PDA

View Full Version : Randy, Your Opinion on Dosing Vitamin C ?


HowardW
02/28/2008, 10:59 AM
I know that some tank and food additives contain small amounts of vitamin C, and even some salt mixes claim to have it, but I've seen where some guys have actually dosed 1000mg vitamin C tabs to their tanks and claim many of their polyps and various softies have a visual positive reaction, or so they think.

Are elevated doses of vitamin C of any real benefit or harmful or otherwise?

Randy Holmes-Farley
02/28/2008, 11:26 AM
The idea has been around a long time (more than 10 years), and has never really caught on. I dosed it a few times years ago and saw nothing remarkable.

Folks dosing it may not be able to distinguish effects specific to vitamin C from effects of dosing carbon (like vodka) which can reduce nutrients by driving bacterial growth, etc.

That said, some folks do seem to report more expanded polyps on some corals. Whether that is good or not, and whether there is a placebo effect here or not, I do not know for sure.

I don't see any substantial harm in using it, unless you use ozone and might have the very low ORP that Vitamin C causes trigger a much bigger dose of ozone from ORP controlled ozone addition.

a2fire2i
02/28/2008, 11:43 AM
are they just crushing up vitamin c pills or what? any links to what they are using by chance?

Randy Holmes-Farley
02/28/2008, 12:01 PM
Here's a data thread where they discuss what they are dosing:

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1313416

HowardW
02/28/2008, 12:03 PM
Apparently one guy was just using 1000mg generic tabs from Walgreens. I can't see how it would matter much if crushed up or not.

HowardW
03/01/2008, 11:08 AM
Turns out after doing a little searching here on RC there are probably well over 100 pages discussing vitamin C dosing. It seems the results of dosing it are mixed with some reporting significant differences (primarily with zoas/mushrooms) and other reporting no real significant changes. It also seems the preferred method of dosing is using a buffered and powdered form.

Pufferpunk
03/06/2008, 12:01 AM
Initially, I started dosing for my melting zoas but I found it has caused growth spurts in all my corals--leathers & LPS have doubled & some tripled in size, SPS are growning that barely grew before & growing colored tips I didn't know they had.

For individual reports see:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1313416&highlight=vitamin+c

marcrothschild
03/06/2008, 01:25 AM
Its great stuff if your fish have colds.

Pufferpunk
03/06/2008, 01:30 AM
Actually, you are quite right. Definately helps with fish disease. I have a fish that was covered in/crypt. Although I was planning on putting all the fish into hypo, it kept the fish from getting worse & I believe it prevented the other fish from catching it, before I found a place to take them (I have no ectra space for hypo for that many/sized fish. Never saw a single spot on the other fish. Same thing with a friend--total irradacation of crypt on his tang, with no other treatment.