My calcium is very high for some strange reason. When i run the test it shows the calcium level at 800ppm. Now I read that for optimal coral groth 450ppm is where I want to be. My question is... is my calcium level really good, or should it be lower? And if I should lower it how should I go about doing it? I have some suspitions on why this may be. The lady at the LFS suggested that I use HBH Balance Blocks to keep my pH where it needs to be. This product adds calcium to the water aswell. On the back of the packet it says Dosage: One Balance Block per 20 gallons of aquarium water is adequate, though one block my be used safely in tanks as small as 10 gallons. In order to keep the pH in my 14 gal. Biocube at 8.1/8.3 I have to use about 2 to 3 of these guys. Is there any other products that manage the pH without adding additional calcium?

Hello TheApprentice and :welcome: to TR.

I definitely would stop using the balance blocks! What are your other parameters? Calcium, pH and alkalinity are all inter-related. You should lower the Ca by doing water changes. What critters do you have in your tank? Here is an article about low pH Low pH: Causes and Cures by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com (http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/index.php). And here is a discussion about how the 3 interact FishGeeks :: Tropical fish - Marine Fish - Aquarium Fish - Pond Fish - Aquatic Plants (http://www.aquaria.info/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&p=428219).

also how old is the test kit. i had calcium that high one time ... the test kit was bad.

TheApprentice, welcome to TR.

Pay attention to what Carmie and lReef lKeeper said, I agree with them. One other thing to be cautious of is, all test kits geared toward hobbyists work with very small amounts of sample water and the amount of reagents called for must be precise. If the test calls for adding 2 drops of reagent and more are inadvertently added, it will askew the results.

Dick

The best way to manage ph is to make sure that cal and alk (and mg) are at the right levels. In a biocube, this can be done by with routine water changes (with a quality salt mix). If your calcium needs increase with the addition of organisms that require it (hard corals), you are probably better off using a 2 part solution, (ie B-ionic). All of the essential elements are most likely in the salt mix. I don't know much about the HBH balance block, but I bet you don't need it.

Thanx for the feedback! I'm realy glad I found this web page!

Welcome to TR!

I had a Ca shock too a bit ago: 700 ppm. I did the test again it it dropped to 550 ppm. Still high but it shows how finicky the test kits can be. I use the Salifert one which requires a scoop of dry colored stuff. I have actually gotten into the habit of thinking of it like a scoop of flour. I dig in with the spoon they give and then scrape over the top with a knife to make a perfectly level scoop. I assume it works now; i would really like an electric meter though!

TR is a great site! We are glad to have you on!