Calcium Demand in the Tank Question

[Sea Witch]

I've read a *lot* about calcium demand and how to compensate when your calcium levels, your alkalinity, your magnesium, and your pH are all falling.

My question is what can you have in a reef tank that doesn't have such a high calcium demand so you don't have to keep replenishing beyond what your instant seawater gives (isn't it about 500-550ppm Calcium?) gives you?

Are there some kinds of reef tanks that don't need additional calcium beyond the reef water salt?

[Delphinus]

My advice is get yourself into the mindset that dosing Ca/Alk/Mg is not really all that bad. To a degree, all organisms make use of Ca/Alk so even a softeys tank with low demand still benefits from managing the parameters in one way or another. Even fish, I mean, usually, look at the health of the fish in a healthy managed reef and compare to that of an unmanaged FOWLR.

If the demand is low enough you can get away with managing parameters through water changes but ultimately this will become an expensive way to manage parameters. You will be better off (IMO) managing water changes and managing parameters (be it through dosing or reactors) independent of one another.

[cathyg_99]

I've read a *lot* about calcium demand and how to compensate when your calcium levels, your alkalinity, your magnesium, and your pH are all falling.

My question is what can you have in a reef tank that doesn't have such a high calcium demand so you don't have to keep replenishing beyond what your instant seawater gives (isn't it about 500-550ppm Calcium?) gives you?

Are there some kinds of reef tanks that don't need additional calcium beyond the reef water salt?


my calcium is around 440ish, if your looking to start your first tank softies are the way to go, frogspawn, hammers, xenia ect. they arnt as demanding and go up from there... ive noticed that SPS corals require constant dosing because they use so much but as a newbie anyways i just kill them...

[mark]

stay away from the Stonies (SPS and LPS)

[PoonTang]

The answer is kinda yes and no. You can have a tank with fish only that will have very little demand and from there it just goes up depending on the number and size of corals that you have in the tank. But dont fret, dosing is not hard and all the stuff you need is readily available, most of it from your local Grocery store.

[Leah]

I do not dose anything. :biggrin:

[don.ald]

I do not dose anything. :biggrin:

do tell us more?? and what salt are you using?

[Leah]

do tell us more?? and what salt are you using?

Instant Ocean. I do weekly water changes with pre made salt and good old tap water and prime.

[don.ald]

Instant Ocean. I do weekly water changes with pre made salt and good old tap water and prime.

good ole fashion water change! who knew:mrgreen:

[fishytime]

do tell us more?? and what salt are you using?

Have a look at Carmens old 72......no dosing and no skimmer for a while if I remember correctly http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=45688

[marie]

Dosing isn't nearly as complicated as the literature makes it out to be. I started with using a kalk drip, it doses in the proper ratio (for the most part)

[Sea Witch]

So there are a few low-techies around.....:mrgreen:

[no_bs]

You can get away without dosing if you do regular w/c. I go 3-4 months(could probably go longer) without doing a w/c, but i dose alot(Ca, Mg, Alk, Trace, Vit's & minerals, Iodide, Potassium)to go that long without a w/c.

[Lance]

So there are a few low-techies around.....:mrgreen:


Although I now use dosing pumps on timers, for several years I just dosed manually. Figure out how much of each you need, test your water parameters weekly and adjust your dosing if necessary. Piece of cake. :lol: