twinston

some of live rock have this white layer on them. this is covering some of the coraline algae that came with the rock. i read an article that high levels of calcium in the water can cause it to be deposited. i have been using purple up since i do want growth of good algae and not bad. i was just reading the bottle and realised that it can significantly raise my calcium levels. since i'm only doing a fowlr i didn't get a calcium tester, but i'll be doing that tomorrow just to be sure. if calcium is high, how doi reduce it. i'm still in the process of cycling my tank. ammonia is now 0, but nitrite is at 1.0 and nitrate has dropped to 20. my ph is at about 8.2. alkalinity is at about 4. that seems high to me. can i do a water change at this time in the cycling process and how much? i was going to wait and do a 50% at the end of the cycling process.

sgould

How long have you had the rock in the tank? It is normal for new rock to whiten during the curing process, then color back up again later. Even so, getting a calcium test is still a good idea, as you never want to add supplements that you aren't testing for first to be sure you actually need them.

Tumbleweed

New tanks will also be high in calcium, there is nothing in the tank yet to use it. Also more water changes will not really lower your calcium. Most salt mixes contain high levels of clacium in them to help replenish the calcium that is used in the tank. Your tank is still cycling the best thing that you can do at the moment is to just let it be and let it finish on it's own.

twinston

i finally got the kit to test my calcium level and it is over 540. that is high isn't it. is there anytning i can do to lower it to a reasonable level.

Oil_Fan

That is high. From what I've been reading, normal is around 400-450. But I don't have a clue as to how to lower it.

Slug

Wait until it finishes cycling, do a WC after its done and see what the readings are then. What type of salt are you using? Or are you getting premixed SW?

I'd cut the purple up personally, never once heard of it actually doing what it claims. If you keep the tank perfect the coraline will grow naturally. A good two part dosing system that balances Calcium and Alk does the trick, instead of one that just does calcium like PurpleUp.

Coraline algae bleaches white when exposed to air for a certain amount of time. And it can also come in many many colors. White, purple, red, yellow, etc. This rock was almost white when i got it, a little bit of color here and there. Over time it will turn into what it looks like here/now.

twinston

i'm using oceanic salt. i have a water change scheduled for tomorrow. i'll let you know how things work out.