schedules

[mgroenheide]

I am wondering when do you add what supplements and what brands you use. Also when do you do your water changes. Do you add buffer, if so when? How often do you test? Do you add calcium often? What supplement brands do you trust, which are junk? Phytoplankton? Marine Snow? Kalk? Thanks.

[surfy]

You will get a thousand different answers to your questions buy here is mine.

 

I only use B-ionic for my supplements, plus my water changes to replenish trace elements.

B-ionic is a two part alk/calcium additive plus it has other trace elements in it.

 

Water changes depend on your bioload. If you have a light bioload you can get away with once every two weeks to a month. If you have a fairly large bioload then it's best to do weekly 10-20% water changes.

 

Even though I have a light bioload in one of my tanks I still do weekly water changes.

 

Testing is done 1-2 times a week when you are first starting. I rarely test because I can tell by looking at my tank if something is off.

 

Once in a while I will use Seachem's reef plus but rarely. The only brand of supplements I trust are seachem and ESV, just my opinion though.

I have never used any buffers but I am starting to drip kalk, actually it's pickling lime instead of the exspensive kalk at the fish stores.

You do NOT want to drip kalk without a PH monitor. You really shouldn't drip it at all until you become more advanced in reef keeping.

The B-ionic will do the same thing as kalk but it is "safer".

 

Hope that helps.