Is low salt bad?

1journeyman

Active Member
Originally Posted by JJJoey
http:///forum/post/2702435
so i am going for a 1.023-1.024 on the hydrometer?
then im good to go for corals?
Absolutely not.
You have several different issues going on right now. Each must be addressed before you begin to add corals and inverts.
1. Sandbed; your depth is in the dangerous range. Sandbeds need to be less than 1 inch or great than 4 inches. Intermediate depths can lead to Nitrate buildup. Further, to have a deep sand bed you need plenty of micro critters to clean the sand and a lot of current to prevent detritus from accumulating in the sand. you should address this before you add corals.
2. Water paramters. Get a Refractometer as they are much more accurate than a hydrometer. Get your salinity where it needs to be. Avoid temp fluctuations. Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate need to be 0.0 and they need to stay there.
3. pH. Waaay to low. This can be caused by insufficient water flow, lack of gas exchange at the surface, too few water changes, ect. Your pH is dangerously low.
do some water changes with quality water. Make sure the system stays stable for several weeks, then slowly add hardy corals.
 

jerryatrick

Active Member
Originally Posted by 1journeyman
http:///forum/post/2702441
Absolutely not.
You have several different issues going on right now. Each must be addressed before you begin to add corals and inverts.
1. Sandbed; your depth is in the dangerous range. Sandbeds need to be less than 1 inch or great than 4 inches. Intermediate depths can lead to Nitrate buildup. Further, to have a deep sand bed you need plenty of micro critters to clean the sand and a lot of current to prevent detritus from accumulating in the sand. you should address this before you add corals.
2. Water paramters. Get a Refractometer as they are much more accurate than a hydrometer. Get your salinity where it needs to be. Avoid temp fluctuations. Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate need to be 0.0 and they need to stay there.
3. pH. Waaay to low. This can be caused by insufficient water flow, lack of gas exchange at the surface, too few water changes, ect. Your pH is dangerously low.
do some water changes with quality water. Make sure the system stays stable for several weeks, then slowly add hardy corals.
I agree with everything. As far as the sandbed goes what do you suggest? I think I am in the same boat. How do we safely add or take out sand?
 

xtreeme

Member
I too was saying that about sand not enough (or too much). Just add more, get reg agronite sand ($7) and add more. Get some hermit crabs etc. I think only the top layers need stired dont they. The deep spots have gas pockets. Im adding more just to be safe 5" or so.
 

jjjoey

Active Member
i have tons of snails in my sand. they are Nassarius Snail i have about 15
i did the WC
my nitrates are down to 15-20
my pH is still low :( like 7.8 or lower
how do i fix this? or should i just wait
 

xtreeme

Member
I would do wc every other day about 10% for week or so untill ph is right. You could use buffer though something else is making it low. What is your SG after the wc.
 
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