Moving Tank to Zeovit - Cloudy Water

[MileHighEndus]

Hello!
I just started the Zeovit system 2 days ago and am noticing cloudy water. It's not so cloudy that you can't see through it, but its definitely noticeably cloudy, especially when looking the long way down the tank. I'm not sure if I should be concerned or not, or if I should look into UV sterilization. Your input is appreciated. I've seen two different guides for Zeovit that vary slightly, so your input on my dosing regiment would also be much appreciated.

Excited to join this active community, and thanks for taking a look!

Zeovit - 1L bag in reactor w/ carbon back on top of stones, 19 Gallons/hour flow through reactor currently.
Zeobak - 6 drops daily for first 2 weeks, then 2-3 times weekly.
Zeofood - 36 drops first week, 12 for following weeks
Zeostart - 1 ML/day
Sponge Power - 6 drops every other day
Pohl's Extra - 3 ML / day
Coral Booster - 6 drops everyone other day
Flatworm Stop - 6 drops per day
Coral Vitalizer - 6 drops 3 times a week
Amino Acid Conc - 6 drops 3 times a week
Amio acid Conc LPS - 3 ML/day


1. Gross water volume of your complete system (incl. sump etc.) - 125 display with 55 sump about half full (150 estimated total water)
3. Are you using a CaCO2 reactor or other technique no
4. Are you using a PO4 reactor (how long, how long ago, etc.) Previously used GFO, stopped when zeovit started
5. Are you using Ozone no
6. Are you using UV no
7. What skimmer are you using (type, rated water volume) Reef Octopus 110 int
8. What are your actual PO4 and NO3 levels po4- .25, no3 - 2.5
9. What are your actual Ca, Alk and Mg levels ca 450 alk 9.21 mg 1382
10. What filtration method do you use (refugium, DSB, Miracle Mud, etc.) Refugium w/ Chaeto, skimmer
11. Type of light (Watt, color temp, how old, etc.) 3 AI Primes (2 26's, 1 64)
12. What corals do you keep -Mixed reef
13. Tissue color (light or dark) dark
14. How long has the tank been running 3 years
15. Why do you want to use the ZEOvit system - Growing SPS colonies
16. Any supplemental dosing (type, amount, why, etc.) See Above
17. Live rock (how much, how old, etc.) ~100 pounds established live rock
18. Any present problems Cloudy Water
19. Problem description (tissue loss tips, tissue loss base, diatom bloom, algae, etc.) Noticed cloudy water over the past few days, as well as an increase of brown in sand.
20. What test kit do you use (how old, recently switched, etc.) hanna for no3 po4, trident for minerals
21. Present dosing, amounts and intervals (ZEOvit, ZEObak, ZEOfood, ZEOstart, ZEOspur2, etc.) See Above
22. Other water parameters and water stability (salinity, temp, etc.)1,025 salt and ph 8.1 , 78 degree tank
23. Which salt brand do you use - Kent, but swapping to tropic marin reef pro as soon as it arrives for lower Alk (Large water change planned)

[MileHighEndus]

Picture of water from side

[jacky]

Hello MileHighEndus, first of all, I'm sorry, I don't have very good experience with water mist, but it looks like "carbon source and bacteria". I can’t get a clear picture of the net volume from your tank’s basic information. If the net volume is 600 liters (if I understand it is correct), I would suggest you:

The zeolite material is 1.5 liters, and the flow rate through the reactor is 600 liters maximum per hour. The reactor operates on and off every 3hr，Pull the lever to rotate the mixing material several times in the morning and evening twice a day
(If my understanding is correct, the reactor flow rate is low, let us gradually increase the flow rate to the recommended level, and gradually increase the zeolite material to the recommended amount)


KZ carbon 0.6 liters, use net bag, passive flight, change every 30 days，Pull the mesh bag twice a day in the morning and evening to turn the carbon over

Due to the high level of nutrition, Zeo growth health coloring products let us temporarily stop adding, and only keep the reduced nutrition basic products (Zeo Bac/Start/SpongPower) ，Zeo Food can be used later to adjust the appearance of corals.

1. Not sure if you have any other potions other than Zeo products
2. Not sure if you have additional ways to use products that reduce nutrition, etc.
3. Unsure of the supplementary way to increase Kh and Ca

The basic water parameters seem to be high. Let us ensure that the salinity is correct and as stable as possible at the NSW level. Zeo CoralSow 6ml 2 times a week, and 12 drops of BioMate (2 weeks), which can accelerate the support of biological health

Make sure to use water as the best, TDS is 0, salt + water, change water 10% every week, and vacuum the sand to refresh the elements in a balanced manner

[G.Alexander]

Welcome to ZeoVit.com !

I do see it like Jacky, nutrients in your system are elevated so some of the products you use should be stopped until the system runs nutrient poor stabile.

As I expect the water volume you have posted is US gallons I would calculate the net water volume of your system to ~ 120 US gallons. For this volume I would recommend to continue dosing as follows:

ZeoBac - 5 drops daily for first 2 weeks, then 2-3 times weekly
ZeoStart – 0,55 ml 2 x daily (morning / evening)
SpongePower – 5 drops every other day

Use 1.2 Liter ZeoVit with a water flow of 120 US gallons per hour. Connect the reactor pump to a time and run it with a 3 hour on/off interval. While the pump is off the material should not be exposed to air. Do this until two weeks after the first ZeoVit exchange. If all goes well you can than switch the reactor to continuous flow.

