I can't keep up levels

[mark]

-if your problem is Ca, what's your Mg? ca/mg =~1:3 ratio.
-what's the levels of your SW mix? could be every time you change water you're driving the levels down.
-how much you supplementing? just might be comparable to what others are adding

[spawn]

Mg 1350 on Sat. after water change, today 1350
Ca 420 Same , today 400
Alk 9 dkh Same, today 8.4
New water is mixed to match paras
Ca is added 144 ml per day into 55gal NVW
Alk is @ 138 because I switch between 2 types of salt & alk stays higher because 1 of them is RC which has a slightly higher Dkh while they Ca tends to drop faster, but there are no signs of precipe & the sand bed is soft, there are visible signs of growth & I believe it is due to consumption I just wonder when it may level off. Which makes me wonder will this process be any easier with a Ca reactor. I know that it'll be less work & may cost less but I'm sick of checking it. I want to be one of those people who says " the last Time I checked it" especially with summer coming up, I want it dialed in.

[spawn]

I likely will become one of those who say that regardless of whether or not it's dialed in just out of frustration rather than achieving it.

[reefermadness]

Test.....wait 24hrs and test again. Go to the reef calculator and find out how much you will need to dose daily. Maybe tweek a bit but this method has always worked well for me.

Just an FYI but many tanks including mine can drop 1dkh or more in 24hrs.

[spawn]

Tested today after work ,24 hrs,
Ca read @ 410 after being topped to 420 yesterday
Alk read @ 8.9 on a hanna after being topped to 9 dkh yesterday I find it odd that Ca is dropping faster even though it's added @ a slightly higher dose, again because of the salts, Ca is now added @ 144 per 24 hrs, & Alk is @ 138ml per 24. will check again tomorrow, but a 10 ppm drop in Ca is 56 ml more & the drop in alk is only equal to like 11. So ummm... like WTF.

[StirCrazy]

how bigs your tank and how much SPS do you have in it? thoes drops are what I would expect is a average to above average sps tank.

Ca reactor is the way to go then you can drop testing down to once a week

Steve

[mattdean]

I think you are stressing too much on having the "perfect" numbers. I have a 125 gallon mixed reef. I dose 260ml of Ca EVERY DAY and can't get my levels over 400! In fact, I usually get a reading of 350. My Alk is 9, my Mg is 1350 to 1400 (still trying to balance it better), BUT.......I have about 140 SPS,LPS, zoa corals/frags/clams in my tank - everything grows like a weed in my tank and all my corals are happy and healthy. My tank is gorgeous, so I will try to up the dosage a little more, but I'm through stressing over it.

So, use your coral's health as an indicator and the numbers just as a reference/guide. If you have a lot of SPS/Clams, etc. using up calcium, you are going to have to dose more.