Recent content by ChefAlex

There’s more to the equation than nutrient levels. There are many things that a RO/DI removes that you can’t measure for. A big reason we no longer see so many threads on reef forums titled “why do none of my corals thrive, my water is fine?” Or “why do all my invertebrates die suddenly?” is...

dprids, I’m am little perplexed by your plumbing system as it seems untraditional. I can’t really tell from your pictures or text as to exactly what is going on. Do you by any chance have a diagram of your current plumbing system?

There are no solid blue strains that I know of. Pinoy, various Philippines, Brazilian glitters, blue pearlscale and others all have blue coloration to a degree. Some on the fins, some on the body, some both. Each individual specimen will vary and, as you have said, other factors such as lighting...

A little more info would be helpful, exactly describing the tank set up before the switch and to now. Listing your water parameters exactly would be helpful. Not everyone is aware of the basics, like cycling an aquarium, so describing everything from the bottom up would be helpful...

Angels and kribensis definitely prefer slow moving waters.

As long as any species in the tank are fine with the increased flow rate, there’s really no harm. Also, flow rates on filters aren’t entirely accurate, they tend to be a bit slower than advertised. Plants, decor, aquarium dimensions and the output method of the filter all are contributing...

That’s a difficult answer and there’s quite a few variables. The titration method is based on a sample of titrates with a known composition (the reagent) interacting with with the analyte (the aquarium water). When the analyte in question deviates slightly from the intended use the reagents are...

Your gH, alkalinity and pH won’t all be near marine conditions since your salinity is only hovering at 1.005/1.006sg. Natural seawater alkalinity is about 125ppm/7dKh/2.5meqL, so 40ppm sounds about right for your current salinity. That being said, alkalinity is rather important soley for pH...

That would be a problem. What test kit are you using?

Quite unlikely. Even if your GH was at 20 you would still be fine.

For right now, I would say you are very likely fine. If you measured seachem replenish to raise general hardness to 10GH and then added instant ocean mix theres little chance that you’d be out of range, even if you can’t accurately test right now. Like Colin_T said next time add your replenish...

Of course not, no product anywhere is 100% safe. I think a lot of things we use for aquaria in regards to safety could be looked at more subjectively. The siliconed aquarium itself, any submersible electronic, pressurized c02, chemical additives, they all can pose a risk for misuse and or...

The “pack” behavior in some canids parallels some piranha species as one collector said years ago to me, interesting stuff. As far as your own situation goes, clearly housing a single red belly in 80G tank isn’t ideal as you’ve said. There are other piranha options for your particular...

maxaal22, That particular ozone generator is very safe for your aquarium. It produces about 0.0005g of 03 per hour, a minuscule amount. A mass marketed product, particularly by a name like Philips, wouldn’t be made available to the public if it were a high risk to easily endanger the user. That...

Just curious, are you testing general hardness for any specific reason? Importantly, what salinity are you aiming for? EDIT: Also, I might be misinterpreting, you are using a remineralizing product and a marine salt mix?