ALK test is very high Please help

[new2salt2]

well did my alk test again and it read over 200PPM. what causes it to go so high and how do i lower it in my tank.

my calcium was almost 600PPM .. please help. I have done water changes already and it didnt seem to help

[Poseidon]

??????

Alk is usually tested in either meq/l or dkH. WHere is the 200 ppm coming from? What test kit?

[new2salt2]

ok my bad. it is over 200 MEQ/L. umm using a LaMotte test.

[Poseidon]

That sounds INSANELY HIGH!! By chance did you use Instant Ocean? They had a REALLY bad batch come out, and the tell tale sign was cloudy water and INSANELY HIGH ALK readings.

Here is a link to the thread that was posted here by Ninong, and it has a link in it to Reef Centrals thread.

That could be the cause.

[new2salt2]

yup thats what i have and its a 5 gal bucket but it is old have had it about a year. I tested 2 timse with a LaMotte tester and had to fill the plunger up 2 times

[Poseidon]

Hmmm, I would take a sample to a LFS and have them test it, just to rule out your test kit.

[new2salt2]

well you wont believe it but i did that today. Guy told me theydont test for either even in their tanks. He said that the additives that he uses is a every other day dose and everthing seems to work fine in his tank so he do fix what aint broke. I looked and they dont even sell calcium or alk tests either. BOught mine on line.

[Reefland]

I don't think it is possible that your water's ALK is 200 meq/L. I am not familiar with the LaMotte ALK test kits; perhaps Ninong uses one and can help out. If I recall correctly, he uses Salifert and LaMotte but I am not sure if he uses LaMotte for his Calcium or ALK?

Either way, I don't think 200 meq/l is possible so I would read through the instructions and test again.

Scott Z.

[new2salt2]

i read the instructions.. but the markings count of numbers and one plunger is 200.. ill double check and see if there is a conversion formula i missed. thanks for the help. and any one familar with this test please let me know how to read it.

[LazyReef]

1 meq/L is equal to 50 ppm CaCO3. So you have 4 meq/L. NSW is 2.1-2.5 and reefs and fish tanks like to run 3.8 or so. You are fine. I use IO all the time. It is the best salt for the money. Stay away from all that trendy crap. I like Tropic Marin better, but it is too expensive. Mostly I get my water out of the ocean. It's free right? But, I always keep a bucket of I/O around, just in case. (Hope I can say name brands on this board, if not I Apologize in advance and let me know)

[new2salt2]

so divide the MEQ/L result on plunger by 50?

my total was 230 divided by 50 puts me at 4.6 MEQ/L isnt that still a bit high?

[Reefland]

4 - 4.5 isn't toooo high. I wouldn't worry with doing a bunch of water changes to try and bring it down.

Scott Z.

[Ninong]

so divide the MEQ/L result on plunger by 50?

my total was 230 divided by 50 puts me at 4.6 MEQ/L isnt that still a bit high?

The reading on the plunger is in ppm CaCO3, as already mentioned by LazyReef. Divide that number by 50 to get mEq/L or by 17.9 to get dKH, or simply multiply the mEq/L by 2.8 to get dKH.

If you are getting a reading of 230 ppm CaCO3 on the direct reading titrator then that means you have 4.6 mEq/L or 12.9 dKH. That would be a little on the high side but not by much. My ideal range is 10-12 dKH. I believe Delbeek & Sprung suggest a range of 7-10 dKH in their books. I wouldn't worry about it until it starts to get above 14 or 15 dKH because once it starts to get too high it screws up your calcium levels.

Are you sure you are being very careful to stop as soon as you get to the color purple, which is the endpoint? Once it turns red you are past the endpoint. Also, make sure you don't have air bubbles in the titrator.

As for the response you got from the dude at the LFS, well, what can I say. Those geniuses never cease to amaze me. He probably did his early work at Wal-Mart. Or PetCo.

[new2salt2]

LOL....yea i lost a lot of faith in the LFS guys. umm as for the ALK test it goes red then purple then instructions say to go until it turns blue. You posted above to stop at purple . but i do stop when i get the color change, although if you talked to my wife she swears i am color blind because of how i match my clothes.

my calcium seems to be very high tho. i mixed fresh salt water and tested it and it was at 450 alone.. so ill have to prolly do one more change to bring down the calcium a bit from576,

thanks for all your help on the Alk test figures tho.. nothing in my instructions says to divide to get my MEQ and DKh

[Ninong]

LOL....yea i lost a lot of faith in the LFS guys. umm as for the ALK test it goes red then purple then instructions say to go until it turns blue.

No, it doesn't. That's the calcium test that starts out red then changes to purple and finally has a blue endpoint. The alkalinity test starts out blue-green and then it changes to purple, which is the endpoint. Red is the color you get when you have gone past the endpoint.

thanks for all your help on the Alk test figures tho.. nothing in my instructions says to divide to get my MEQ and DKh

You're right, the instructions don't say anything about how to convert ppm calcium carbonate to mEq/L or dKH.

[new2salt2]

yea.. my bad yoru right.. and yea i did stop at purple at least what i saw as purple.. i still get around 4.6 MEQ.. if that is ok will the 576PPM calcium hurt anything? now a day later and it is still same.

[Ninong]

yea.. my bad yoru right.. and yea i did stop at purple at least what i saw as purple.. i still get around 4.6 MEQ.. if that is ok will the 576PPM calcium hurt anything? now a day later and it is still same.

It is difficult to get 576 ppm calcium without getting precipitation. In any event, assuming your test results are accurate, I would discontinue dosing any calcium or alkalinity supplements until your numbers come down. I suggest you shoot for 10-12 dKH alkalinity and 425-475 ppm calcium.

[new2salt2]

ninong you are suppose to add for 3 sections on the calcium test for the solution that remains in the plunger tip right? that would add 12 to my results. but what about the ALK test? same? nothing is mentioned in the instructions.

[Ninong]

ninong you are suppose to add for 3 sections on the calcium test for the solution that remains in the plunger tip right?

No. You need to re-read the instructions. My instructions don't say anything like that. If you are getting a reading of 112 on the direct reading titrator (plunger), then you would multiply that by 5.16 to get 578 ppm calcium.

but what about the ALK test? same? nothing is mentioned in the instructions.

You are misunderstanding the instructions for the calcium test.