What are some of the more popular and highly suggested Magnesium test kits and supplements?
I use SeaChem Reef Salt, if that matters to the chemistry at all?

Salifert test kit for magnesium, its a bit pricey but is one of the best.
I use Brightwell Aquatics Magnesion for supplementing.

Liquid or Dry for the supplement, or does it really matter?

liquid is easier when you just need to bump up the levels 10ppm or so...

dry (or usually bulk) is better of you need to bump it up 300ppm or so in a 100gal tank

oh..wait, who did you ask has that kind of problem

<-----this guy

Well, I have a small 34g Solana tank, and I haven't tested yet, but I'm going to buy the test kit and supplement at the same time, think I'll get the dry as it will last longer for me.

Anyone else care to chime in on their favorite mag test kits and supplements?

I have a red sea magnesium test kit and I'm not happy with the end point of the titration. It is supposed to go pink->blue but I can always see a hint of purple left, I'm going with salifert when it runs out.

For supplementing I'm using epsom salt, works just like it should.

what live stock consumes Mag in the tank? People normally dont dose that.

Heh... I'm about to nuke my cycling BC29 with Mag. Bryropsis hates Magnesium... and since I am growing a forest of it... time to do some clear cutting.

Also, it's my understanding magnesium helps with the formation of shells and skeletons.

And thanks for this post, I was about to buy the Red Sea test kit- looks like I'll be going for the Salifert. And I'm buying Kent M because it was used in this article:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1113109

Salifert Test Kit... Tech M for Bryopsis mgmt. working great for me.

i've heard positive things about both salifert and elos Mg kits. having said that, there are a LOT of drops to count with the elos Mg. i will probably get that one anyway, as i've been reasonably satisfied with the accuracy of my elos Ca and Alk test kits.

dry always makes more sense from a financial perspective0 than liquid. bulk reef supply has a great deal on dry Mg, or you can buy it as a package with Ca and Alk 2-part. $12+shipping gets you pre-measured mixes for a gallon of Ca, a gallon of Alk and 20oz of magnesium (liquid). the upside to liquid is that you don't have to mix anything together. you pay a huge premium for that, unfortunately.



might depend on the salt, but this is false if you're talking about reefs with stony corals. or, i guess true for people who end up with Mg deficiencies. examples: disaster999, me.



Yes



this makes sense -- there has been speculation that there is an impurity in the kent tech-m that kills the bryopsis that may not be present in other mag supplements.

I am by no means a master at dosing yet, but I was in the same situation as you. I also use Seachem Reef Salt and a freshly made batch of water only has 1150ppm for me. I have begun to supplement using Kent Tech-M. At first I began adding to the tank and got it up to 1350, and now I've been dosing my mix,and it seems to be staying stable until my next weekly water change.

I have been using an elos test kit, and while it is a lot of drops like someone else mentioned, it is SUPER easy to use. At first I bought the Red Sea kit, and I hated it. Switched to the elos and will continue to use it.

Just my two cents.

my understanding is that the Seachem Salt is infamous for having that magnesium deficiency.



This link gives a very good discussion about Magnesium use by livestock and other Mg sinks. I've found this very useful in understanding and dealing with my Mg deficiency.

In the past i dont think anyone dosed for it, now its pretty common.

Thanks guys for all this information. I'm guessing that Mg is my issue, as some of you mentioned that you were having Bryopsis issues, and I looked it up and thats the exact algae I'm having issue with, looks like this...


In my tank you can see in my tank I have similar stuff, so I'm guessing its bryopisis from comparing the two pictures?




I have since cleaned it up and added some SPS, to some already existing Zoa's, Softies and Leathers.
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...t&p=2652576

This is not the main reason I'm seeking my Mg information, I also have not seen any of my older corals the Zoa's, Softies and Leathers grow at all, and in fact most lost their colors. So I'm working on getting them back to good health. Sounds like Mg levels could solve my issues, but I have to test it first...

Can you link to the $12 2-part kit you are speaking of here, I looked and can't find it?
Also, if I wanted to keep apistasia away, is there something to dose there? Kalk?

I bought (2) Red Sea MG kits at one time. My first kit would read around 1150, and my LFS's Salifert would show 1350. The second kit that I used today measured 1580 and the same LFS measured 1500. I too will be switching to a Salifert kit.

I use the Seachem 'Reef Advantage Magnesium' dry product. It has been reported on RC that prolonged use of this product can alter the ionic balance of the tank's water, but in over six months of use I haven't had any problems. I think that regular, weekly water changes help to keep the tank's chemistry balanced.

After I am done with this bottle, I may try the Kent magnesium product.

The $12 two part kit is at bulkreefsupply.

You can also get a 7lb container of calcium chloride from them for $17 and use baking soda for the alkalinity part and make ~12 gallons of each solution for about 25 dollars. That's what I did and at my current consumption of my pico it will last me ~17 years

Are you sure thats byropsis? It looks like some other type of macro algae thats creeping along the rock.

Oh yeah I was going to say that too, looks like caulerpa not bryopsis. It can be a PITA to get rid of too though, if you don't like it you should carefully tear it out piece by piece trying to get as much of the roots up as you can.

Yes, thats why I was posting it, I wasn't sure, so I did the picture compare and you're right its not bryopsis.
I have pull that off that rock, I actually took that rook out and scrubbed it with a hard bristle brush and got it all off, when I see it creeping up in other please I pull it as best I can. What would cause that and bubble algae to grow in my tank, that I need to work on, chemistry wise?



