nlopez99 Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 There are so many different water parameters. I just wonder if I'm not testing some that most reefers feel should be tested. Right now, I am only testing nitrates and calcium on a regular basis. I check kH, magnesium, and phosphate infrequently. I never check pH, ammonia, or nitrite. Please share your thoughts/experience with water parameters. Thanks! Link to comment
D Z Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 Once you have an established tank, most will agree that ammonia and nitrite no long need to be checked, unless something looks off and you feel it is necessary. One a regular basis, about once a week or so, I check: Temp Salinity Nitrate Phosphate Calcium Alkalinity Magnesium Ph Some of those probably are not completely necessary(such as Ph and temp), but I like to record all of my water test results so that I can look back at them on a long term basis and see the stability part of it. on a side note, I like to use AquaticLog to record this information. Link to comment
nlopez99 Posted June 26, 2014 Author Share Posted June 26, 2014 Am I risking anything by not checking pH? I know some test this parameter regularly and I don't even own a test kit. My understanding is that magnesium is important in calcium deposition and wonder if I should check this more often. My temperature and salinity don' really fluctuate so I don't check those except when I'm performing a water change. My tank has been up for 14 months and I stopped checking ammonia and nitrite after the initial cycle. I really only check phosphate when brown algae seems to be starting. I just recently heard about AquaticLog. I may look into using it. Link to comment
D Z Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 Sounds like you are ok. I only check Ph 1 time a week, and that is only to monitor it long term for stability. This is probably not really necessary, just personal preference. I know a lot of people do not monitor their ph at all. The only thing I would check more often would be your Alk. I usually check alk and calcium at the same time. Link to comment
nlopez99 Posted June 26, 2014 Author Share Posted June 26, 2014 So it's actually alk and calcium that are interrelated? Not sure where I came up with magnesium being related to calcium. Link to comment
Nano sapiens Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 Alk, cal and mag are interrelated. In my old established tank, I check alk every few days, cal once every two weeks and mag once a month. Stable alk is the most important for stony corals (especially SPS). Temp check daily, salinity check once a week. Nitrate and phosphate once every 6 months (unless something goes askew). Link to comment
nlopez99 Posted June 26, 2014 Author Share Posted June 26, 2014 I'm paranoid about nitrates so I usually check once a week. I've just recently added 2 SPS corals so I'll start checking alk more often. Link to comment
seabass Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 I check phosphate at least once a week (to determine GFO replacement). Checking phosphate when there is a bloom doesn't always tell the whole story as the bloom is utilizing the phosphate in the water. Also, driving phosphate too low can have negative effects on your coral. It's not as important, but I still like to check nitrate about once a week too. If you aren't dosing, you should still spot check alkalinity and calcium every couple of weeks to see if you need to adjust your water change schedule, or even start dosing. If you are dosing calcium and alkalinity, you should also be aware of the magnesium level. You have to test calcium and alkalinity daily until you get your dosing routine down; then you can usually cut back to as little as once a week (to see if any adjustments need to be made). Obviously specific gravity is important; but with an auto top-off, it just doesn't change that much. Checking once a week prior to water changes is a good practice. A daily check of temperature takes but a second and can sometimes catch a problem like a failed heater. Link to comment
hypostatic Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 I'm not keeping anything too sensitive like sps. I haven't really checked anything besides the SG in months Link to comment
