LioStar 500L Belgian Reef

[liostar]

(Nederlandstalige versie lager)
Hello,

my name is Lionel, 26 years old and i'm a reefer since a year and a half.

Last week i've started DSR after some months of reading and thinking about it.
My tank is 500L, with sump
T5 and LED
3 tunze streamers
Skimmer/heater/...
2x 3-channel dosing pump

I started with a huge water change because all my parameters were of and wanted a clean start.
After one day I measured my parameters and corrected those who were of.

I've started dosing Fe+ to lower my phosphates (0,33ppm) according to the thread on this forum. (now at 0,15ppm/day)
I've started dosing Carbon to lower my nitrates according to the manufacturers guidelines.

Today, i did a new measurement of some parameters, everything is going good except:
- My phosphates are too low (undetectable): Should i keep dosing Fe+, lower the dose or stop?
- My potassium is too high, due to a misread test result (434ppm): What should I do?
- Mg an KH are too low, I've used the calculator to bring those values up.

----------------

Hallo,
mijn naam is Lionel, ik ben 26 jaar en heb mijn bakje al anderhalf jaar.

Vorige week ben ik met DSR begonnen na maanden lezen en erover na te denken.
Mijn bakje is 500L met sump,
T5 en LED verlichting,
3 tunze stromingspompen,
Skimmer/verwarming/...
2x 3 kanaals doseerpomp

Ik ben begonnen met een grote waterwissel omdat mijn waardes er ver naast lagen.
De dag erop heb ik mijn waardes gemeten en rechtgetrokken mbv de DSR calculator

Ik ben Fe+ beginnen doseren om mijn fosfaat (0,33ppm) te doen zakken zoals beschreven op dit forum. (nu op 0,15ppm/dag)
Ik ben een koolstofbron beginnen toevoegen om mijn nitraat te doen zakken volgens de gebruiksaanwijzing hiervan.

Vandaag heb ik een paar metingen gedaan, alles is goed behalve:
- Mijn fosfaten zijn nu veel te laag (onmeetbaar, 0): Moet ik ijzer blijven doseren, dosering verlagen of stoppen?
- Mijn Kalium is te hoog (434ppm) door het fout lezen van mijn test de 1x keer: Wat doe ik best?
- Mijn Mg en KH zijn te laag, deze verhoog ik dmv de calculator

[TonyK]

Hi Lionel

Welcome, maybe I can help, but I am not Glenn  ;)

Your PO4 levels were at 0.33 ppm when you started and then after one week they dropped to 0?
If so, this is a drastic reduction and your sps corals might not be so happy (assuming you have many sps colonies, that is), I would halve the dose of Fe you are on now and see if there is a rise in Po4 after one week and adjust accordingly. I only add 0.01 ppm of Fe to my tank 2x/week as a trace element as my P04 levels are always very low (~<0.04 ppm) and my tank volume is the same as yours.

I would stop dosing K+ and take a reading after 7 days, see how much the value has dropped, divide by 7 and use that value as a daily dosing guide once your K+ values drop to ~390 ppm

Adjust dKH slowly. I also found that the calculator tends to overshoot Mg values if you dose MgCl to the exact value on the table, I normally halve the value stated on the calculator and this seems to be increase the values according to where I want them, otherwise you can easily overshoot past the 'optimum' value.

I hope this helps you but it is just my experience with DSR and Glenn is the master.

FWIW, my tank and corals have never looked better  ;D

Cheers,
Tony

[liostar]

Hi Tony,
thanks for your help and suggestions.

For the PO4 values, it was indeed very drastic. Might be the combo of Fe dosing and Carbon dosing. I'm not sure about that.
I've lowered the Fe dosing and wil check in a couple of days.

As for the K values, i'll follow your advise.

Thanks

[TonyK]

Hi again

People use GFO such as Rowaphos to reduce their PO4, this is just rust, same effect, so the liquid Fe is dropping your PO4, the carbon dosing will have more of an impact on your NO3 levels, I think.

Your K+ levels should not get depleted very quickly, so you might have to wait for awhile before it drops to ~390 ppm. I have found in my tank that if I skim aggressively wet, using a needle wheel skimmer that I have had K+ levels drop very quickly (this is still under debate), but, under normal, dry skimming that I only supplement at ~ 2.5-3 weeks.

