Ionic Imbalance

[veliferium]

Can any kind reefers please explain wad is this..Saw it a few times in bro FuEl's tank

[veliferium]

Can anyone help?

[Gouldian]

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/calcalkmar.htm

[veliferium]

thanks a lot

[Gouldian]

No worries. Posted a more detailed link rather than giving you layman's explaination.

Hope you dun mind.

[veliferium]

But in Anthony Calfo's article,he didn't mention Ionic Imbalance.

Is it the deficieny of calcium ions and magnesium ions??

[Gouldian]

But in Anthony Calfo's article,he didn't mention Ionic Imbalance.

Is it the deficieny of calcium ions and magnesium ions??

Actually Ionic Imabalance can mean any chemical ions that have close relationship being disturbed.

In our hobby most Ionic Imbalance happens between Kh and Ca.

As A. Calfo has mentioned in the Book of Coral Propagation. Ca and Kh are just like different coloured marbles in a galss container filled to the brim. Increasing one will cause the other to drop.

And when you have to great a increase in one elements e.g. Ca in too short a time for the tank to handle you will expereience Ionic Imbalance if it is serious or just percipitation if it is not that serious.

[AquaRa]

it simply means more of a certain type of ion, and less of a particular desired type of ion.

[Gouldian]

To put in simpler, Ca and KH are two dudes sitting in a see-saw, when Ca weight increases, KH will rise. If it is a gradual incraese both will be able to handle it.

If this happens too fast KH or Ca will remain on top for a longer time causing percipitations.

But is Ca instead on sitting on the see-saw decides to jump onto the see-saw, the weight on his side will decrease and increase dramatically thus causing both to fall off the see-saw which cause Ionic Imbalance.

Usually when that happens, the reefers will have hard time correctly both parameters which causes the LS to be stressed and even die. The only solution is frequent smal part water changes.

[lightningstrike]

To put in simpler, Ca and KH are two dudes sitting in a see-saw, when Ca weight increases, KH will fall. if this happens you will get percipitations.

But is Ca instead on sitting on the see-saw decides to jump onto the see-saw, the weight on his side will decrease and increase dramatically thus causing both to fall off the see-saw which cause Ionic Imbalance.

good analogy.

[veliferium]

hmm,may considering partial water changes again

Have been doing that ever since March as this was what some guy from Iwarna told me.Then recently,went to ask around for other advice and this LFS told me that my softies are stressed out because of my salinity which is around 1.025,then he recommend me to lower it to 1.020 which i believe is hyposalinity.

Hmm,duno wad to do next.

Yesterday i just dosed me calcium and my softies seems to react better,they begin to expand much more.

[Gouldian]

hmm,may considering partial water changes again

Have been doing that ever since March as this was what some guy from Iwarna told me.Then recently,went to ask around for other advice and this LFS told me that my softies are stressed out because of my salinity which is around 1.025,then he recommend me to lower it to 1.020 which i believe is hyposalinity.

Hmm,duno wad to do next.

Yesterday i just dosed me calcium and my softies seems to react better,they begin to expand much more.

Sorry to hear about your plight bro.

Anyway, as A. Calfo has mentioned it all else fails "Dilution is the Best way to Pollution".

Anyway bro, if me my help, please feel free to PM me.

[veliferium]

ok, i will

[veliferium]

Thanks alot..Gouldian for your help...

Anyway,does many people face this Ionic Imbalance problem?

[ervine]

To put in simpler, Ca and KH are two dudes sitting in a see-saw, when Ca weight increases, KH will rise. If it is a gradual incraese both will be able to handle it.

If this happens too fast KH or Ca will remain on top for a longer time causing percipitations.

But is Ca instead on sitting on the see-saw decides to jump onto the see-saw, the weight on his side will decrease and increase dramatically thus causing both to fall off the see-saw which cause Ionic Imbalance.

Usually when that happens, the reefers will have hard time correctly both parameters which causes the LS to be stressed and even die. The only solution is frequent smal part water changes.

Good way to explain it.. but does Mg come into play in this analogy?

[Kelmen]

Yes, the Mg like the middle-man\balancer. If one having headache with try balancing Ca and KH, time to test your Mg.

If Mg out, dosing in Ca and KH only make them swing to 1 side (1 high and 1 low).

There are probably more mineral\ion needed to be stablize, but those are particularly out of our test kits power.

[Gouldian]

Great explanation Kelmon! Mg is the see-saw. Without it also cannot play liao.

Like I have said earlier, Ionic Imbalance encompass lots of different elements but for us in reefing the most common ones are Ca and KH, thus we cannot just says Ionic Imbalance = Ca and Kh imbalance.

[Reefaholic]

Good work Gouldian, very nicely put it for people to understand.

And a great fan of Anthony too.

[Gouldian]

Thanks bro, I am giving back what I have gain from this forum.

[FuEl]

Haha..yep..that occured when I was just still a sps noob venturing into the bottomless pit of sps fantasy. Always paranoid about things and trying to make them perfect. Dose Ca, Kalk, reef builder almost everyday. Test water very frequently. But probably did'nt dose them at the appropriate intervals. Then ionic imbalance set in. Then Joe_P came along.. persuaded me into getting a proper calcium reactor. Did water changes, calcium reactor in... bingo..no more ionic imbalance. Shriveled mushies bloomed, stressed sps recovered and grew, algae problems seemed to just go away and coralline took over. The wonders of a calcium reactor.

[veliferium]

Hmm, wad are the symptoms that tank inhabitants exhibit when there is ionic imbalance?

[Kelmen]

I guess the worst case can some "snowy" sediment\powery, probably some precipitation of something (dunno the details )

Generally, its not obvious in the water, but may observe from the grown\behavior of the marine stocks that need those mineral, like the coral.

In short, don't wait for symptoms. Do test. At least once per month.

[veliferium]

Do mushrooms start to shrivel,then detach themselves from the rock.My chromises start to die off one by one despite them being able to feed...

[ervine]

Haha..yep..that occured when I was just still a sps noob venturing into the bottomless pit of sps fantasy. Always paranoid about things and trying to make them perfect. Dose Ca, Kalk, reef builder almost everyday. Test water very frequently. But probably did'nt dose them at the appropriate intervals. Then ionic imbalance set in. Then Joe_P came along.. persuaded me into getting a proper calcium reactor. Did water changes, calcium reactor in... bingo..no more ionic imbalance. Shriveled mushies bloomed, stressed sps recovered and grew, algae problems seemed to just go away and coralline took over. The wonders of a calcium reactor.

But that's assuming your calcium intake by your tank is rather high right? If not CR will be overkill?

BTW, what does ionic imbalance have to do with shrooms? My shrooms also not doing too well but I attribute it to too high current...

[Gouldian]

But that's assuming your calcium intake by your tank is rather high right? If not CR will be overkill?

BTW, what does ionic imbalance have to do with shrooms? My shrooms also not doing too well but I attribute it to too high current...

I believe Fuel was into SPS thus the need to have Ca reactor.

Lots of stuffs can contribute to corals shrinking or dying. Yours might be due incorrect flow but another reefer might be due to water params.

Ionic Imbalance will affect all livetsocks in our tank. Simple because all of them depends highly on the water to carry oxygen, food, regulate temperature or even hydration. When Ionic Imabalance happens, it means that the KH and CA and even PH will go haywire - this will induce stress and even death.

Imagine what will happen to some of us if we were to drink ice cold lime juice once moment and hot milk the next moment - sure LS wan (for LS I dun mean Livestocks)