ions are not noticeably high.

I’d be suspicious that your salinity may be about 1.022-023 at that range.... which could be enough to certainly stress some inverts.

 

[bzb]

1.0245 on refractometer calibrated with solution.

 

[bzb]

Admittedly, I've been very lax on testing. Everything's been looking fine. Calcium is indeed in the mid-300s... and Alk just tested at 5.5 on the Hanna. Oof.

May explain the stylo crashing (why the other are OK is beyond my comprehension). But I don't know about the inverts. I still have my original banded trochus, my tiger conch, and about a billion stomatella.

I've bumped up the dosing steadily over the last few months, which likely explains the growth of my corals. But apparently, consumption is not linear. I've bumped em both up more to try to catch up, and I guess I'm back to testing every couple of days for a while.

 

[Rickdareefa]

5.5 alk is a def oof!

 

[bzb]

Much oof.

But still... does not really explain my ability to swiftly kill crabs and sea hares and big boi snels that just wanna eat my algae.

 

[ActiveAngel]

Hmmm that’s very interesting. Your salt breakdown adds up to a recommended ~33,000ppm. But your values only add up to about ~30,000. (I rounded up for both values; but there is about a 3,000ppm discrepancy.)

Alkalinity being low is definitely a serious issue. And sure, iodine could be a potential issue as well.

However, based on your salinity of 1.0245, you coincidentally also have about a 3,000ppm discrepancy of salt ions compared with this breakdown. Assuming all measurements are accurate, this means you likely have a mystery trace element that is 3,000ppm too high. We don’t know what it is yet; but based on this data, it exists... or one or more of the measurements are off by 3,000ppm

 

[Rickdareefa]

Have you tested pH? Cuz I believe alk can effect that, which could kill snails and inverts.

 

[ActiveAngel]

Yup, Alk buffers against changes in pH. That’s one of the reasons it is so important.

Also, don’t raise Alk too fast. I recommend no faster than 0.3-0.5dkH per day.

 

[bzb]

Hmmm that’s very interesting. Your salt breakdown adds up to a recommended ~33,000ppm. But your values only add up to about ~30,000. (I rounded up for both values; but there is about a 3,000ppm discrepancy.)

Alkalinity being low is definitely a serious issue. And sure, iodine could be a potential issue as well.

However, based on your salinity of 1.0245, you coincidentally also have about a 3,000ppm discrepancy of salt ions compared with this breakdown. Assuming all measurements are accurate, this means you likely have a mystery trace element that is 3,000ppm too high. We don’t know what it is yet; but based on this data, it exists... or one or more of the measurements are off by 3,000ppm

Dang, that's some mathing.

Only other things I can think of that I've dosed are potassium nitrate (discussed in another thread!) and AllForReef. My reef chili has Brightwell Aminos and Selcon, as well. I did switch to HW Marinemax ~6 weeks or so ago.

Have you tested pH? Cuz I believe alk can effect that, which could kill snails and inverts.

pH fluctuates throughout the day, but it's generally around the 7.8 mark.

 

[Rickdareefa]

One more thing b4 I go to bed is what are your phosphates at?

 

[bzb]

Yup, Alk buffers against changes in pH. That’s one of the reasons it is so important.

Also, don’t raise Alk too fast. I recommend no faster than 0.3-0.5dkH per day.

My plan is just to continue upping the dosing pumps until I see it rising by that amount per day, then backing off after I get back to the mid 8s.

 

[bzb]

One more thing b4 I go to bed is what are your phosphates at?

Just tested that twice on the Hanna - undetectable twice, and checked with the liquid seachem stuff to be sure. It's undetectable, but it's definitely in there. I got some tuft algae that's digging my lazy fish leaving it alone.