I'm not finding a $12 kit that has Mg, not a $12 kit...? I'm looking on the site. Maybe I don't know what it is that has Mg in it? On the two-part kit page there is nothing for $12?
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/produc...linity-solution

Can you post a link that is more specific to what you are talking about here?

Also, I've got my ATO about 98% setup, so I want something that I can dose into the ATO that will then allow it to be dosed into the tank via the ATO.

I use the Salifert and it seems OK though a bit pricey.

One thing to watch for with the addition of magnesium chloride is the tank's salinity level.
I had been testing and adding magnesium chloride faithfully for a couple of weeks when one day it dawned on me 'chloride'.
I tested my tanks salinity and it was at 40ppt. I usually run it at 35ppt. I had been doing water changes as always but not checking tank levels since ATO keeps it where it should be and there is no salt creep.
Now I test the tank before a water change and adjust the new water accordingly.
Before I started using mag supplements the salinity stated dead on.

I don't have a test kit for Mg yet, and I would absolutely not recommend adding anything without testing (I'll probably get smacked for this) but I boosted my tank by +150ppm over the last few days with Epsom salt. My birdsnests and ricordeas are growing like crazy all of a sudden.

I also started using baking soda and calcium chloride. I got my calcium chloride from Home Depot in the form of Prestone Driveway Heat, it will probably last me for a really really long time. If you're thinking of doing it, look now as ice melt will be hard to find in the summer.

I also bought an ELOS alkalinity kit and I think it's awesome. I'll buy an ELOS Mg kit when I can swallow the $30 for a test kit.

I read some info on just using Epsom salt alone (mag. sulfide) over long period but do not quite remember why you should not use it as the sole ingredient for mag boosting. Maybe one of the experts can elaborate.

The $12 kit is on the page you linked but they do quantity discounts so instead of saying 11.99 it says "from 9.60". While it doesn't show it in the pic it does include magnesium. Note that recipe 1 is twice as strong as recipe 2 but they sell them for the same price, make sure to get recipe 1.

$12 kit at BRS


Also epsom salt is magnesium sulfate, not sulfide (big difference). Sulfate is not a big deal and water changes will keep it from building up. Sulfide would nuke your tank and smells like ass.

edit: fixed link

My LFS uses the test kits from Seachem. They do free water testing and the results seem to be pretty consistent.

Sorry, go the names mixed up. Still, that is what I read, not to use epsom salts as the only magnesium additive.
Probably not a problem in larger tank with good water changes. I have no experience with it myself. Just pointing out what the article says.
Here is the article
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-07/rhf/index.php
and the text
1. Epsom salts (USP grade magnesium sulfate heptahydrate) is readily available in drug stores and is fairly inexpensive. The problem is that if this were used to raise magnesium by a large amount (or a small amount several times) the aquarium water would become enriched in sulfate. This enrichment may not be a problem for some aquaria, especially those using salt mixes already deficient in sulfate, or those that employ frequent water changes. Nevertheless, Epsom salts alone is not an ideal magnesium supplement.

Table 4 shows the effect on an aquarium's sulfate level over time of using only Epsom salts to supplement magnesium, and when no water changes are employed. Clearly, the sulfate rises quite substantially over time. Figures 1-6 show the effect graphically with different water change amounts including 0%, 10%, 20% and 30% monthly, and 1% daily. In these cases, sulfate rises, but water changes can help mitigate the rise. If at least 30% is changed monthly, or 1% daily, using Epsom salts alone as a magnesium supplement may be acceptable; otherwise the sulfate buildup is likely too large to be optimal.

Link isn't working...see if I can find kit 1 or recipe 1.

Small Kit

Large kit

Recipe 1 RAISES Ph
Recipe 2 LOWERS Ph

As for recipe one being "stronger" than two, i have no idea

The kits that BRS sells are the two recipes from this website:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php

Recipe two is half as strong because sodium bicarbonate isn't as soluble as sodium carbonate; it takes twice as much of the recipe two to get the same change in calcium/alk. Since they charge the same price for both then recipe 1 is a better deal assuming your pH isn't on the high end already.

Ok, so I tested my water with the Salifert Magnesium test kit and my levels look good...

Mag in ppm 1470 - 1440

So Mag is not an issue right now. I won't be adding the supplement I bought, right now.

Its funny though the Salifert Mag kit says natural sea water has a mag concentrate of approx. 1300 - 1500 ppm, and the Brightwell Aquatics supplement says keeping a mag level between 1290 - 1320 ppm will maintain a desired balance.

I have red coraline algae growing, so that means some good right? But even then that stuff can be taking nutrients away from my corals, which don't seem to be growing much? I'm lost at what I should be doing to help these corals thrive?

agreed, looks much more like caulerpa.



I wouldn't worry about the range of Mg given on the side of the box. Most people maintain Mg between 1280-1350, IME. However, I don't remember ever reading that anyone's ever been able to point to an elevated Mg level up to even 1600 as being the cause of any kind of issue. Mg's role, basically, seems to be less a direct elemental requirement for calcification (though it is to some extent) but more as a stabilizer to reduce/prevent the precipitation of calcium carbonate (causing Ca and Alk levels to drop).

coralline does suck up calcium. "nutrients" are typically phosphate and nitrate, which you don't want for your corals.

as far as why your corals aren't thriving, i'm not sure what your question is?

Yeah I'm not sure either...I guess I started testing my water with the API saltwater and reef test kits, and all looked good there, the only thing left as Mag, so I got one of those as well, and all looks good too.

So I'm wondering why my corals aren't thriving I guess when all seems to be in good range?
Is there something else I can do to help them grow? Raise something or dose something?

Just looking for some direction on what to do to get these frags to start growing or does it take years?