folks, need some help please...I have a 265G tank in which I dose kalk using a drip system of about 2 drops per second, this maintains my pH at around 8.15 (night) to 8.20 (day) but it seems I'm not able to raise my calcium levels past 370-380, I have checked my magnesium levels and they were low, 960, so I raised it over a week to 1320 but I'm still having issues maintaining high calcium: with 1320 mag and 3.75meq/l or 10.5dkh I still can not seem to raise it over 370, even if I put in something like turbo calcium, which not only lowers my alk, but also lowers my calcium to 320!?!?!?
BTW, I use a Salifert test to test magnesium, an instant ocean and natureef to measure alkalinity.
So:
1. does magnesium go down overnight/weekly - is this something that I should be testing daily and/or dosing daily/weekly?
2. am I not dripping enough kalk (when I meausure the saturated solution it measures at 1500+ on the calcium and 12.89 in pH - I have digital meters for both, they are new and calibrated - chemical tests show the same results)....? should I be dosing more?
3. if I were dosing too much kalk, which I don't think based on the size of tank and drip speed, but if I were, would that bring my calcium and magnesium down?
other values:
phosphates - 0
temperature - 79 degrees
salinity 1.021 - measured using refratometer and digital meter
nitrites - 0 - measured used nutrfin kit and also instant ocean
nitrates 10 - measured using nutrafin kit and also have digital meter
lights on for 8 hours a day
any help would be immensly appreciated!
also, there is currently NO live rock or corals in the tank, only fish and a dry aragonite substrate, before anyone asks, reason for calcium concern is because I want to grow the coraline algae as this is a fish only tank.
last but not least, I have some of the hairline algea growing in the glass and overflows....which I can't seem to understand how given the water chemistry, specially dosing kalk which neutralizes phosphates and also doing protein skimming (and I'm not using any phosphate sponges or the sort).
BTW, I use a Salifert test to test magnesium, an instant ocean and natureef to measure alkalinity.
So:
1. does magnesium go down overnight/weekly - is this something that I should be testing daily and/or dosing daily/weekly?
2. am I not dripping enough kalk (when I meausure the saturated solution it measures at 1500+ on the calcium and 12.89 in pH - I have digital meters for both, they are new and calibrated - chemical tests show the same results)....? should I be dosing more?
3. if I were dosing too much kalk, which I don't think based on the size of tank and drip speed, but if I were, would that bring my calcium and magnesium down?
other values:
phosphates - 0
temperature - 79 degrees
salinity 1.021 - measured using refratometer and digital meter
nitrites - 0 - measured used nutrfin kit and also instant ocean
nitrates 10 - measured using nutrafin kit and also have digital meter
lights on for 8 hours a day
any help would be immensly appreciated!
also, there is currently NO live rock or corals in the tank, only fish and a dry aragonite substrate, before anyone asks, reason for calcium concern is because I want to grow the coraline algae as this is a fish only tank.
last but not least, I have some of the hairline algea growing in the glass and overflows....which I can't seem to understand how given the water chemistry, specially dosing kalk which neutralizes phosphates and also doing protein skimming (and I'm not using any phosphate sponges or the sort).