Cant get my calcium up.....why?

[tim000]

ok when I first strated adding B-Ionic for the first month I got my calcium up to 550 (didnt have a test kit at the time,now I do) then lowered it down to 450. it stayed at 400-450 for about 4 weeks now no matter how much of the B-Ionic I add I cant get it up over 350.

why is this?

 

[danmhippo]

What is your Alk reading? Alk too high = low Ca

 

[MIKE NY1]

Raising your Cal will lower your Alk and vice a versa. If you are having trouble raising your Cal try checking your Mag level. Without getting into a chemistry lesson ....it does effect the amount of Calcium that can be held in solution. Usually a good water change with a quality salt should raise your mag level, but if your level is that low you may have to dose magnesium.

Mike

 

[mariner]

Check your sump and other equpment for calcium buildups. That was my problem before. My sump looked like a bunck of dead corals cuz the calcium was just building up in there. Once I cleaned it out, everything was back to normal.

 

[Rich-n-poor]

low magnesium levels is my vote

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[jdeets]

Let us know what your alk level is. I can't really determine what your problem might be without knowing more about your water chemistry. Also, go ahead and do a mag test--either buy a test kit or have the LFS check the level for you. Then we'll be able to come up with a cause.

 

[mconcann]

I believe overabundance of CO2 can cause calcium precipitation as well. Never heard of it as a problem in tanks but it occurs in nature.

 

[monkeyboy]

CO2 shouldn't be a problem assuming he's running a skimmer.

I second Alk and Magnesium tests. I don't believe that magnesium would be much of a problem unless A) there is a severe lack of water changes or B) he's using a crappy salt but then again, are there even crappy salts on the market?

W/out any other info I bet that his alk is high, from adding too much buffer to top-off, etc, and it's driving his calcium down. Any takers?