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02/07/2009, 02:32 PM | #276 | |
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The reason for the higher alk was that that, plus 6500K lighting, would result in very fast growth. The risk wasn't enough to derail that idea for many, which was that a precipitation event could occur. The tank would look like it was snowing in it, and alk & ca would bottom out quickly, leaving the hobbyist scrambling to get parameters back in line. I guess the best analogy is running your muscle car on the red line (RPMs) all the time, knowing you're running hot and running fast, hopefully long enough to win before your engine blew out. |
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02/07/2009, 05:38 PM | #277 |
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elias123
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02/08/2009, 09:24 PM | #278 | |||
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Hi Marc,
Quote:
Hence, 8-11 dKH is 21-67% higher than NSW levels. If such a large range, including 67% higher (11 dKH) is acceptable, why would 81% higher (12 dKH) or 97% higher (13 dKH) be a threshold to which or above which we dare not tread? I don’t mean to be a bugger here, I’m just not sure this is a logical position for us to adopt Quote:
Whitings typically occur when Omega-arag is in the neighborhood of 15-30. We’d have to raise alkalinity quite high to produce a whiting under otherwise normal conditions. Usually it takes a large increase in pH to get to those conditions…or a massive overdose of calcium or alkalinity…or a combination. For instance, to reach Omega-arag = 15.0 at 11 dKH we have to raise the pH to 8.855 (otherwise normal conditions). At 13 dKH we have to raise pH to 8.695 to get Omega-arag = 15.0—that’s a difference, but we have to raise pH way out of the normal range either way. I suppose the difficulty I’m having is with the treatment of 11 or 12 dKH as a threshold. I don’t see any reason to do so. It may be preferable to shoot for a range of 8-11 dKH for practical reasons, but if 11 dKH is good, how can we reasonably say that 12 dKH is bad? Quote:
As I said, just picking your brain. Much appreciated Chris
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02/09/2009, 05:16 AM | #279 | |
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Quote:
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02/09/2009, 05:18 AM | #280 | |
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03/31/2009, 10:06 PM | #281 |
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If CA+ and alk. are within normal limits, does mag. naturally stay within the 1500 range if using natural salt water for H2O changes. Is dosing the only way to keep your levels.
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03/31/2009, 10:59 PM | #282 | |
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Quote:
I worked in a lab at a large public aquarium for about 2 years. I ditched my hobbyist test kits for the "professional" equipment shortly after using the equipment and seeing the difference. You can get set up with professional equipment to test ALK and Cal for much less than you think. www.hach.com will sell you a digital titrator (1690001) for $125. It will last you a lifetime. Or you can buy a really nice one on Ebay right now for $50. Do a search for digital titrator. They will sell you 100 powder pillows for ALK (94399) and Cal (94799) for less than $14 per pack. You can buy the titration cartridge for Alk (1438801) and CAL (1439901) for less than $15 each and a bottle of potassium hydroxide (28232H) for less than $10. I got a stir plate on Ebay for less than $50 (search "stir plate" on ebay, there's one on there now for $10). The key here is that you can be set up with professional equipment, doing digital testing, for about $200 and then refill supplies are far cheaper than buying test kits or test kit refills. Digital testing vs counting drops and holding up color strips? No comparison.
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Best Regards, Jim 170 gal curved glass ATI 48" 8x54 Powermodule AE400 ACIII Pro Turf Scrubber LiterMeterIII 4 Nanostream 6055s Tunze Wavebox Tunze 6201 Current Tank Stats: Click on my homepage Current Tank Info: The one most valuable thing I have learned over the years is that the less I mess with my system, the better it does. |
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04/01/2009, 07:47 AM | #283 | |
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Quote:
All three are easier to maintain if you are selective in the salt mix you use. Here's a chart: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...readid=1287118
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04/01/2009, 08:15 AM | #284 |
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Wow! I just got done reading this string from start to finish and I want to thank everyone for participating and adding to my education. The whole lawn gnome, wreath, yule log, christmas tree stand, etc. stuff was a little annoying, but I got through it ok.
I am running a calcium yule log and kalk in my r/o top off and I have had trouble maintaining consistent levels. Apparently, after reading this string, this could be due to low mg levels. I don't know, because I do not test or dose mg. I can't find a decent test kit for mg, only the count the drops, hold the sample up to a color strip type test kit. If I can't test it, I don't dose it. While my lawn gnomes are doing ok, they are not showing near as much growth as I think that they should. My lighting is good, my nitrites, nitrates, and phosphates are very low, and I have no lack of flow, so I have to believe that my cal, alk, mg are getting in the way. An interesting statement made in one of the posts, which I now can't find, talked about the mg usage of lawn gnomes and lawn gnomeine algae. To paraphrase, lawn gnomes use very little mg, but lawn gnomeine sucks it up. Oddly enough, I have a big problem with lawn gnomeine overrunning my tank right now, see picture below. I am at the point of picking up a couple of urchins to deal with the lawn gnomeine. I figured the lawn gnomeine was a big calcium drain, but it never occurred to me that it could also be such a mg drain. I am traveling now, but when I get home, I will be buying a mg test kit and doing some mg dosing. Am I thinking right or am I overlooking something else? p.s. You can click on my red house for current tank stats.
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04/01/2009, 11:44 AM | #285 |
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Best post ever! I hope it stays like that forever.
