Calcium Way too high!!! Help!!!

[zxcv123]

I tested my calcium today with the haggan test kit and whoaaaaaaa
it waz like 580 - 600 !!!!!!

PH is like 8.1 and alk is bout 2.5
Pescian residents are exhibiting normal behavior and the corals are thriving and 100% open!!

Whats going on, Why, What to Do, infor pleaz asap!@!!!!!!!

[Twitterbait]

if everyone is doing ok just don't add any more calcium until your level drops.

[Kevin1000]

In general you can fix most water chemistry problems with a simple water change.

High calcium normally isn't going to harm anything in the tank unless it results in precipitation of alkalinity which in turn may make your PH unstable. If your alk level is OK then you might consider doing nothing .. if your alk level is low your often better off doing a water change than trying to micro manage your water chemistry.

Edit: unless you have been adding calcium additives chances are you have a bad reading (hagen test kits are not one of the better calcium test kits) .. you can, however get that high of a reading if your using Oceanic salt and keep a high salinity.

[zxcv123]

i havent added calcium directly for weeks

[zxcv123]

kevin100- i use oceanic salt and keep salinity @ 1.025. /.........??????

[johnny505]

raise your alk to 9 to 11 dkh. do 20% water changes weekly without adding any calcium

[skeety]

yep! johnny's got it!

Raise your Alk!

[johnny505]

a few water changes SHOULD lower the calcium to 450 and if it doesnt, keep doing water changes. I use ceachem reef builder to raise the ALK.

if your CA is way too high, your ALK is low and if your ALK is high your CA is low. you need to find that balance between them.

[tdwyatt]

while you're at it making the changes, get a salifert Ca and alk test kit... Mg would be good as well.


Retest and give us the results... Do water chnges until then and stop using additives until you can get accurate test results.

[tf2psycho]

i have a ca at 600 ppm and alk above 300ppm
ph is at 8.4 but at night its 8.6 since i removed the HO filter
the NitrAtes are still high and phosphate sponge not doing anything for top water need another powerhead to breakup the dust layer on top of water i think but i could be wrong still doing water changes every few days the ca might be at 550 now but probally still at 600 ....reef tanks are harder then flying rc 3d planes (my old hobby)

[JennM]

It's unlikely to have CA values that high without having some precipitate - Calcium visible in the water column as it can't keep any more in solution.

Check the accuracy of the test kits.

Jenn

[JennM]

Originally Posted by tf2psycho

i have a ca at 600 ppm and alk above 300ppm
ph is at 8.4 but at night its 8.6 since i removed the HO filter
the NitrAtes are still high and phosphate sponge not doing anything for top water need another powerhead to breakup the dust layer on top of water i think but i could be wrong still doing water changes every few days the ca might be at 550 now but probally still at 600 ....reef tanks are harder then flying rc 3d planes (my old hobby)

Alkalinity is measured in Degrees of Carbonate Hardness (or dKH) or millequivalents per liter (meq/L) not PPM.... normal Alk is either 8-11 dKH or 4-6 meq/L so I do not understand your "300 ppm" measurement. Alkalinity is the ability of your water to buffer (acidic) substances without altering the pH so there are no "parts per million" to measure. Please explain?

Jenn

[johnny505]

Originally Posted by JennM

It's unlikely to have CA values that high without having some precipitate - Calcium visible in the water column as it can't keep any more in solution.

Check the accuracy of the test kits.

Jenn

my CA was well over 600ppm and I never saw any CA visible. but im not sure what the number is when you will see the CA in the water

[tf2psycho]

im using the quick dip 5 in one test strips for fresh and salt
on the salt chart is says: total alkalinity(KH) ppm-saltwater
(0 40 80 120)-not desired
(180 300)-ideal

[Tim224DT]

tf2psycho you might want to look into getting some nice test kits like Salifert. Those test strips are about as accurate as me adding 1/2cup of salt to 1 gallon of water and not testing the salinity to make sure it is right.



Tim