Dosing Mg

[Madreefer]

A cheap easy alternative is
50lb bag of Easy Start brand icemelter for your driveway $40
4kg jug of Epsom Salts $5
Mix it 11-1
I use 1/2cup per 5gallons of freshwater in my top up resevoir.
Been using this for a couple of years now. You can't really argue that it's unsafe for reef tanks as I learned this from whatcaneydo and well, look at pics of his tank

[Reef Pilot]

Well, I used up my 600 g Mg from Seachem, and managed to raise it from 1260 to 1350. Didn't seem to make any difference to my alk or Ca consumption and parameters, and my corals were not at all affected.

So will leave it for now, and see where it goes from her.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by Madreefer

A cheap easy alternative is
50lb bag of Easy Start brand icemelter for your driveway $40
4kg jug of Epsom Salts $5
Mix it 11-1
I use 1/2cup per 5gallons of freshwater in my top up resevoir.
Been using this for a couple of years now. You can't really argue that it's unsafe for reef tanks as I learned this from whatcaneydo and well, look at pics of his tank

Well, my Mg didn't stay up for very long, back down to 1260 now. So I think I am going to have to get serious about dosing.

Where do you buy this Easy Start ice melter? And where is a good place to get a 4 kg jug of Epsom salts?

I don't use a top off reservoir. After mixing the Easy Start and Epsom Salts (11:1), can I add that mixture (after figuring out the appropriate amount) to my Ca dosing? Or do I need to set up a 3rd dosing pump? And what time of day is it best to dose Mg? Currently I dose Ca during the day and Alk at night.

[Madreefer]

I picked up mine from Amco. The epsom salts from Shoppers Drug Mart. I add a half a cup of the mixture to 5G of freshwater for my reservoir. Stays consistant at 1350. Whatcaneyedo is the dude that got me on to this. I'm pretty sure he adds a cup of the mixture to his water change but dont quote me on that. Shoot him a PM he's pretty helpful. Good luck bro

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by Madreefer

I picked up mine from Amco. The epsom salts from Shoppers Drug Mart. I add a half a cup of the mixture to 5G of freshwater for my reservoir. Stays consistant at 1350. Whatcaneyedo is the dude that got me on to this. I'm pretty sure he adds a cup of the mixture to his water change but dont quote me on that. Shoot him a PM he's pretty helpful. Good luck bro

Thanks. Don't think we have an Amco wholesale in the lower mainland. Anybody know where I can get the Easy Start here?

[Aquattro]

Every time I read these threads, I'm almost tempted to measure my Mg

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by Aquattro

Every time I read these threads, I'm almost tempted to measure my Mg

Are you suggesting I should hold off? I sure would like to.

What gets me is my Mg was running at 1260 before I raised it to 1350, and then a month+ later it is back to 1260??

And I should add that my Ca and Alk have been stable all along with my dosing. Maybe I should leave the Mg alone?

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

Are you suggesting I should hold off? I sure would like to.

No, suggesting I should get off my lazy ass and test my Mg

[gregzz4]

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

can I add that mixture (after figuring out the appropriate amount) to my Ca dosing? And what time of day is it best to dose Mg? Currently I dose Ca during the day and Alk at night.

Not a good idea to mix the Mg and Ca. The Mg will cause Ca sulphates to precipitate and ruin your Ca mix so you'll need a third doser. But many get by with hand dosing as it's not so much once balanced
You can dose the Mg anytime between your other dosing. Just pick a time dead center between your Ca and Alk timers - day or night is fine as far as I know
And if you're not needing to add much (once balanced), you could get by with a cheap daily drip setup, or just dump it in
I don't even know anyone with a dedicated Mg doser ... but I'm sure there's lots out there
I know if I had to dose it I'd have another pump

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by gregzz4

Not a good idea to mix the Mg and Ca. The Mg will cause Ca sulphates to precipitate and ruin your Ca mix so you'll need a third doser. But many get by with hand dosing as it's not so much once balanced
You can dose the Mg anytime between your other dosing. Just pick a time dead center between your Ca and Alk timers - day or night is fine as far as I know
And if you're not needing to add much (once balanced), you could get by with a cheap daily drip setup, or just dump it in
I don't even know anyone with a dedicated Mg doser ... but I'm sure there's lots out there
I know if I had to dose it I'd have another pump

Well, I did just buy a 3rd doser (50ml/min high speed type), so I could do that. But that brings me back to the question of what type of Mg to buy. I could not find that East Start stuff around here. And not sure if I can trust some of the ice melters that I saw online, as they don't list ingredients.

I guess I could just buy more of that Seachem Advantage Mg from J&L, but it is not cheap for the amount I would require on an ongoing basis.