how to dose vitamin c in a 30g

[sabazerehi]

ok i'm ready to do it too, my zoas haven't opened up for weeks and after everything i had time to read from the vitamin c forum it sounds perfect. i wasn't able to find what i needed to know in terms of dosing for a 30g, and just to make sure is it ok if i have my skimmer running because i read that you're not supposed to use carbon and other media and i want to make sure a skimmer isn't on that list also should i add a ph buffer or something too or just keep a look out for the ph. any tips or common mistakes to watch out for will be greatly appreciated, i want to do this right and i'm really excited to see some improvements in my zoas, fingers crossed.

[Pufferpunk]

Have you read the thread? All your Qs are answered in there.

[sabazerehi]

i went through like 10 pages of it, it's really long, and i didn't find what i was looking for, maybe i missed it

[Pufferpunk]

OK, in short, you should order some Sodium ascorbate or Calcium ascorbate from here: www.i-herb.com. You can drop it under your skimmer cup.

For every 100 gallons:

5 ppm ----- 1892 mg VC
10 ppm ---- 3785 mg VC
15 ppm ---- 5677 mg VC
20 ppm ---- 7570 mg VC
25 ppm ---- 9462 mg VC
30 ppm ---- 11355 mg VC

Be sure your pH is around 8.2 & your alk is around 9-10, before you start. Keep an eye on both (I test weekly, now that I notice no changes).

Be sure to take some "before" pics!

[sabazerehi]

thanks so much for the link!! but i'm sorry i don't understand wut u mean for every 100 gallons? since my tank is only 30 gallons

[Pufferpunk]

Divide the dosage by 3--that should be close enough.

The method to be followed in all cases is as follows:

Day 1 : concentration of 5 ppm

Day 2 : concentration of 15 ppm

Day 3 : concentration of 30 ppm

Day 4 : concentration of 50 ppm

After day 4, continue treating with a concentration of 50 ppm for 10 more days to 30 more days, depending on the severity of what you are treating for.

The total treatment period is thus 14-30 days but can last longer if need be.

In real severe cases you may need to treat for an additional 7 days or more

During this entire period you should not be using activated carbon

During this entire period you should not be using any chemical filtration media either (e.g. resins or pads, SuperChem and the like).

The skimmer needs to continue to be in operation.

Note that when you use these kind of Vitamin C concentrations it really is of utmost importance that you monitor you pH and ensure that it does not suddenly drop.

Check the pH before you add the C but check a few minutes later also. If the pH is too low add a complete buffer immediately to re-establish your alkalinity and increase the pH of the water in the tank. This is very important indeed.

It is important too, to realize that your dKH must be in the 9 to 10 range to minimize the amount of cloudiness that will develop. It the dKH is high (e.g. 12 or more) you will initially have a lot more cloudiness. This will gradually disappear though as you continue the treatment.

[sabazerehi]

thank you so much for your help, you've answered everything i wanted to know and i can't wait to start! i'm going to get some vit c from the pharmacy or somethgin tomorrow until i can order the good stuff.

[Pufferpunk]

In that case, you will have to keep a very close eye on your pH & alk.

[sabazerehi]

i definitely will, i'll have to buy some test kits too then, any suggestions on what company to use and that goes for vitamin c too

[atzak]

so I just realized dosing my 210 for 30 days isn't going to be cheap

[Pufferpunk]

Neither was losing thousands of $$$ of zoas that I have in the past.

[Pufferpunk]

I wouldn't even touch the VC, until you are regularly testing your water & it is stable.

[Driftwood]

Why do you need the skimmer running? Can the VitC dosing reduce oxygen?

I am running a 40 breeder skimmerless and would like to try dosing some VitC to see if it helps my Zoas out any. Other stuff is doing fine but my zoas are having a hard time opening at times.

[ZooShark1029]

Dude Just use Dr. G's essential vitamins and minerals it has %6 vit c and other essentials just follow the directions on the bottle

[Pufferpunk]

6% of what? Have you been reading the amounts of vitamin C we are dosing? I'm up to 9,000mg, 2x/day. I don't think you'd be able to afford to dose that much from the product you recommend.

[jasonak]

Hi
can you use regular vitamin c tablets?
It says its vitamin c as asorbic acid,its just regular VC off the shelf that youd take for a cold.
thanks

[Pufferpunk]

Expect your skimmer to go nuts & your pH & alk to drop. The pure, buffered C is highly recommended.

[returnofsid]

Holy cow!! I just read this entire thread. Very informative!! I'll admit to still being a bit skeptical but I'm starting to convert. I don't have any problems with either of my tanks but would like to see if I can get any enhanced growth or color with this method. I currently have a 46 mixed reef and a 75 mixed reef, that's more SPS and Clams than anything, but does have softies, LPS and Zoanthids. In the 75, my skimmer is a POS. I'm going to be getting a meshed wheel pump to put on it to see if that improves anything, before spending the money to get a new skimmer. I'll also soon be setting up a 113 gallon cube tank that will be predominately SPS and clams. This tank will probably still have some LPS and maybe a softy or two. I'd also like to have some Zoanthids in it. It's still in the planning stages.

