Warning about suppliments

[danny zubot]

After a short while into this amazing hobby you might be inclined to buy some more advanced test kits and supplements. You may start testing your calcium, alkalinity, magnesium etc. These are all very important aspects of a successful reef, and learning to maintain these levels correctly will help you enjoy healthy corals in the future. It is important to understand the relationship between calcium, alkalinity and magnesium but this can be a confusing topic even for experienced aquarists. Research is available to explain how these three important aspects of seawater benefit each other and marine environments. I encourage you to read as much about them as you can before deciding to by hard to keep corals.

The purpose of this thread is not for me to explain how to dose calcium, alk and mag, rather how not to dose them. From experience I've learned that the biggest mistake a new reef keeper can make is to panic when certain levels are off. One day you might notice that your calcium levels are low; another day it might be your alk. These are natural occurrences in a marine aquarium because of the corals that use these substances for their growth. One common mistake that many newbies make is to dose their tank back up to the desired level as quickly as possible. This mistake can cost you dearly! Levels should be slowly and gradually adjusted to the desired level so as to not shock the system. A sudden and drastic change in calcium, alk or magnesium can kill corals, in a worst-case scenario of course. This is because there are many ways that various components of seawater interact with each other.
For example;

-Magnesium is required by corals to make calcium bio-available.
-Elevated alkalinity levels can mask calcium levels, giving an inaccurate calcium reading.

Too often when this occurs an aquarist will dose to adjust one level but not understand why he/she has that level in the first place. One can compare fixing the levels in a marine tank to fixing a car. Consider that there are many reasons why a car wouldn't start, gas, battery, electrical etc. You don't want to start swapping out parts until you know exactly which one is broken. The same goes for adjusting the levels of salt water. Care should be taken to decide what should be done to correct the various levels before actually taking action. With so many additives and supplements on the market it can be difficult to decide what is truly needed and what isn't. No matter what brands you choose or what method to follow, this much remains the same, gradual changes cause less stress to the marine environment.

I don't consider myself an expert by any means, but I have made these mistakes before. Hopefully what I have shared will help some of you newcomers to achieve a healthier aquarium!

Danny Zubot