redox?

[ameno]

My LFS has recomended using poly-ox to enprove water quality and keep the redox level up. I have not seen much talk on here about redox and was wanting to get some other opions on this. Reading the label on the poly-ox it looks like it could be some pretty bad stuff if not used exacly as they state. My LFS uses a monitor on his tanks to constantly check his redox levels. Any advice are ideas on this would be helpful.

 

[ophiura]

YOu might find more of a discussion on it if you look up people who use ozone on their systems. I don't know about this bottled stuff all in all :notsure: and my inclination would be to stay away from it with a 10 foot pole.
What water quality issues are you dealing with?? Lets see if there are other ways to fix them...

 

[ameno]

My water quality seems fine. We've only had the tank set up for a few months now. I bought it used and have tried to stay with are LFS recommendations. since he has many salt water tanks set up for years and they seem to do great. I have a few annomies that like to hang out in back of the rock. So he said that my redox level is probably low and that this would help bring it up. that he uses it in all his tanks. But reading the bottle it looks like something you have to be very carefully with and really need to monitor when using. I guess I could try and find a test kit for this and then decide weather its needed are not. from what I've been able to test everything else is in good shape nitrate is between 12 and 20 and I've upgraded the lighting to 280 watts. with 150 watts MH. I have an 80G hex.

 

[thomas712]

Yick~ I don't even want to touch this post with a ten foot pole ~ However
I will second the vote from Ophiura not to use this product. The only time I was measuring for Redox was when I was using the ozonizer and I had a probe to measure it with. When I broke my probe I put the ozonizer away and have not used it in about a year or more. Without the ORP probe I was no longer able to measure the Redox potential of the water. While it did have some interesting results it was not something I wanted to do long term for my water, but have considered doing it aging.
But I do not think I would try to do it via liquid chemcial means like that bottle your talking about, put too much in and you could really screw up your system. Instead it should be monitored with ORP probe and ozonizer.
Thomas

 

[ophiura]

Yeah...I, too, only have experience with redox using ozone (and ORP probes), and on terribly designed ozone systems. So I am more familiar with the ability to quickly and efficiently kill animals using it, as well as pose a significant health risk to humans around the area.

 

[ameno]

Thanks for the input, It sounds like redox is not something I should worry about. I know my LFS has some good ideas but is also trying to sell products that maybe aren't necessary.
I'll will stay away from this poly-ox. My water has cycled and doing great. I guess if it ain't broke not fix it.

 

[ophiura]

Originally Posted by ameno
I guess if it ain't broke not fix it.

Can I get an AMEN!!!????

 

[birdy]

AMEN :joy:

 

[ameno]

I know this is changing the subject, but what started all this was the fact that the two anemones I bought from my LFS like to hang out in back behind the rock, they are doing great and have been in the tank for about a month now. Whenever they come out tward the light they won't stay very long before they head back in the shade. Maybe this is normal I'm not sure Since this is all pretty new to me. Just everything I've read here says lots of light. And I know they can't be getting the light they need if they stay behind the rock.

 

[danedodger]

What kind of anemones are they? Some do require a ton of light but there are a few that do well without so much. Do they seem healthy? Eating? You might also check how much water flow the type of anemone you have need and see if they aren't moving around so much trying to find a spot in the tank with just the right light and water movement.
And as for the original redox question (yep, I'll give a second AMEN to what's been posted already!) the best rule someone ever told me is don't add anything unless you test for it and the test shows your tank needs it!

 

[ameno]

one is a rose bubble tip and the other I'm not sure what it's call but it looks like a large inverted mushroom with green fingers on the outside. I also have a flower that stayed in back for a few weeks but is out in front now. and staying there. the other two seem to be doing fine. the rose tip looked bad once and I put a light in back for awhile and he perked back up. when there in front I feed them and they eat good but from the back it's impossible to get food to them. I squirt some invert food in there direction sometime just to try and get some food to them. I total agree with the rule of not putting anything in the tank you can't test for. My LFS has monitors to make sure he doesn't overdose which probable works fine, but from the feedback I have gottin from this site I don't think he should have recommened putting this in my tank without a monitor.

 

[ameno]

My LFS said these need a lot of water flow so I put in a 820gph pump to flow around the rock. they hand out twoed the top of the rock and thats were try to direct most of the current

 

[ophiura]

The thing with anemones is that they will go where they like the current and lighting...and that often means where you don't want them

But they will move in time. What are other parameters in your tank like pH, alk and specific gravity?
They will also commonly look terrible now and then when they basically deflate to a ball of goo and then reinflate as part of their pooing process

 

[ameno]

ph is around 8.2 salt salicity around 1.022 amonia 0 nitrite 0 nitrate 12 to 20. calcium around 480, the nitrate was around 12 and weekend before last there came some type of grey matter on the sand, looked like insulation. have not figured out what it was but my nubi branch has dissapeared, although it seemed like way to much stuff for it to be him, and I would not think he would have just blew up. but after that I got some quick algae growth and the nitrates when up about 10 ppm. and all the anemones went to the back of the tank. I cleaned it up right away, but I know it had some effect on things, the nitrates have come back down some. but the two anemones are still in back, one has wedge himself between two boxes that you can hardly put your finger through.

 

[ophiura]

Your salinity, IMO, is critically low for invertebrates and that could be a problem. Are you testing with a hydrometer or refractometer? For reef tanks, I would aim for 1.025-1.026 (any changes made slowly).

 

[ameno]

it's the hydo. I thought 1.022 to 1.024 was the range to stay in. it was at 1.024 but last weeks check shows it down. I did add some salt in when I did a top off and brought it up a little but not much. what is the best way to bring this up?

 

[ameno]

If it really needs to be that high It could be whats cause some of my other problems, Before I bought anything I had my LFS check everything and he said all was well, but the plate I bought there two weeks ago never came out and yesterday I took it back to him because it had started to die and hoping maybe he could save it. The salt could have been the problem all alone. When all he would recommend was poly-ox

 

[ophiura]

No, not polyox

IMO, your salinity is fatally low for some invertebrates, but that level is fine for fish only systems (which is why it is often given...and why we often ask for specific gravity even if someone says their water is 'Perfect")

What you can do is top off with saltwater instead of freshwater. But be sure that you have this saltwater premixed and circulated either with an airstone or small powerhead. Adding freshly mixed saltwater can be a shock to the animals (true also of doing water changes).

 

[ameno]

I guess the salt water mix would need to be a high concentration in order to bring the salt up to that level Especally if trying to do it in a water top off?

 

[thomas712]

Originally Posted by ameno
I guess the salt water mix would need to be a high concentration in order to bring the salt up to that level Especally if trying to do it in a water top off?
No not at all. Lets say you need to replace 1 gallon of water that evaporated, just mix it half strength or even full strength of 1.022-1.025. In a couple of days that gallon of water will again evaporate, but you will still have an increase of salt because the salt does not evaporate. Just check the new salinity each day. Also depends just how fast you want to do this, slower is better, quicker could lead to an upset with the balance of the living bodies of animals that you have in the tank.
Its like dosing anything else like calcium or alkalinity, just take it easy.
Thomas