Cheers,
Tony

[glennf]

0,33ppm phosphate is quite high. How long was it at that level? Tel me some more about the tank and the problems you encountered.
I suspect PO4 will get higher in a few days, because it will leach from  the LR.
Yes keep on dosing Fe+ this wil help manage it.

What test is used for Kalium/potassium ?





greetings, GlennF

[glennf]

I also found that the calculator tends to overshoot Mg values if you dose MgCl to the exact value on the table, I normally halve the value stated on the calculator and this seems to be increase the values according to where I want them, otherwise you can easily overshoot past the 'optimum' value.

Cheers,
Tony

I already mentioned this in the 4th alinea, the 40% rule..

http://dsrreefing.nl/forum/index.php?topic=379.0

greetings, GlennF

[liostar]

Hi Glenn,

I did a huge water change one day before the measurement.
So not long, it was worse before the water change.

I'll measure PO4 again this afternoon and share the results on here.
If it raised i'll slowly higher the dose of Fe+ (now at 0,06ppm)

Using the red sea test for K, no crystals but first read the amount remaining and not the amount used, that's where I went wrong.

As for the tank,
I've been very busy the past year and could not give the attention my tank needed.
Now that everything is going better, i've started with cleaning the tank completely, doing a big water change and taking out the substrate (sand bed).
Since I don't have a lot of fish and corals, this was a risk I was willing to take. I've read a lot on the matter on different forums and it had pro's and contra's. After speaking with some experienced people, I decided to give it a try. It was also a great opportunity to start DSR.

As you've said, I suspect the PO4 to be rising again due to LR leaching.
I'll check it and let you guys know

[glennf]

Ok , it seems you know what your doing, and you did read a lot about the subject.
I will keep a close eye on the matter.
Post some pictures so you we can follow your progres and advice on the matter.
If you removed the sandbed than there is less PO4 to be leached, buy also less bacteria in you system, so it's a tradeoff which is better.

greetings, GlennF

[liostar]

Hi both,
So i've tested PO4 again (Hanna and Salifert)
Hanna: 0,13ppm
Salifert: 0,10ppm

So i'll raise Fe+ to 0,09ppm and check again in a couple of days.

For going barebottom;
I've also read a lot about the item, put pro's and contra's next to each other and decided to try it like this.
I'll see where it will take me, i like the advantage of high flow, not having to maintain the sandbed,...

I'll post a picture in a couple,
some small debris in water, but i've purchased a pump to make a powerfilter.

[liostar]

Here is a picture, sorry about the iPhone quality

[glennf]

Here is a picture, sorry about the iPhone quality

OK.

There is a lot to be gain.
I think the PO4 wil rise some more but don't worry. You need to be patient and learn the dynamics if your tank in time.

greetings, GlennF

[TonyK]

Hi Lionel

I am personally not in favour of a bare bottom tank as I feel that the benefits you gain from biological stability, pH buffering (to a certain degree) and aesthetics, far outweigh the need to maintain the sand (which I have never done with a proper CUC) and you have to crank up the flow so high that your fish will hide, to make a sandstorm in the tank (which can be negated with a larger grain size).

I had the opportunity to change my sand to a high quality aragonite, not too deep, only about ~25mm or so, not enough for a DSB that may cause issues later, but enough for bacteria to colonise.

You have a lot of rock and it seems that you are going through the stages of a cycle as the brown diatom growth indicates. I would think that if you were leaching large amounts of PO4 from the rock then you would have a good growth of GHA but this may come later. As Glenn points out you need to get the biological processes working and stable and patience is needed for this  :D

FWIW, I use the Salifert K+ test kit and find it accurate and easy to use.

Cheers,
Tony

[liostar]

Thx for the replies and the help.
Yes, I think that with the tank remodeling, I started a cycle.
Or it's the amino's/Vit C.
I have some green algae on the glass.

I'm taking everything as slowly as possible.
Will keep you guys posted :)

[yoni]

Ik kom van ver boven +0,65 po4 gestart met dsr op 1/1/14 en nu zit ik op 0,08 po4 , dus het zakt traag maar zeker .
Op aanraden van glenn zit ik op 2x3,39ml ijzer per dag .
Het moet ook uit uw steen en bodembedekking komen .