Magnesium?

[Wretch]

I have had my tank up and running for about 10 months now. I have 5 fish and some corals(zoas and lps). My magnesium has always been low, somewhere between 1100 and 1000 but last I checked it was at 960 or so. Would this low magnesium be preventing my coral from growing? Almost all my corals are the same size as when I got them. My other numbers all seems normal.

Salt 1.025
Calcium 420
KH 8.6
Mag 960(have been raising with tech-m now at about 1200)
Temp 79.2
Using a D120 LED light

Any thoughts on this?

Thanks.

[Slyguy00]

I would think that could definitely have something to do with it. That is pretty low. I try and keep mine around 1350-1400. Everything grows better when parameters are where they should be.

[spit.fire]

I have had my tank up and running for about 10 months now. I have 5 fish and some corals(zoas and lps). My magnesium has always been low, somewhere between 1100 and 1000 but last I checked it was at 960 or so. Would this low magnesium be preventing my coral from growing? Almost all my corals are the same size as when I got them. My other numbers all seems normal.

Salt 1.025
Calcium 420
KH 8.6
Mag 960(have been raising with tech-m now at about 1200)
Temp 79.2
Using a D120 LED light

Any thoughts on this?

Thanks.
IMO you're wasting your money with tech m unless you're trying to get rid of bryopsis, dont get me wrong, its a good product but there are cheaper alternatives that work just as well (just dont get rid of bryopsis). Bulk checmicals are the way to go, you're not paying for water that way, 2.99 (or somewhere around that) gets you a lb of bulk magnesium chloride, calcium chloride or soda ash.

[whatcaneyedo]

Rome wasn't built in a day. -10 months isn't a very long time, your system isn't very mature and most LPS are relatively slow growers. Sit back, relax, keep everything in check, continue researching and good things will happen.

[Wretch]

IMO you're wasting your money with tech m unless you're trying to get rid of bryopsis, dont get me wrong, its a good product but there are cheaper alternatives that work just as well (just dont get rid of bryopsis). Bulk checmicals are the way to go, you're not paying for water that way, 2.99 (or somewhere around that) gets you a lb of bulk magnesium chloride, calcium chloride or soda ash.

I thought about getting bulk chemicals for magnesium as I did for calcium and alkalinity but I didn't research it before hitting the store. So when I am out of tech-m I will go that way.

Rome wasn't built in a day. -10 months isn't a very long time, your system isn't very mature and most LPS are relatively slow growers. Sit back, relax, keep everything in check, continue researching and good things will happen.

It wasn't that my LPS weren't growing it was that nothing was growing. Not one new polyp on any of my zoas or palys. Some even seemed to be shrinking.

Hoping once I get my numbers straightened out to use pickling lime in my ATO to maintain them.

thanks all.

[Myka]

Fwiw, Tech M is Magnesium sulphate aka Epsom Salt and shouldn't be used as the primary source of magnesium. Look for Magnesium chloride.

[reefwars]

Fwiw, Tech M is Magnesium sulphate aka Epsom Salt and shouldn't be used as the primary source of magnesium. Look for Magnesium chloride.

its actually a mix of sulfate and chloride and water

from the rep:



Sorry guys. Tech M is and always has been just Magnesium chloride, Magnesium sulfate + water. I know that for a fact.

Used to be (under the Jack Kent and Chris Brightwell years) that they would call out impurities as ingredients on the label. Kent marketing was a lot more loosey goosey with the labels before it became a CG&P company. Now we follow the rules and use the AAPFCO fertilizer standards (although it is not a fertilizer) as a guideline.

As for why it works on Bryopsis where others won't, I can't tell you as I don't really have enough data to form a conclusion.

Andy

[Myka]

its actually a mix of sulfate and chloride and water

My bottle only lists Magnesium sulfate on the label. It's an old bottle though, maybe it's changed...?

EDIT: Here's a pic of a label from 2013 and yeah it looks like magnesium chloride now:
http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z187/zibba02/DSC_3512_zpsc2eb826f.jpg

http://s190.photobucket.com/user/zibba02/media/DSC_3512_zpsc2eb826f.jpg.html

[reefwars]

The label has seen many changes over the years , probably because everyone wants to know the magical ingredient and they are pressured to post what's inside :)

They say the ingredients haven't changed just the way they word it lol


I'm not a fan of tech m fwiw; )

[Myka]

They say the ingredients haven't changed just the way they word it lol

I'm not a fan of tech m fwiw; )

Yeah, I saw that...I don't believe it. :lol: I'm not a fan either. I use Fauna Marin Magnesium chloride and add a sniff of Epsom.

[mikellini]

I'd check your test kit. You'd be precipitating calcium to less than 420 ppm if your mag was that low I think.

[Wretch]

I'd check your test kit. You'd be precipitating calcium to less than 420 ppm if your mag was that low I think.

Actually I was getting hard white bumps on my glass, if that is what you mean. I had just been cleaning them off.

[mikellini]

What I mean to say is your calcium should not have been that high with such a low magnesium. So either one of the test kits was probably inaccurate. Did you check the expiry? What brand were you using?

Calcium precipitation is more likely to occur near a heat source, like pumps or heaters, but could also occur directly in the water column if conditions are right. Unless your room temperature is higher than the water temp, the glass is the last place I'd expect to find it. Those were probably some sort of snail you were scraping off the glass

[Wretch]

What I mean to say is your calcium should not have been that high with such a low magnesium. So either one of the test kits was probably inaccurate. Did you check the expiry? What brand were you using?

Calcium precipitation is more likely to occur near a heat source, like pumps or heaters, but could also occur directly in the water column if conditions are right. Unless your room temperature is higher than the water temp, the glass is the last place I'd expect to find it. Those were probably some sort of snail you were scraping off the glass

test are Salifert and dont expire till 2017 and 2018.

Now at Mag 1350, Cal 460, and KH 9.6

[reefwars]

test are Salifert and dont expire till 2017 and 2018.

Now at Mag 1350, Cal 460, and KH 9.6

there would have been a water change and the magnesium would have been low in the salt mix , there isnt anything else in a reef system that uses magnesium besides the animals themselves and mg consumption is about %10 of calcium or about 1-2ppm per day.

good luck , always test your new salt and if need be bring your mg up;)

[Wretch]

Now that I have my magnesium up to 1300 alk at 8.6 and calcium at 420 all my hammer and torch are back extending and looks like one of my hammer is growing another head.

I thought water changes would fix things but I should have realized if your salt is low more of the same won't fix it.

Thanks for the tips all.

[Myka]

if your salt is low more of the same won't fix it.

Exactly! Glad to hear things are on the mend!