nlopez99 Posted June 26, 2014 Author Share Posted June 26, 2014 I do a 5g water change weekly using Reef Crystals. I usually don't need to dose calcium, which is generally in the 440 range after my wc. So testing magnesium isn't that necessary? Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 I check phosphate at least once a week (to determine GFO replacement). Checking phosphate when there is a bloom doesn't always tell the whole story as the bloom is utilizing the phosphate in the water. Also, driving phosphate too low can have negative effects on your coral. It's not as important, but I still like to check nitrate about once a week too. If you aren't dosing, you should still spot check alkalinity and calcium every couple of weeks to see if you need to adjust your water change schedule, or even start dosing. If you are dosing calcium and alkalinity, you should also be aware of the magnesium level. You have to test calcium and alkalinity daily until you get your dosing routine down; then you can usually cut back to as little as once a week (to see if any adjustments need to be made). Obviously specific gravity is important; but with an auto top-off, it just doesn't change that much. Checking once a week prior to water changes is a good practice. A daily check of temperature takes but a second and can sometimes catch a problem like a failed heater. Everything he said here. Spoken like a true seasoned reefer. As far as that weekly phosphate testing, I personally would highly suggest a Hanna phosphate tester for better-than-human accuracy, which is important. Link to comment
Chadf Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 I check salt every few months, I don't own any other testing equipment. Link to comment
Exquitas Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 Temp, pH, KH, NH4, NO2, NO3, Ca, Mg, PO4, Salinity Once/Twice per week. Yup, old habit from my degree in chemistry Link to comment
Muddy Waters Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 interesting with just a few folks its seems not all the same or same schedule. I will assume alk, cal , mag , phos are the most imortant once tank is cycled? the more I read about reefing the more interesting it becomes, so many variables to contend with. Link to comment
D Z Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 I just wanted to drop this link here. It is a very good article on water chemistry in the reef tank. It explains each parameter and gives suggested ranges to stay within. Definitely a good resource. http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/ Link to comment
nlopez99 Posted July 2, 2014 Author Share Posted July 2, 2014 Thanks for the link. Will definitely be looking it over. Link to comment
Walker Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 Constant monitoring (Apex): Temp, PH Once a week: Calcium (and really, alkalinity, but I ran out of the Alk test kit), Salinity Once a month: Magnesium, Phosphate (or as needed) If I'm suspicious of an algal bloom or something: Nitrate I'm almost OCD with records so I have daily records of observations and measurements in a Google Docs spreadsheet going back from when I started reefing 2 years ago. Link to comment
Muddy Waters Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 cchsoracle thanks for sharing that Link to comment
D Z Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 cchsoracle thanks for sharing that No problem. I found it to be quite helpful. Link to comment
nlopez99 Posted July 6, 2014 Author Share Posted July 6, 2014 I've always had my salinity at 1.0235. After reading the article, I'm seriously considering upping it closer to natural levels. Should I? If so, how quickly can this be done safely? Link to comment
seabass Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 I would let evaporation increase the specific gravity to the desired level, and then top off your tank with saltwater with the same SG. Once the water level and SG are where you want them, you can resume normal top offs with pure freshwater. Link to comment
uhya Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Salinity, KH, Calcium, Magnesium ~ once a week PH, Nitrate every other weeks Temp every day Link to comment
Rememberme Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 Salinity, almost every day right now (my levels are quite low so I'm trying to slowly raise it up). Usually once every 4 days. Temperature- everyday Nitrites, Ammonia/um- once a week Link to comment
tran Posted July 24, 2014 Share Posted July 24, 2014 ALK & Phosphate = weekly. Cal = monthly Nitrate = monthly PH = never Magnesium = rarely check Salinity = every water change ammonia = only during tank cycling. after tank has been cycled, I throw away the this test kit Nitrite = only during tank cycling. after tank has been cycled, I throw away the this test kit Link to comment
NaturalViolence Posted July 24, 2014 Share Posted July 24, 2014 Temperature: Daily via in-tank thermometer Calcium: Twice a week KH: Twice a week Magnesium: Monthly Salinity: Monthly PH: Only when I suspect a spike Ammonia: Only when I suspect a spike Nitrite: Only when I suspect a spike Nitrate: Only when I suspect a spike Phosphate: Only when I suspect a spike Chlorine: Never, I only use RO/DI water Ozone: Never, I don't have an ozone reactor Iodine: Never, I don't dose it Potassium: Never, I don't dose it, plus it's harmless Copper: Never, I only use RO/DI water Boron: Never, I don't dose anything with it Iron: Never, I don't dose it, plus it's harmless Silica: Never, I only use RO/DI water Strontium: Never, I don't dose it Dissolved O2: Never, it will only drop if I have an ammonia spike, which can be detected using cheaper test kits Link to comment
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