Reef Discussion

[Woody Mackay]

I have decided I want to start randies recipe, in an attempt to sabilise my system further. I plan to get quite a few more SPS and LPS in the near future. The problem is, its is all well and good to work out dosages when you have a bseline to work off, but how to you guys go about working out how much to dose initaily? do you just say, test once a day for a week from a new water change to see how much of a certain thing is depleted? Thats the only way I can think to do it, but thatt sounds like a pain in the arse testing once or twice a day!

 

[rusty1]

I have decided I want to start randies recipe, in an attempt to sabilise my system further. I plan to get quite a few more SPS and LPS in the near future. The problem is, its is all well and good to work out dosages when you have a bseline to work off, but how to you guys go about working out how much to dose initaily? do you just say, test once a day for a week from a new water change to see how much of a certain thing is depleted? Thats the only way I can think to do it, but thatt sounds like a pain in the arse testing once or twice a day!

Once a day for fortnight. You will see some very definite patterns. PITA? Yes. Necessary? YES.

 

[Woody Mackay]

Alright no worries. Thanks mate.

 

[MagicJ]

This is what Randy says :

To initiate dosing, first adjust calcium and alkalinity to roughly their correct ranges. This may require a substantial dose of just the calcium part if calcium is low (e.g., below 380 ppm). I would suggest targeting calcium between 380 and 450 ppm, and alkalinity between 2.5 and 4 meq/L (7-11 dKH; 125-200 ppm calcium carbonate equivalents).

The Reef Chemistry Calculator can be found here.

This calculator shows how much of what parts to add in order to boost one or both of the parameters by a certain amount. This is a great calculator and can also be used for a number of the commercial products available.

Then, once things seem roughly correct, select a starting daily dose for routine dosing. Here are some suggested starting doses, but the exact values do not matter much. b

[Broken External Image]:http://www.thereefuge.com/attachments/table-1-jpg.321/​

Note: 1 gallon = 3.78 litres​

After a few days of dosing, note whether alkalinity is low, high or on target. Only bother to test alkalinity, not calcium, during this period, because it is much more sensitive than calcium to over- or underdosing. Adjust the dose up or down as necessary to increase or decrease the alkalinity. Once you have determined the proper dose, continue it until there is a substantial reason to adjust it (such as falling alkalinity as the corals increase in size). When adjusting the dose, raise or lower both of the recipe's parts together.

 

[Woody Mackay]

Thanks Magic,
Alright. Well my tank is about 60 gal, has several hammers, a goni, a caty jardenii, and about 4 frags of SPS, but Im aiming to increase this to 5 or 6 hammers and maybe 2 or 3 decent SPS. I understand the SPS is much more demanding in terms of alk and calc. Would you say use the mixed tank doasage, as its not really full like some people hah. My alk and calc hover around 7/400 respectively, yet fluctuate. I want them to not hover, I want them rock solid if you get what I mean.

 

[192k]

The most important thing to measure when initially starting dosing, is kH.
This parameter is one that matters the most, as some corals will not tolerate varying levels very well.

It took me around 10 days to dial in the dose after I had started :)

I did slow increases of 5mL a day until my kH stabilized.

Edit - Magic said what I meant to, much better too :)

 

[MagicJ]

How are you planning to dose?

I started at the 'Low Demand' level but quickly realised that this was not enough. A lot depends on the makeup of your water used for your water changes - my NSW has a calcium level of around 350 and alk of around 6.5. This is lower than I want in my DT so my dosing needs to allow for my water changes.

My alk and calc hover around 7/400 respectively, yet fluctuate. I want them to not hover, I want them rock solid if you get what I mean.

How are you maintaining these elements know?

 

[rusty1]

I am not a fan of "recommended" dosages. Every tank is different due to many, many factors.

I would much rather but some effort in at the start by manually dosing and seeing what my tank is using on a daily basis.

Yes it is more tedious, but that is 1 thing with this hobby, there are no "easy" ways !

I have seen to many " i followed the recommended but everyting is out of whack" threads :)

 

[MagicJ]

Agree rusty, but as stated

Here are some suggested starting doses, but the exact values do not matter much. b

These are just a starting point to determine the actual usuage of your tank.

 

[rusty1]

Agree rusty, but as stated


These are just a starting point to determine the actual usuage of your tank.

I know what you are saying, and that is OK as well to a certain degree, particulary for those with Experience

I just see people put too much trust in these sorts of things is more my point because it is "easier". You are every chance of over dosing as well if there is little to no usage. Look at the OP, guessing he has a medium usage. At least he is asking the questions, others would just go ahead and jump in, to scared to ask.

People tend to think it is based on the number of corals which is right, but coraline algea can be 1 of the biggest consumers of alk as well. I guess what I am saying is if you want a healthy reef, a best guess method is not that great.

What I meant in my post is you pick your desired, balanced, levels. For me was 8 dkh and 420ppm.

I would test every afternoon, see how much the tank used and readjust the levels to my desired numbers by dosing.

Over the period, you will find it is exactly the same amount and you will know exactly what your tank is using.

All I am saying is, with a little effort, you can remove the guess work and the possibilty of making errors.:)

 

[Woody Mackay]

I think I have worked out how to do it now, thanks guys. ill aim for a bit higher, say 9 or 10 dkh as my tank is still new and corraline is just starting to grow so im guessing it will use quite a bit once it starts to take off. ill let evryone know how it goes in a few months time!

 

[MTG]

I know what you are saying, and that is OK as well to a certain degree, particulary for those with Experience

I just see people put too much trust in these sorts of things is more my point because it is "easier". You are every chance of over dosing as well if there is little to no usage. Look at the OP, guessing he has a medium usage. At least he is asking the questions, others would just go ahead and jump in, to scared to ask.

People tend to think it is based on the number of corals which is right, but coraline algea can be 1 of the biggest consumers of alk as well. I guess what I am saying is if you want a healthy reef, a best guess method is not that great.

What I meant in my post is you pick your desired, balanced, levels. For me was 8 dkh and 420ppm.

I would test every afternoon, see how much the tank used and readjust the levels to my desired numbers by dosing.

Over the period, you will find it is exactly the same amount and you will know exactly what your tank is using.

All I am saying is, with a little effort, you can remove the guess work and the possibilty of making errors.:)

well said rus, the only way i do my dosing is by trial and error. test before. dose tank test after. see how much x amount of calc raised my calcium levels and adjusted.
u run all my dosing though dosing pumps. this makes it alot easyer and if my calc is dropping lower due to higher uptake all i have to do is set the doser to dose 1ml extra per day. then i work it out from there acordingly
in saying that my levels havent needed adjusting in the last 6 months at all realy! :cool:

 

[192k]

Agree rusty, but as stated


These are just a starting point to determine the actual usuage of your tank.

Exactly. Like Magic said, they are merely starting points. Mine was pretty close to the initial dose, I just increased until I found the levels being maintained ;)