Vodka dosing in my 180g

m0nk

m0nk

Active Member
So today I started the vodka dosing regiment laid out in the RK Vodka article. I've been reading about other people's successes and following their regiment for several weeks and decided to give it a shot. I have a 180g tank w/ an ecosystem sump that holds about 45-50g of water at present level, but with live rock displacement I decided to consider it about 200g total volume. I have a section in the sump used as a fuge w/ 20lbs of LR and chaeto. My readings are (as of today):
NO3 ~ 15
PO4 = 0
I did notice that my dKH is down to only 6 (I like it around 7-8, personally) so that needs attention, but not sure yet if this dosing will affect dKH at all.
My dosing for today is 0.8ml. I'll try to post my results every day, I have a chart to fill out while I'm doing it all, so I'll at least have the results. I hope this will be helpful for others considering doing this too, and if anyone has any thoughts on the dKH, let me know. Thanks!
-alex
m0nk
 
coral keeper

coral keeper

Active Member
I'm gana follow this thread. If all goes well for you m0nk, I might start vodka dosing as well.(I already read a TON about sugar and vodka dosing on different forums.)
 
m0nk

m0nk

Active Member
Originally Posted by Coral Keeper
http:///forum/post/2873600
I'm gana follow this thread. If all goes well for you m0nk, I might start vodka dosing as well.(I already read a TON about sugar and vodka dosing on different forums.)
Yeah, me too. It doesn't seem like a lot of people do it here, but a lot of people have threads going on the other big reef forum. It seems to go well for them, for the most part. I just need to make sure I can keep up with the testing...
 
m0nk

m0nk

Active Member
Originally Posted by CRABBYCHRIS
http:///forum/post/2873617
What are the benefits of vodka and sugar dosing supposed to be?
It's an organic carbon source for additional filtration. It's supposed to help lower PO4, NO3, and increase color in coral. So we'll see...
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
Hmmmmm...... I thought I read that there was a decrease in color of the coral at the beginning until nitrates were removed in total from the system, then the people dosing started to "feed" the coral and the color bounced back to levels that were greater than before. Gonna have to go see if I saved that.
Yeah here it is from Randy Holmes-Farley, quote:
"I don't know about making the foam hard, but otherwise, many folks have tried similar things. Adding sugar might be a better approach since it is purer than vodka.
When I dosed sugar once, many of my corals turned brown. Probably zooxanthallae growing much faster.
One thing to be concerned with is low oxygen as the bacteria use O2 to metabolize the ethanol (or sugar).
So whatever you do, start very slowly.
In general, growing and harvesting macroalgae is likely to be a better approach."
 
rotarymagic

rotarymagic

Active Member
You MUST run a serious skimmer though to do this... encouraging these bacteria to growth drastically reduces oxygen levels, but it isn't a bad way to absorb testable PO4 and NO3 as the skimmer will skim out the bacteria that absorb these things. I did it on a tank and had pretty good results, but if you overdose a lot you can crash a tank for sure.
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
A little for the tank
A little for Spanko
A little for the tank
A little bit more for Spanko.................
 
m0nk

m0nk

Active Member
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/2873635
Hmmmmm...... I thought I read that there was a decrease in color of the coral at the beginning until nitrates were removed in total from the system, then the people dosing started to "feed" the coral and the color bounced back to levels that were greater than before. Gonna have to go see if I saved that.
Yeah here it is from Randy Holmes-Farley, quote:
"I don't know about making the foam hard, but otherwise, many folks have tried similar things. Adding sugar might be a better approach since it is purer than vodka.
When I dosed sugar once, many of my corals turned brown. Probably zooxanthallae growing much faster.
One thing to be concerned with is low oxygen as the bacteria use O2 to metabolize the ethanol (or sugar).
So whatever you do, start very slowly.
In general, growing and harvesting macroalgae is likely to be a better approach."
That's possible, though most of the threads I read the browning issue in were large colonies of acros, and my acros are pretty small still. If they get their color back anyway, I'm not too worried about some initial browning, but I am hoping for some better color and growth in the end.
As far as the O2, I have that covered with my powerheads hitting the surface already, and I've got a total of 32x turnover for the SPS and tangs (they need higher O2 levels as it is), so I'm hoping it won't be an issue.
I think I will start splitting up the doses throughout the day though.
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
So reading in some of the Italian tank sites they are having good results vodka dosing and using the Prodibio product. Have you don any research about that product Monk?
 
m0nk

m0nk

Active Member
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/2873689
So reading in some of the Italian tank sites they are having good results vodka dosing and using the Prodibio product. Have you don any research about that product Monk?
Nope, never heard of it. What's it do?
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
Prodibio Bio Kit Nano
Prodibio Bio Kit Nano
$49.95 $48.95
NEW Prodibio BIO KIT NANO
Nano Reef is a full range of products specially designed for the care of small reef tanks. This 20 vial kit is a 10 week care program for nano reefs up to 40 Litres (10 gallons).
BIO DIGEST Nano eliminates organic waste and ensures the best water quality by reducing nitrates and phosphates.
BIOPTIM Nano enhances the action of the bacteria from Bio DIGEST Nano by supplying trace elements and vitamins.
REEF BOOSTER Nano is finely micronized food, enriches with essential W-3 fatty acids. It has been designed for feeding invertebrates, hard corals and live rocks.
IODI + Nano helps the corals maintain their natural colors and prevents bleaching by supplying iodine, and essential element for their growth.
STRONTI+ Nano is a source of strontium, which is essential for the growth of red calcareous algae, and of the skeleton of hard corals.
Dosage Every 15 days:
BIO DIGEST Nano: 1 vial up to 40 litres ( 10 gallons )
BIOPTIM Nano: 1 vial up to 40 litres ( 10 gallons )
IODI + Nano: 1 vial up to 40 litres ( 10 gallons )
STRONTI + Nano: 1 vial up to 40 litres ( 10 gallons )
Dosage Every Week:
REEF Booster Nano: 1 vial / 40 Litres ( 10 gallons ).
STRONGLY SHAKE VIALS for 15 Sec. BEFORE USE - DISPOSE OF EMPTY VIALS SAFELY KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
There is a company out there called Aquarium Specialty and on their website they have a forum specifically for Prodibio users and their results.
 
jam marine

jam marine

Member
Just to add my 2 cents,i have just started dosing vodka,when i say just i am coming up on my second week,my reason for dosing ,high phosphates and nitrates,if dosed as recommended you will see a noticeable difference within the first few days,i did within day 5,before dosing i noticed my acros were not as colourful,but now they have started to regain their bright colours.I started dosing for a 1oo gln tank .04 mls,i am now up to 1.8 mls a day,i split the dosing half in the am,and half in the early pm for consistency,i will continue to keep you updated .
 
kholla12

kholla12

Member
Monk
Vodka does work well.Can I try to tell you to use sugar and vinagar also.I use all 3 in my 60g system.and it has brought the ate and phos levels WAY down.If you want any more info from me let me know.
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
So have any of you experienced the white milky bacteria bloom I have read about. It seems that when that happens you are supposed to cut your dosing amount in half. Is that correct?
 
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