Calcium above 500, need some help.

Very good! Everything is working as it should be! Thanks.

How do I raise my KH if it is not a good idea to buffer it?

 

No add the buffer.

I just meant for future refrence, that it is rarely good to treat one problem with water chemistry by adding another variable.

Most problems can be resolved with a water change or just plan old time. As some old reefer once said

" Nothing good in this hobby happens fast"

He forgot to add that and bad things get out of control in the blink of an eye.

Sorry for the confusion.:-/

 

corailline
was not saying dont buffer it

Corailline just meant dont add 1 thing in , in order for another to fall out

your Calc is OK and will drop over time
as your Calc is dropping, monitor and adjust your DKH upwards by no more than 1 degree in any 24 hour period

Corailline means - by all means add Ions (In your case Alk) when there is space with your SG and Mag levels to do so
but dont add Ions in order to try and make other Ions precipitate out of solution

Steve

 

Steve, that is exactly what I meant. Your the Man;D

 

Gotcha! lol Thanks for the help guys. I'll let you know what happens.

Need some help with adding the buffer. I will be using Seachem Reef Builder but not sure how much to add as the directions refer to meq./L which I am pretty sure is different from KH.

Can anyone explain this to me so I don't offer dose?

 

Great help on this site. I appreciate this place.:thumb_up::thumbs_up

 

I can indeed - give me 2 mins to go to the cupboard under the tank

ok

half a teaspoon of reef builder will increase 0.25 DKH in 40 gallons of water

so if your tank was 80 gallons and you wanted to increase from 8 - 9

you would need 8 teaspoons of reef builder to achieve this

make sure you allow for rock etc - so if you think your tank is 80 gallons
consider it a 60 gallon tank and only add 6 teaspoons of reef builder

test a few hours later and you can always add if required ( its better to take 2 days to increase 1 degree than it is to go beyond 1 degree in any day)

dont add it to the tank - add the powder to RODI and slowly add the resulting liquid to the tank

a drip system is a cheap method if you dont have dosing pumps etc

simple 500ml bottle with a knotted airline allowing 2 drips or less per second is ideal IME

if you have a sump - add it there
but if not drip it in front of a wave maker or powerhead so it gets dispersed and not focused on any coral (dont drip directly over a coral as they dont like that IME)

Steve

 

Great advice there Steve. Thats one of hte good things about too high CA and KH. they will slowly work their way down without any input by the hobbyist.

FWIW, you can also make your own buffers from Arm and Hammer to boost the KH levels. Stability is the key however. thats where the CA reactors come into play. they dont boost CA or KH, but rather keep it stable with supplementation keeping your PH stable in the process. not everyone can afford one and I havent used one untill this tank, but I am definatley a proponent of them now.