Originally Posted by
spunky
http:///forum/post/2511626
ok so when i bought all my equip the LFS sold me these chemicals when should i start adding them and how much i dont remember i think they said a 1/2 cap per day for the life of the tank.
This is not necessary IMO. First you shouldnt add anything to your tank that you dont test for. I know you test for calcium I saw it on the chart above, but I just wanted to offer that FYI for any other chemicals you might be told you need. Secondly 540 ppm is too high for your system, a workable calcium level should be between 400 and 450. If you are considering dosing calc is not the only trace element you should be testing for Magnesium at the bare minimum but also Dkh and alk should be tested for too. Be careful with dosing, too much of one thing can be very harmful to your system.
With a small tank like yours weekly 10 to 15% water changes which is recomended is all that you should need to do to keep all of your trace elements levels where they should be. Testing will tell you for sure but I cannot stress enough never to dose just because.