Tip for manual dosing

[ReefGrrl]

First, many thanks to Christy for her help in figuring out where best to put this post - and also for being so welcoming!

I did a bunch of research and couldn't find anywhere that someone else has done this, so I thought I'd share my US$20 alternative to expensive dosing pumps (item: US$11.25, shipping: US$9.00! ugh). Please forgive me if someone else out there has already talked about this or something like it, but I couldn't find anything.

Over the summer I got a big fat bunch of stony corals (weensie candy cane, large bubble coral, two hammers, a Superman monti, a Jedi mind trick monti, an orange plating monti, two acros, two blastos, a leptastrea, an acan Lord and an echinata). OMG, it's scary as a list...

I had only ever had soft corals before. I did a bunch of research and realized I needed to pay some attention to calcium, magnesium and alkalinity in order to maintain health and help these beauties grow. So after replacing all of my expired test kits and buying some supplements, there was me, jammed into the corner beside the tank, in the dark (to take advantage of better calcium uptake in periods of slightly lower pH in lower light), baster in hand, dripping and dripping and dripping....this got old very fast. But I was getting pretty spectacular growth so I wanted to keep it up.

I debated getting a dosing pump or two but I'd rather spend my $$ on livestock wherever possible and I'm kind of afraid of automatic stuff that never breaks when it's convenient.

I can't remember when I first noticed this Innovative Marine Accudrip thing, but as soon as I saw it I realized I could use it for the opposite of what it was made for: I could put liquid INTO my aquarium sloooooowly.

I found mine on eBay (unable to find it anywhere else in Canada) and it works PERFECTLY as I had imagined.

I now mix up my doses in about 6 oz of water (tank water or RO/DI, depending on what I'm dosing) and pour it into a coffee mug that I set on my light stand above the tank. (Anywhere nearby and higher than the water level would work - I happen to use a stand intended for store mannequins, to suspend my two LED lights and it has a nice flat area on top.)

Then I close the check wheel on the tube, place the rigid J-tube end of the thingy over the edge of the mug, carefully put the other end of the tube in place just above the water level in the high turbulent flow of the wavemaker pump and then squeeze the siphon bulb and adjust the check wheel for the speed of drip I want.

VOILA. This thing is awesome.

An additional benefit is that by using a larger container, I can add back water for water changes and not have to worry about differences in temperature or variations in salinity - this thing allows me to add the water at a safe rate.

Here are a few photos...any thoughts on this? Will I end up regretting using this instead of a mechanical method?

[Myka]

It will clog up on you, so you'll have to keep an eye on it. Dosers push the fluid through faster so they don't clog up as much, plus they have the mechanical pressure to burst a clog if it happens. Bubble Magus just released some inexpensive stand alone dosers. I haven't used them yet.

[ReefGrrl]

That's a good point. I've been running a few ounces of RO/DI through it after each dosing so hopefully it'll take a while for any algae to start growing in the tube. I stash the whole setup in a drawer during the day mainly because it looks messy so that might keep the algae at bay also.

I will keep an eye on it.

[George]

It's not algae that you will be worried about. It's the other things like calcium or alkalinity that will clog up your tube. (been there, done that )
Beside this method is not that accurate. It's probably inappropriate for anything other than water top-off in a small tank.

[ReefGrrl]

I see your point and I'm wondering if running the RO/DI through after each dose will help delay any clogging.

Does 29 gallons qualify as small? Regarding accuracy, I'm adding very small amounts - 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoons of each type of supplement diluted in about 6 ounces of RO/DI or tank water, based on testing for alk, calcium and magnesium every day for three weeks to determine a regimen that keeps things stable. So far I'm maintaining calcium at 400-410, alkalinity at 8.3, magnesium at 1300 (though it does tend to drift downwards) and pH at 8.0. This is the first week I have not tested daily and I'm looking forward to testing on Sunday, when I can see how things stand.

I've kept a test result spreadsheet since early August and noticed a slow, steady trend upwards for all of these levels - they were very low at first, after about a month of having all the new stony coral. Alk was down to 5 at one point. That was when I realized I had to do something about it.

I really appreciate your insight and will have to monitor things closely.

[George]

yep, with all the stony you acquired, your levels can drop fast in that tank. I still recommend getting a doser. Keep an eye out on the buy/sell forum in here. You can get a used one for a good price.
In the mean time, dosing by hand is probably better than your thingy. Get a couple measuring cups like this one (the smallest one): http://www.tapplastics.com/product/p...containers/196

Use them to dose your CA/ALK/etc

[duncangweller]

I can appreciate your concern but I think you may be worrying a lite too much about what could happen. Dosers have been used for years, by myself also, and very rarely does something go wrong that regular maintenance shouldn't solve. Yeah they can get plugged, bit if you keep an eye on them and maybe every once in a while flush the lines with some RO water then all should be fine. You could even replace the lines if needed every few months (they cost about a buck a foot).

Also,if anything were to go wrong with your dosers you would notice it in your levels, or your corals behaviour.

A doser may cost you $90 but that's a small price to pay for mixing a gallon of chemicals once a month and having all the equipment hidden away somewhere versus being hanging from your light etc.

I'm not discounting your ideas completely, but with all the hassle of mixing each time, and then hanging up a drip line and worrying if it clogs and then constantly rinsing it, I'd buy a doser each year rather than mess around like that.

[duncangweller]

Dosing by hand will also work very well. You don't have to drip it in, just spread a large dose over 3/4 smaller doses and all will be fine

[christyf5]

Cool idea but yeah you'll definitely have to be watching it. I wouldn't say daily but if left for say a week it might clog. I run a doser too and my "maintenance" isn't quite as tight as it used to be. The alk line plugs fairly often. I have my phone to send me a message to clean it at least monthly and so far so good. That being said it doses once daily of each solution and all at once, then the stuff sits in the line until the next dosing.

BTW, thats a great looking little tank! Nice work!

[ReefGrrl]

Originally Posted by christyf5

Cool idea but yeah you'll definitely have to be watching it. I wouldn't say daily but if left for say a week it might clog. I run a doser too and my "maintenance" isn't quite as tight as it used to be. The alk line plugs fairly often. I have my phone to send me a message to clean it at least monthly and so far so good. That being said it doses once daily of each solution and all at once, then the stuff sits in the line until the next dosing.

BTW, thats a great looking little tank! Nice work!

Thanks for the compliment - I'm sure I'm not alone in wishing I could get a photo that captured the true colours and textures in there. Maybe using a camera instead of my iPad or phone would make a difference. I can spend an hour sitting in front of it, geeking out with my magnifying glass until the wee hours.

You mention the chemical dosing solution sitting in the line when using a doser - maybe clogging won't be much of a problem for me because the line is rinsed and then I blow it out to remove water. I use a bulb syringe from the drugstore (meant to clean ears) to do that, works like a charm.

But I expect at some point the tube will rupture or crack because of being flattened by the check wheel on the drip adjustment. I've been moving it to different positions along the tube to delay this.