I am constantly taking photos and just took several of both tanks yesterday. If I do decide to dive into the VC club, I'll make sure to document everything and include before and after photos. I'll be sure to subscribe to this thread to keep up to date. Now it's time for me to read all the other threads that were linked in this thread!! Thanks a lot everyone!!! Was hoping to go to bed early but now have a bunch more reading to do!!! Wait, did I say early? It's 11:40PM right now...lol.

[Pufferpunk]

LOL--you read this whole thread? The real one is 53 pages now!

I do not suggest adding mesh to your pump, until after you do some VC dosing. I was planning on the same but this is definately not necessary & I have moved the output tube as low as it can go or the cup overflows.

[returnofsid]

LOL Yeah, I read the one that was 53 pages. ALLL DAYYYY. At least I think I read the real one. Please send me a link to it incase the one I read was the fake one...lol. It sure seemed like I read 53 pages. I was reading most of the day. As for the meshmodded pump and my skimmer. My problem is that my skimmer has an adjustable air venturi. No matter how I adjust it, I get absolutely NO bubbles. Because of this, I get NO skimming. I'm talking NONE. My collection cup has has 1/4" of skimmate in it for a couple of months with NO changes. If I were to remove the skimmer and clean it all up...and put it back in....it'd still be clean in a month. I've gotta get some kind of skimming in there. Without any air bubbles, I doubt the VC will even help. I have plenty of bubble baffles in my sump/refugium so if my skimmer were to go nuts, I think it'd be at least controllable.

[Auntbeez]

My problem is that my skimmer has an adjustable air venturi

Just a thought... It sound like the air intake for the venturi is clogged. Have you tried to clean the tube? I have found I get salt build up in mine and that stops the air flow and the result is no bubbles. Mine is sometimes completely clogged in less than 2 weeks, so if this is the problem, you'll have to clean it regularly

[returnofsid]

Yeah, I've even replaced the airtube and venturi. It's just a POS skimmer...lol.

[Pufferpunk]

Time for a new one then!

[returnofsid]

Hence the use of a pump with a Needle Wheel Impeller. If $35.00 will fix the problem, I'll be much happier than I will be if I have to shell out the money for another skimmer. As it is I'll be in the market for one for a 113 cube soon. LOL

Still doing some research into the VC Dosing. I think I'm going to try and find some at a few local health food places tomorrow. I'll be looking for the Calcium Buffered powder form I think.

[returnofsid]

Well, I'm going to start dosing VC today. I'll keep an eye on my skimmer but am not expecting any miracles...lol. So I've read a couple different links to determine dosage. If I remember right, one is a corrected link. Which one is that?

[Pufferpunk]

Correct dosage in this thread.

[returnofsid]

Alrighty, thanks. Will start dosing this evening. I have a container to catch any possible Skimmer overflow...just in case...lol. I'll also post to the thread for data. Took a bunch of tank picture the other day so we'll see how they look after awhile. I'll keep everyone updated.

Oh and BTW, I'm using Calcium Ascorbate Crystalline Powder.
100% Pure Buffered Vitamin C, Pharmaceutical Grade pH 7.3.

It's made by NutriBiotics and ingredients are only:
Vitamin C
Calcium

1 Teaspoon is:
4490 mg Vitamin C
510 mg Calcium

Contains no fillers, excipients, lubricants, binders, starch, wheat, soy, milk, egg, yeast, rose hips, animal products, colorings, flavorings or preservatives....lol. Guess that means it's pure.

[returnofsid]

Okay, I started with 1/2 tsp which is 2245 mg. This equals about 7ppm, I think. I wasn't in the mood to do a bunch of math so made it easy and within the ballpark...lol.

[Pufferpunk]

As long as you use the pure, buffered VC, you should be fine with a rough estimate. I just started tossing 1/4tsp into my 15g. My mantis shrimp hasn't complained yet, he just keeps looking for more food.

[returnofsid]

Ohh I wanna set up a Mantis tank!!!

[Pufferpunk]

This creature is moree interesting than my dog!

[Monkeyfish]

What about adding Vita-Chem? Would this be helpful or is the VC amount to low?

[stubbsz]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12356035#post12356035 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Pufferpunk
As long as you use the pure, buffered VC, you should be fine with a rough estimate. I just started tossing 1/4tsp into my 15g. My mantis shrimp hasn't complained yet, he just keeps looking for more food.

Pure Buffered Vitamin C. I went to that link you gave and found a whole bunch of different manufactures... how can you tell if it is "pure"? which make are you using.... I'm hoping to find a cheap-pure-buffered vitamin C, as I will have to buy a fair amount of this stuff.

-Adrian

[Pufferpunk]

This is what I use:
http://www.iherb.com/ProductDetails.aspx?c=1&pid=-7152293197697039798

$5 off coupon code: FOR500.
Also, you can give them my email as a referal:
luluwonderdog at yahoo dot com

[stubbsz]

I didn't get an option to add a referral. Thanks very much for the coupon.

[Pufferpunk]

Yeah, I can never find that either...