Alcohol Dosing in a Reef Tanks

[mark]

Originally Posted by albert_dao

There's a lot of instances out there where longterm vodka dosing causes RANDOM dieoffs of everything in the tank - everything!

The main cause is depleted oxygen.

Wouldn't good aeration/surface agitation be able to keep up to O2?

[albert_dao]

No, because the rate that monocultures reach critical mass is explosive. One day, there's enough oxygen for everyone, the next day, the bacterial mass doubles, doubles, then doubles again and smothers everything out. A bit of surface aggitation cannot alleviate that kind of momentum.

[fencer]

I agree with Alberts comment. This is why I decided not to dose to the max. carrying capicity of the system. But rather to dose for supplemental carbon source. The fact that in past readings people dosed till bacterial started buliding visible slime colonies made me decide to back way off the dosing regimen some people were advocating.

[BC Mosaic]

Originally Posted by fencer

.......dosing at 2ml/100gallons over a period of 6 hours. I stopped when I noticed changes in the tank. This was a a dose rate of 10ml of alcohol/day.......

The dose rate of 10ml of alcohol/day, was this done over a 6 hour span or did you just add it all at once to your sump?
Thanks

[Der_Iron_Chef]

Originally Posted by albert_dao

No, because the rate that monocultures reach critical mass is explosive. One day, there's enough oxygen for everyone, the next day, the bacterial mass doubles, doubles, then doubles again and smothers everything out. A bit of surface aggitation cannot alleviate that kind of momentum.

Why must there be a monoculture? I know the ZEObac, as well as Prodibio's products, include several strains of beneficial bacterias. When dosing vodka, many people are continuing to add these products (bacterias) to their systems. As well, the rationale behind the Vodka-Sugar-Vinegar mixture is that different carbon sources feed different bacterias more readily. So having 3 different carbon sources makes a monoculture highly unlikely.

[fencer]

I was drip feeding it. It just worked out to 10ml/6hrs( I had to cut it with 500 ml of water too)

[albert_dao]

Originally Posted by Der_Iron_Chef

Why must there be a monoculture? I know the ZEObac, as well as Prodibio's products, include several strains of beneficial bacterias. When dosing vodka, many people are continuing to add these products (bacterias) to their systems. As well, the rationale behind the Vodka-Sugar-Vinegar mixture is that different carbon sources feed different bacterias more readily. So having 3 different carbon sources makes a monoculture highly unlikely.

Well, I'd agree with you, except for that fact that the system is hardly refined and people still get monoculture blooms. Maybe it's the ratios or the types of carbon sources, who knows.

[Reefer Rob]

Mono-culture is a myth promoted by companies like Zeovit to sell their products. I'm pretty sure all of the strains of bacteria in their products (which are likely the same ones that are already in our aquariums) can be cultured with ethanol or glucose.

The thing with carbon dosing is that once your aquarium is no longer carbon limited it can build up in your aquarium. All it takes is for one thing to die off to start an oxygen depleting chain reaction as more dying corals and provide the nutrients that will be used by the bacteria until the carbon source is consumed.

[PoonTang]

I dont dose Vodka but i do dose Vinegar in with my makeup water and Kalk at a rate of 10ml/gal of makeup. Tank has been running for a year and I have 0 nuisance except for a little red diatoms in my fuge. I only have to clean my glass about every 5-7 days and thats more for the coraline that starts to form than any bacteria film. I have never run phosban or carbon and cheato refuses to grow in my fuge, its the same size now that it was 4 months ago.