Run 0.45 liter activated carbon passively in the sump and knead the material daily to prevent channeling, replace it every 4 weeks. Later you can run it on the top of the ZeoVit but reduce the quantity to 0.2 liters and replace it every 3 weeks.

Basic water parameters looking good, try to keep them as stabile as possible close the NSW in the following ranges:

KH 6.5 – 7.5
Ca 400 – 420 mg
Mg 1250 – 1300 mg
K+ ~ 380 mg

For a nutrient poor environment K+ (potassium) seems to be a important element. I would recommend you to get a test kit for this element also, posting your results.

Please post a update in about 2 weeks, the brown film and the cloudiness should disappear over the time.

G.Alexander

[MileHighEndus]

Thank you G.Alexander. I believe my water volume to be approximately 150 gallons. Based on your feedback, I would think I should adjust to the following:

6 drops ZeoBac daily for first 2 weeks
Zeostart - 1.4 ML daily (I have a dosing pump, so it will be continuously dosed throughout the day)
Sponge Power - 6 drops every other day

I have ordered a salifert potassium test kit. Thank you for the advice!

[G.Alexander]

Keep in mind that the dosage is based on the net water volume of your system. Usually you can calculate it by using the gross volume minus 20% for rocks / equipment / sand ect.

G.Alexander

[MileHighEndus]

Good to know! I will adjust accordingly. Thanks for your advice, will check back in 2 weeks from now

[MileHighEndus]

Hello!

Update on the tank - I am now at the 2 week mark since checking in last. Water is no longer cloudy. Running on a 3 hours on, 3 hours off schedule with Zeolite media.

Current water params are as follows:
PH - 8.1
KH - 7
Calcium - 420
Magnesium - 1200
Phosphates - .1
Nitrates - 2 ppm

Am I in good shape to start adding additional additives? I would like to start adding:
Zeofood -
Pohl's Extra -
Coral Booster -
Flatworm Stop -
Coral Vitalizer -
Amino Acid Conc
Amio acid Conc LPS

Am I in good shape to start with these additives? Should I wait longer due to elevated PO4? I'm thinking about adding some phosphate remover to get them even lower.

Let me know your thoughts!

[G.Alexander]

As long as nutrients are elevated and corals have not started to get lighter tissue because of the nutrient reduction I would recommend you to stay at the basics. If you like to you can add 2 drops CoralVitalizer / 25 US gallons 1-2 x weekly already.

Using a PO4 absorber is not recommended additional to the system and can cause issues to the corals so my recommendation is to keep the system running without and giving it some time. If you do the first ZeoVit exchange in 2 weeks and of another one or two weeks have passed and your corals are doing fine you can switch the reactor to continuous flow which will also have a positive impact to nutrients.

Basic water parameters are fine, keep them as stabile as possible and make sure to keep the K+ level at ~ 380 mg.

G.Alexander

[jacky]

Let us continue with the plan in #4 (the first zeolite material is retained in the first 4 weeks to ensure that the reactor flow level is correct) clean the collection cup and adjust the Skimmer to wet to make it more mud outlet.While changing the water, vacuum the sand as much as possible

Zeo CoralSnow can be added to the dosing plan
BioMate products can also be added to the plan

Obtain potassium test kit, release level

Most of Zeo nutrition coloring health products, it is best to add when the nutrition is poor. Zeo CV can be added to the dosing plan, it seems to have a positive and enhancing effect on biological improvement

[MileHighEndus]

Update: Tank has been doing very well! I am still facing an issue with phosphates being high, though. (.4 last test)

Any advice for getting phosphates down?

[G.Alexander]

Thank you for your update, not 100% sure about the PO4 level you have posted, is it 0.4 mg actual ?

How often do you exchange the ZeoVit material and do you still use the 3 hour on / off interval for the ZeoVit reactor ?

Please also measure the reactor flow by collecting water from the outlet for 30 seconds with a small container. Multiply the volume by 120 and you will get the exact output per hour.

Please also post your actual full dosing regimen.

G.Alexander

[MileHighEndus]

Hi Alex,

Thanks so much for your support in the past.

I have noticed that my P04 and Nitrates are slowly increasing. Over the past few months, they have steadily gotten higher, and some of my coral is starting to respond negatively.

Last test showed .57 phosphate and 25 nitrate.

I am water changing 2 gallons per day, and am dosing 1.2ML zeostart per day. Any idea why my nitrate / phosphate would be going up? Should I increase the amount of zeostart to be dosed?

[jacky]

The nutritional level of the last test you posted was really high. Since the initial establishment of tanks, what is their nutritional level? How often do you change the ZeoVit material and do you still use the 3 hour on/off interval of the ZeoVit reactor?

Please also use a small container to collect water from the outlet for 30 seconds to measure the flow rate of the reactor. Multiply the volume by 120 and you will get an accurate output per hour. Please also post actual results.

Please also publish your actual complete dosing regimen.

[MileHighEndus]

Hello,

125 gallon tank with a 55 gallon sump.

I use filter socks that I change every 3 days.

My current flow rate is 71 gallons per hour through 1.2 liters of Zeovit media housed in an Avast Vibe reactor. I change my media every 7 weeks.

I dose 5 drops of Zeobak every 4 days.
I dose 10 drops of Coral Vitalizer every 4 days.
I dose 5 drops of sponge power every 2 days.
I change my carbon once a month.
I automatically dose 1.2ml of ZeoStart every day.

System has been slowly rising in nitrate and phosphate over the past month. I feed pellets twice a day, and frozen food once a day (2-3 cubes).