Help me with my water!

[YHSublime]

Originally I had these numbers listed first below. I waited two water changes (twice in one week) and the numbers below are what I had from last night. I feel like my tank is looking great, but my Zoas haven't come out (only on day 1 they did) and I was told that my corals should be looking better than now. The mushroom is doing really well, but I think my anemone is going through some hard times, pretty reclusive past couple days.

 

So here are my numbers and tank information

 

14 gallon Biocube, stock lights (probably about 12 gallons with everything in it.)

I have two juvie clowns, and a peppermint shrimp. 5 hermits, 5 snails.

The corals:

Ricordeas (2)

JPB Cobalt Shrooms (4)

Liams Cloves (2" sq)

Wavespring Neon Toadie

Wavespring Neon Sinularia

Green Star Polyps

Rock Anemone

Red Zoas

I keep my lights on a timer, they both come on at 8am-turn off at 6:15pm. I sometimes keep my blues on and watch the tank for an hour or so a night.

My saltwater is bought at a LFS, and I use Deer Park bottled water for top offs. I have done enough water changes over the past week and a half I have not had to top off.

 

My tank is at 79F

 

Salinity: 1.026

PH: 8.2

Ammonia: .25

No2: 0

No3: inbetween 10-80ppm

 

Calcium: Is about 450ppm

KH: 196.9

Phosphates: .25

(Sorry, last 3 were my first reads.)

 

 

My reads last night:

79F

Salinity: 1.026

PH: 8.0-8.2

Ammonia: 0ppm

No2: 0ppm

No3: 20

 

Ca2+: 360-380

KH: 161.1-179

Phosphates: 0-.25

 

 

 

I'm a little concerned, as I'm not sure exactly what my water should be like for corals. It looks like, and it has been mentioned, tthat my tank my have undergone a second cycle. My ammonia has leveled out to 0, but my No3 is still high, but I expect will balance to 0 after another water change. It was hard for me to tell if my Phosphates were 0 or .25, because of these color tests, but from what I also heard, that's a sign of using tap water. All my water comes from my LFS, and for top offs I'm using bottled Deer Park.

 

I'm not sure how it should be looking, and what I should do to get it right, other than water changes. Also: Is there a piece of equipment that I can get all these reads from? Every time I test my water, I feel like a mad scientist, and it takes me about an hour to make sure I get everything correct, with my test tubes, and drops, and shaking and adding, <Sigh>

 

Help?

 

Some pics from last night:

 

 

[Rosco's Reefs]

Personally I think the pics look great. My best, first, suggestion would be to relax and enjoy your tank. You'll make a few mistakes but you'll overcome them. Look up some of the parameter charts on the web and see how you look. I actually don't test (nor change water) all that much. The smaller tank makes it more necessary for you to monitor but you seem to be doing fine. Keep up the good work.

[jimlin]

is the KH reading right?

[YHSublime]

Personally I think the pics look great. My best, first, suggestion would be to relax and enjoy your tank. You'll make a few mistakes but you'll overcome them. Look up some of the parameter charts on the web and see how you look. I actually don't test (nor change water) all that much. The smaller tank makes it more necessary for you to monitor but you seem to be doing fine. Keep up the good work.

Thanks for that! I do enjoy the tank, quite a bit, I just want to make sure I'm doing everything I can on my end. I wish I knew how to get those Zoas out again, that's driving me nuts!

 

is the KH reading right?

So my ReefMaster test kit has me measure the KH by adding a drop, shaking, adding a drop, shaking. The "correct" reading would be 9 or 10:

 

1 - 17.9

2 - 35.8

3 - 53.7

4 - 71.6

5 - 89.5

6 - 107.4

7 - 125.3

8 - 143.2

9 - 161.1

10 - 179

11 - 196.9

12 - 214.8

 

(Normal range is between 9-12) I just found this, so looks like I'm doing alright here.

[Origami]

is the KH reading right?

The "KH" reading that he's giving is actually an alkalinity reading in ppm CaCO3 equivalents. There are 50 ppm to 1 meq/l which is 2.8 dKH. So, 175 ppm is actually 9.8 dKH and 200 ppm is 11.2 dKH.

[Demeat50]

Is de-ionized water better than natural spring water like deer park? Maybe try that. I use DrinkMore water sometimes

[jimlin]

just give it time. water reading looks good.

[smallreef]

If you are able to use RODI, if not buy deionized water from walmart..deer park water is just tap water so no point in paying extra for that, and it could have things your tank doesnt want..like a high TDS

Also, are you using a hydrometer? And have you tested it to see if it is accurate?

How have your numbers been this week (since this post is a week old?)

[YHSublime]

My hydrometer is calibrated, and reading correct, my salinity is spot on. Everything has leveled out, and I think the culprit was a sponge I found in my back chambers that I didn't know was there. I found it when I was looking for one of my clowns that kept jumping! I will post test results tomorrow.

[smallreef]

Sounds good! glad to see everything is moving along

[NYfan78]

i would not use dear park water, i used to always get gallons jugs of distilled water and had 0 tds. Now i have a BRs system and couldnt be more happier!

[YHSublime]

It's weird about the DP. A lot of reefers have said it's O.K, and just as many have said absolutely not. I've only been dealing with essentially 10-12 gallons of water, so an investment in an RO/DI didn't seem logical, and all my water is bought from my LFS. I'm picking one up soon, as I'll have two tanks that will be using it, so then it wont be a problem. It's just a matter of finding room in my apartment, right now keep 10 gallons on hand in my coat closet, which has been a perfect system. It hasn't seemed to affect my LPS, but the peice of SPS I have in there just is, I'm a firm believer that's because of my lighting, as my water quality is (close to) perfect, at 2, 20% a week.

 

Also, I'm 90% positive that my nitrates were so high with a slight spike of ammonia because of the sponge I found right before my pump. It had been soaking up filth for 3 months, and when I gravel vac'd the "sump" it was a cesspool.