And yes, you are thinking correctly. Magnesium is important, and needs to be dosed accordingly. |
04/01/2009, 12:30 PM | #286 |
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BTW
I have kept the level of mag up for about three weeks to 1400ppm. I am noticing a difference in the growth and health of my corals thanks for the tip Melev
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I prefer my substrates stirred but not shaken Current Tank Info: 150gal long mixed reef, 90gal sump, 60 gal refugium with 200 lbs live rock |
04/01/2009, 12:31 PM | #287 |
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Good to know. Lawn Gnomes are made up of calcium, and for growth, they need a little Mg from time to time.
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04/01/2009, 12:48 PM | #288 | |
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Quote:
I read it either earlier on this thread or maybe in one of Randy's articles that it is used in a specific ratio along with carbonates(alk) Although in a very small ratio.
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I prefer my substrates stirred but not shaken Current Tank Info: 150gal long mixed reef, 90gal sump, 60 gal refugium with 200 lbs live rock |
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04/01/2009, 12:48 PM | #289 |
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Here's the other thing I learned, that I forgot to say:
I added dolomite to my yule log jingle bells so that I could add mg that way. However, apparently, the 6.5 pH that we use to disolve the calcium from aragonite is not low enough to disolve the mg from dolomite. I have also heard people say that there is mg in the crushed lawn gnome that adds mg to the system via the yule log, but apparently this is not true either. The calcium in the arm will dissolve at 6.5, but the mg will not. Very interesting.
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04/01/2009, 12:57 PM | #290 | |
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Quote:
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04/01/2009, 06:04 PM | #291 | |
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Quote:
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I prefer my substrates stirred but not shaken Current Tank Info: 150gal long mixed reef, 90gal sump, 60 gal refugium with 200 lbs live rock |
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04/01/2009, 06:23 PM | #292 |
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You say missing, I say lab rat testing by RHF.
He has yet to publish anything definitive. I think he's worried about litigation by the gnome brethren. |
04/02/2009, 12:15 PM | #293 |
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Currently, I am dosing kalk through my top off, which is a LitermeterIII set to the current rate of evaporation and my reservoir is a 5 gallon jug. My rate of evaporation is 4.5 gallons per day, so I have to change the jugs daily. Not optimal, as I travel often and this requires my wife to have to change the top off jugs. She sometimes forgets. $#^@*!!!!! I have a 65 gallon spray tank for my R/O reserve set up in my fish room and then I have a 45 gallon rubbermaid trash can that I use to mix kalk with the R/O. I have a air stone in the can and I wait until the kalk settles and then I fill the top off jugs with the clear water. What I just started doing on Sunday, prior to reading this string, was adding 100 ml of alk (sodium bicarbonate) to the jugs, in order to keep the alk up. When I get home, I will add mg and nix the sodium bicarbonate and hopefully just the reactor effluent and the kalk will keep everything in check. If anyone sees any room for improvement or tweaks, I am wide open.
Ideally, I would like to lose the jugs and put a 40 gallon reservoir on top of my set up. The way my tank is set up, there are book shelves on each side of the tank and hood, so the weight can be supported if I put the reservoir on top. I have an 18ft ceiling above, so there's room. I live in a city town home with no basement and no way to plumb this to my fish room. All off topic, I know, but just some reference for why I don't have this plumbed differently.
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Best Regards, Jim 170 gal curved glass ATI 48" 8x54 Powermodule AE400 ACIII Pro Turf Scrubber LiterMeterIII 4 Nanostream 6055s Tunze Wavebox Tunze 6201 Current Tank Stats: Click on my homepage Current Tank Info: The one most valuable thing I have learned over the years is that the less I mess with my system, the better it does. |
04/02/2009, 12:39 PM | #294 |
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you have an airstone on the kalk reservoir? not a good idea.
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04/02/2009, 12:45 PM | #295 |
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In the mixing barrel, not in the reservoir.
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Best Regards, Jim 170 gal curved glass ATI 48" 8x54 Powermodule AE400 ACIII Pro Turf Scrubber LiterMeterIII 4 Nanostream 6055s Tunze Wavebox Tunze 6201 Current Tank Stats: Click on my homepage Current Tank Info: The one most valuable thing I have learned over the years is that the less I mess with my system, the better it does. |
04/02/2009, 02:01 PM | #296 |
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where you mix it with the kalk?
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04/02/2009, 02:03 PM | #297 |
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Hence the name "mixing barrel".
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Best Regards, Jim 170 gal curved glass ATI 48" 8x54 Powermodule AE400 ACIII Pro Turf Scrubber LiterMeterIII 4 Nanostream 6055s Tunze Wavebox Tunze 6201 Current Tank Stats: Click on my homepage Current Tank Info: The one most valuable thing I have learned over the years is that the less I mess with my system, the better it does. |
04/02/2009, 02:24 PM | #298 |
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ok, you do not want to have an air stone in your kalk mixing barrel
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04/02/2009, 02:32 PM | #299 | |
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Quote:
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Best Regards, Jim 170 gal curved glass ATI 48" 8x54 Powermodule AE400 ACIII Pro Turf Scrubber LiterMeterIII 4 Nanostream 6055s Tunze Wavebox Tunze 6201 Current Tank Stats: Click on my homepage Current Tank Info: The one most valuable thing I have learned over the years is that the less I mess with my system, the better it does. |
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04/02/2009, 02:34 PM | #300 |
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kalk should generally be in an airtight container - you do not want to aearate it as it will react with the CO2.
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