Calcium and Carbon Question
 

Hi, i have a simple question. Does carbon that i have in my canister filter take the calcium out of my water??? For some reason i cant get the calcium above 200 even with water changes just about every 3 days. The calcium level in the fresh sal****er that i make up is testing at about 440 and im exchanging about 5 gallons of the 55 gallon tank water for 5 gallons of freshly made sal****er. i was just wondering if it has anything to do with the carbon i have in the fluval filter.
Thanks for the help.

BLONDIE!! (dont be fooled by the name! :-) lol)

blondie wrote:
Hi, i have a simple question. Does carbon that i have in my canister
filter take the calcium out of my water??? For some reason i cant get
the calcium above 200 even with water changes just about every 3 days.
The calcium level in the fresh sal****er that i make up is testing at
about 440 and im exchanging about 5 gallons of the 55 gallon tank water
for 5 gallons of freshly made sal****er. i was just wondering if it has
anything to do with the carbon i have in the fluval filter.
Thanks for the help.

BLONDIE!! (dont be fooled by the name! :-) lol)


No the Carbon will not remove the calcium. What is your alk of your
water and what is your magnesium?


Have you tried larger water changes to see if that helps the problem?

Kim Gross
www.jensalt.com

Thanks, i didnt think that carbon did remove the calcium but i wasnt 100% sure. However, regarding your question, I dont test for alk or magnesium. I actually didnt even know there were tests for each of these. I also dont understand the importance of the alk test either. If you could fill me in i would really appreciate it. In the mean time i think i might start doing larger water changes.

BLONDIE!

blondie wrote:
kim gross Wrote:

blondie wrote:-
Hi, i have a simple question. Does carbon that i have in my canister
filter take the calcium out of my water??? For some reason i cant
get
the calcium above 200 even with water changes just about every 3
days.
The calcium level in the fresh sal****er that i make up is testing at
about 440 and im exchanging about 5 gallons of the 55 gallon tank
water
for 5 gallons of freshly made sal****er. i was just wondering if it
has
anything to do with the carbon i have in the fluval filter.
Thanks for the help.

BLONDIE!! (dont be fooled by the name! :-) lol)

-
No the Carbon will not remove the calcium. What is your alk of your
water and what is your magnesium?

Have you tried larger water changes to see if that helps the problem?

Kim Gross
www.jensalt.com


Thanks, i didnt think that carbon did remove the calcium but i wasnt
100% sure. However, regarding your question, I dont test for alk or
magnesium. I actually didnt even know there were tests for each of
these. I also dont understand the importance of the alk test either. If
you could fill me in i would really appreciate it. In the mean time i
think i might start doing larger water changes.

BLONDIE!


Alk and calcium are closely linked. If one is off, it can cause the
other one to be off. On Magnesium, if it is to low you will have a very
hard time to keep your calcium level right. Normally your calcium level
will not be higher than 1/3 of your magnesium level. You can get these
test kits either online or hopefully from your local fish store.
Salifert is a good brand of test kits to look for.
Rather than me try to explain alk, I would suggest you read this.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-12/rhf/index.php

Hey, thanks for the info, it has been very helpful. I just purchased a salifert magnesium test kit and i already have a calcium test kit. I also just purchased a 2 part calcium/magnesium supplement (C-Balance...not sure if u ever heard of it) so maybe that will help in my calcium/mag balance. Thanks again for your help. Ive been trying to get this whole sal****er thing down but ive only been doing fish only tanks which is much easier than incorporating corals, which is my goal. Wish me luck.
Thanks,
BLONDIE!!

Calcium and Carbon Question
 

Hi!
This is my first post in this group and let me start by telling you that you
are approaching the problem in the wrong way.
You are assuming that Ca is being extracted somehow from your tank. Maybe
is just not getting in.
To start, my aquarium has an over the top, 520 mg/l, reading on Ca which is
not to be worried. Although Ca can messup your PH, any amount of it is
good.
My suggestion is to incorporate in your system a good amount of crushed
shells. It can be added to your landscape or in a net in your biofilter.
Anywhere that the water circulates is a good place.

In my case, the crushed shells are part of my soil around the sand. If the
calcium is there, shells are formed of Ca, it will be incorporated in your
water column naturally.

My systems use a different approach becoming a micro-ecosystem. All the
known cycles happen in them and work for me. For more than 5 months I
haven't have to do one water chance and the readings are steady.

Good luck and don't add processed Ca to your system, the buffers will
desestabilize your aquarium.

jrs

"blondie" wrote in message
...

Hi, i have a simple question. Does carbon that i have in my canister
filter take the calcium out of my water??? For some reason i cant get
the calcium above 200 even with water changes just about every 3 days.
The calcium level in the fresh sal****er that i make up is testing at
about 440 and im exchanging about 5 gallons of the 55 gallon tank water
for 5 gallons of freshly made sal****er. i was just wondering if it has
anything to do with the carbon i have in the fluval filter.
Thanks for the help.

BLONDIE!! (dont be fooled by the name! :-) lol)


--
blondie