Supplements?

K

kaledrina

Instead of just asking a handful of people, I'd figure I'd just make a new post on the boards...

Tank inhabitants... GS puffer, pair of false clowns, scooter blenny, clown goby, yellow wrasse. iamquockie kindly sold me some nice Pom Pom Xenias, Anthelias, and some baby little zoas... Which are looking good right now! *Cross fingers!* I add some Kent Marine food for Filter Feeders with some cyclopeeze every few days for everyone in addition to the food for the fishes.

I just wanted to know what kind of supplements you added to your tanks? Like, brand-wise and what exactly I need to add to start getting more reef-happy. I know I need to start adding calcium. Probably homemade with pickling lime if I can find some, but I can't find true dosings for my 45g, everybody says differently. Strontium and Iodine? And I'm sure theres probably others out there I have no idea about. I've heard that sometimes the sea salt has the supplements already in the salt? Not to mention my so-called budget doesn't want to buy $100s worth of bs additives the LFS tells me I "need".

Speaking of salt... A lot of the more recommended salts either come in gigundo containers I can hardly lift or in bags, and in bags I've had horrible luck with humid air seeping in and having to take a screwdriver to the salt to get it to break off (I guess a big rubbermaid container would suffice to keep out the air). I've also heard conflicting reports that you Must must musttttt leave the salt overnight w/ an airstone to get stabilized. I've simply added salt to the mixing bucket and stirred for about 5 minutes until it runs completely clear. It works, nobody complains when I add the new water. I guess when you have corals and such they get more whiney?

Now I'm getting into the more complicated side of things I'm sooo glad I found this forum so I can harass you kind souls. I should have just gotten a hamster. You know, my hobby started with getting my bf a 1g tank and some dwarf puffers for V-day last year... And I'm the one stuck with a huge near-reef tank! :roll:
 
Hi...

The deal with supplements is simple, don't dose anything to your tank without testing for it first. Trace elements are replenished at each water change, which can be done weekly, bi-weekly or whenever you determine you need to. Salt brand's all have slightly different "blends" so it's a good idea to test your freshly made SW and see where it's at then test your tank levels then you may chose to buffer the water at that point to match. It is a good idea to aerate and match waterchange water for temp, ph and salinity. Since you don't have big users of ca etc then waterchanges should be enough for you right now.

Cheers!
 
The only supplement I add is Salifert Amino Acids every 14 days.

I run a calcium reactor (you could use B-Ionic or go the kalkwasser route), a refugium, skimmer, have a lot of LR (Live Rock) and a DSB (Deep Sand Bed).

Regarding mixing saltwater: If you can mix it up in 5 minutes and it matches salinity, temperature, and pH, more power to you. Usually it is best to let it mix for 24 hours, preferably in the same room as the tank. The pH will match, the water will be aerated and everything fully dissolved. Since my water coming out of the wall is usually colder than the tank, I have a heater in the mixing barrel to bring it up to tank temp. This, btw, is called aging saltwater. Usually 24 hours is enough, but some people age it for a couple of weeks and have beautiful tanks. Mine tends to mix 24 to 72 hours because I may be too busy to do a 55g water change the next day.
 
I have a basic test kit (ammonia and all that jazz) so I'll have to buy one for all those supplements and stuff. Not as fun as buying another fish, but definitely needed. Would I even need to add calcium for the 3 crabs and turbo snails? The really huge crab has done just fine for almost a year without... This stuff just gets complicated. I was about to go to the petstore and buy a whole bunch of supplements for everything... And would InstantOcean sea salt provide me with almost everything I need?

Right now I'm using Petcos Aquatic Gardens salt mix (It was on sale! :oops: ) and haven't experienced any badness, it mixes pretty well and I want to get full mileage out of it before switching to Instant Ocean.

The thing about these salts is they claim to have everything you need..
 
Most salts contain all assortment of goodies that our livestock needs, but these deplete within the aquarium as they are utilized. They don't deplete evenly, either. :wink:

The stuff I test for is on this page: http://www.melevsreef.com/parms.html

There is no test for amino acids. And to be honest, I don't know if my adding it helps for sure. I debated the entire concept, but finally gave it a try. It hasn't been something I can prove works.
 
I've never been a big fan of supplements.... there are a few exceptions, like kalk (or a ca reactor) and Magnesium (which I dose like once a month). I am still open minded on amino acids as some folks I trust and know have plenty of experience have reported good results from them. For the most part however, I go by the opinion MOST are not needed. No iron, no iodine, stronium etc...

Now there are instances where a certain species of coral or critter may need a little extra, but I haven't kept any of those.

As far as mixing salt water, I would strongly advise you to prepare it at least 24 hours ahead of time. Saltwater is very caustic and can damage corals if its put in too soon. I've had it happen... Storing salt in a rubber maid container is a good idea, sometimes the buckets of salt can be hard to open, ive ripped a few nails and got a few cuts from it. Just put your container in the house and use a plastic scoop or measuring cup to pull out what you need.

Not all salts are created equal.. there was a BIG debate on salt brands about a year or so ago.. from what I recall it basically came down to heavy metals and trace elements that were in varying quantities and there were a few brands that scored higher than others. There was one brand (I can't remember the brand) that ended up being a better choice. It was a harder to find brand, but the Instant Ocean and regular brands didn't do too badly.
 
Alright... an RO/DI system is way out of my budget, so I was thinking maybe either getting an attachment water purifier for the sink (since the water isn't too tasty as it is) orrrrr getting purified water from the store. You know, at the grocery store you can get water refills. I'd just have to call the companies to see what additives they put in there for "taste" and see if those are harmful to little fishies. Its easier to spend 0.35c a gallon there than $1 a gallon at the LFS and mix the salt myself. I can use the conditioners, salt, and whatever I want to my preference that way. And I don't want to spend almost $15 a week on water.
 
You can get an RO/DI pretty cheap on Ebay. That is really your best option, but buying and lugging it home is what many people do.
 
Whether you go with your own RO/DI setup, buy premixed from an LFS or buy salt, water and mix your own the water expense is pretty much unavoidable in this hobby, if you want to keep a nice tank. Of course the RO/Di filters are the best route in the long run, however I don’t really see that much savings in mixing your own as opposed to buying it premixed unless you buy salt in bulk. Most of our sponsors are keeping pretty competitive on water prices these days, usually thirty some-odd cents for fresh and eighty-some-odd cents on salt. However, I suggest you check salinity before you buy, or at least ask. I have gotten home from PetLand with water as low as 1.017. But they usually make good on it if I complain.

The only downside for the ladies, I suppose, is lugging these jugs will give you arms like a gorilla.
 
Yeah I don't want gorilla arms! My boyfriend would not like me getting buff. Working at a grocery store with no scanner gun means my arms/back get strained enough. You know... lugging 30-50lb bags of dog food, water bottles, cat food, cat litter (evil stuff), charcoal, small children for sale... :wink:
 
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