Please help me Mag and Cal levels just wont go up

[jacorosso]

I was hoping that sumone can help me. I have a 100 gal reef tank. I cant seem to get my levels up

Mag is about 1260
cal is about 320

I have been useing compounds but this has only raised my DKH from around 8 to about 11.2 is this bad?

Also i seem to be geting alot of hair algae growing my Phos is 0. And it is killing my corroline algae please any help

[jupiter]

dkh around 11 is ok, (my dkh is around 11, ph around 8.2)...There is a product out there called "purple up". It works great for coraline algea and does not nurture bad algea. calcium, magnesium, and strotanium work hand in hand in stabalizing nutrients..dont forget about iodine. All of this is in purple up, but if you need more, buy individual supplements. Watch your nitrates, they really allow bad algea to grow.

[dv3]

what are the levels of your ASW before you do a water change?

[tdwyatt]

... and how are you determining your calcium, magnesium, and alk levels? What are you adding (and how much) to the tank to boost the levels?

How often do you change the water?

What in your tank uses calcium and alk?

Do you have a DSB?

How old is the tank, and how long have you had it set up?

What kind of skimmer(type and brand) and how "wet" (or dark) is the skimmate? How much do you discard every 3 days?

[chrisd]

+1 with tom
what kind of salt do you use?

[jacorosso]

Thanks for all your help.

I am running a Deltec 300 hang on skimmer as i dont have a sump. I am also running a cannister filter to polish the water. all my levels read 0 apart from my nitrate that is around 5-10 i have been told this is fine?

I have all soft coral's
Leather finger
Green mushroom coral
green button coral
red mushroom coral
and a green flower sort

the salt i use is H2O ocean pro +

I am useing tropic marin mag and cal powder i add about 16 scoops of mag powder and 25 scoops of cal daily.

I have just checked and my DKH is 12.4 is geting higer every day.

Also the algae is geting worse and i also have a oil film on the top of my water

what is going on here?????

[whatevva]

What brand of test kits are you using??

[jacorosso]

I am using Salifert for all my test's.

I also use Calcium +3 to build up my Cal and mag etc.

With regards to the question of how often do i empty my skimmer cup, I would say 3-4 times aday it seems just to collect white foam

[tdwyatt]

I might recommend changing the skimmer setting to a "dryer" skimmate, but I'd like to know first what kind of skimmer you have. Also, do you use RO/DI water to make your ASW and to do top off? How often do you blast your rock and/or siphon it?

[jacorosso]

I have a Deltec 300. I use RO/DI water to make my satwater and also for top up.

Every week i blast and suck the crap of my rocks.

[tdwyatt]

At the rate you're running that rather large and efficient skimmer, you are pulling out both skimmate and salt (including Mg++, Calcium, and alkalinity). Can you measure the total volume of skimmate for two days so we can average it, or have you already done this? (if so, please post the amount). {lease post yor current values for all three vlues (Ca++, Mg++, alkalinity dKH). and your tank's salinity expressed as SG and its temperature.

[jacorosso]

My tank is at 25 temp
sal = 1.025 dead on

It seems to fill up with white foam all the time thats the reason i have to keep cleaning it. I get very little brown gunk at the bottom of the cup.

Are Deltec good skimmers or have i bought a crap one?

Also i have my air tap fully open is this a problem?

[tdwyatt]

Originally Posted by jacorosso

My tank is at 25 temp
sal = 1.025 dead on

It seems to fill up with white foam all the time thats the reason i have to keep cleaning it. I get very little brown gunk at the bottom of the cup.

Are Deltec good skimmers or have i bought a crap one?

Also i have my air tap fully open is this a problem?

Start cutting down the air tap until the skimmate start to darken a good bit. By pumping out thin light-colored skimmate, you are removing good bit of your ASW each day (and its mineral content, hopefully you are replacing it each day with an equal volume of Fresh ASW). Unless you replace the skimmate with ASW of the same calcium and alk and Mg level as the water you are loosing, these values will dwindle some every day, especially with an ATO replacing the volume of skimmate losses every day with plain RO/DI. "Dry" your skimmate, then the addition of hermatypic replacements (preferrably with ASW or water changes initially, then over to work on calcium and your alk with additive boosters) should have a longer and more permanent effect. Watch your SG, get a refractometer to check your SG, and to confirm your hydrometer readings if you use one (especially if it is a swing-arm hydrometer). since your skimmer is making thin skimmate ("wet" skimmate), you'd better check your SG every day.

Do you have a Calcium reactor? It will help keep your Ca and alk up once set up correctly and not skew your conservative proportionality.

BTW, the Deltecs are awesome skimmers. I would get one but the exchange rate to USD sux too much for now.


HTH