magnesium testing important?

[Anthony.Luciano]

is it really necessary to test and dose mag. i change exactly 10% a week with ESV B-ionic salt. i want to have a big mixed reef. i know i will need to start dosing calcium later on but no ware in the time soon because the coral will never use it up that fast because theres barley any coral and i need to rebuild be tank now anyway. but is magnesium really that important if i do weekly water changes?

[funkejj]

If you have have hard coral then you need to test for Calcium, ALK, and Mag. They all go together if one drops the other two will get out of whack. You may not have to dose Mag as often as Alk, or Calcium but you need to know where the level is. And when coraline algae hits and grows in full force it will deplete calcium faster than you add in with water changes.

[Anthony.Luciano]

ok i guess i can test or mag its not that hard i just dont want to dose it. i am looking forward to start using kalkwasser do you think i can use just that as my dose and not have to do mag or alk. i heard it keeps the alk up and calcium and ph so i think it should be good if used properly.

Originally Posted by funkejj

If you have have hard coral then you need to test for Calcium, ALK, and Mag. They all go together if one drops the other two will get out of whack. You may not have to dose Mag as often as Alk, or Calcium but you need to know where the level is. And when coraline algae hits and grows in full force it will deplete calcium faster than you add in with water changes.

[thegrun]

Originally Posted by Anthony.Luciano

ok i guess i can test or mag its not that hard i just dont want to dose it. i am looking forward to start using kalkwasser do you think i can use just that as my dose and not have to do mag or alk. i heard it keeps the alk up and calcium and ph so i think it should be good if used properly.

Kalk will replace calcium and alkalinity, but not magnesium. Once you get it up to about 1350, magnesium levels stay fairly constant. I only have to dose once every two or three weeks.

[funkejj]

Thegrun is right. Dosing Mag is not a big deal at all. And from everything I read you really cant overdose it.

[dwd5813]

Mg at an appropriate level inhibits calcium carbonate precipitation. with appropriate Mg levels you can maintain high enough alk and calcium levels to provide corals with their necessary building blocks. with low Mg levels the alk and calcium gets used up in precipitation rather than coral growth.

[almostazoo]

this should help you decide what is best
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/blog.php?b=102

[Anthony.Luciano]

that thread had a lot of good info thanks.

Originally Posted by almostazoo

this should help you decide what is best
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/blog.php?b=102

[Anthony.Luciano]

ok thanks for all the info guys! i guess ill go buy an mg test kit one of these days. but if i ever see the magnesium go low can i just mix some of the magnesium stuff that comes with the esv salt or is there something else that i need to do to dose magnesium.

[eja99]

Originally Posted by funkejj

TAnd from everything I read you really cant overdose it.

This has not been my experience. Mag can paralyze and kill your inverts. I have also lost some sps raising Mag too quickly.

[eja99]

Originally Posted by Anthony.Luciano

ok thanks for all the info guys! i guess ill go buy an mg test kit one of these days. but if i ever see the magnesium go low can i just mix some of the magnesium stuff that comes with the esv salt or is there something else that i need to do to dose magnesium.

Maybe your LFS can test your mag and save you a few bucks on a test. With regular water changes your mag should remain pretty constant (unless you have a heavily stocked sps tank).

I use TechM when raising the MG in my tank.