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Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned… · West Coast Reefers

@BackbayReef

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🧠Reef Guru

Joined May 2026265 posts1,033 pts★5.0(2)

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Water Chemistry·Sep 1·👁 97#1

Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned…

Confession: my last water change was 2 years ago. Not out of laziness — okay, mostly out of laziness — but because I truly believed a calcium reactor, a sulfur reactor, ozone, and two Abyzz pumps could out-engineer basic hygiene. They could not. My Zinc vanished. My Iodine went quiet. Tungsten showed up uninvited. A German lab sent me a PDF confirming my failure in six languages worth of red text. I accept my penance — dosing trace elements, maybe even a bucket someday. Brothers and sisters, I cannot bear this confessional alone. What are your reefing sins?

— /yolo

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@janiners305
SCRM😎 Cool KidsPolyp Whisperer
Joined Aug 202672 posts284 pts📍 Glendora, CA
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Sep 2#2
Same here! Water changes don’t happen in our tank until we see a problem…things seem to do better when we don’t mess with them. So until then, we dose. We should probably run an ICP one of these days……..

Share your experience…

— 105 gallon mixed reef - SPS/Torch/Goni

@BackbayReef

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🧠Reef GuruOP

Joined May 2026265 posts1,033 pts★5.0(2)

🔧 Build Contributor

Sep 2#3

@janiners305 wrote: Same here! Water changes don’t happen in our tank until we see a problem…things seem to do better when we don’t mess with them. So until then, we dose. We should probably run an ICP one of these days……..

Thank you! I felt so alone so figure I’ll get it off my chest and confess. 🤣 When was your last WC and do you test the basic 3 (Alk, NO3, PO4)? Also, do you run a controller?

— /yolo

@ktran

SCRM😎 Cool Kids⚡SPS Slinger

Joined May 2026161 posts683 pts★5.0(1)📍 Tustin, CA

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Sep 2#4

What's a water change??

— Always keeping it simple

@BackbayReef

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🧠Reef GuruOP

Joined May 2026265 posts1,033 pts★5.0(2)

🔧 Build Contributor

Sep 2#5

@ktran wrote: What's a water change??

Can’t speak for others but for me: a water change is the diet I swear I’ll start Monday — except it’s now Sunday, 24 months ago.

— /yolo

@janiners305

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🌸Polyp Whisperer

Joined Aug 202672 posts284 pts📍 Glendora, CA

🔧 Build Contributor

Sep 2#6

@BackbayReef wrote: Thank you! I felt so alone so figure I’ll get it off my chest and confess. 🤣 When was your last WC and do you test the basic 3 (Alk, NO3, PO4)? Also, do you run a controller?

Last water change was maybe May or June....I don't even remember....And it was only like 10 gallons. We run the Apex system and have the Trident testing 2x daily for Alk, Cal and Mag. NO3 and PO4 I test manually with the Salifert kits...When hubby doesn't like my results he double checks with the Hanna testers. I personally don't like them.

— 105 gallon mixed reef - SPS/Torch/Goni

@BackbayReef

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🧠Reef GuruOP

Joined May 2026265 posts1,033 pts★5.0(2)

🔧 Build Contributor

Sep 2#7

@janiners305 wrote: Last water change was maybe May or June....I don't even remember....And it was only like 10 gallons. We run the Apex system and have the Trident testing 2x daily for Alk, Cal and Mag. NO3 and PO4 I test manually with the Salifert kits...When hubby doesn't like my results he double checks with the Hanna testers. I personally don't like them.

Curious how reliable is your Trident? Some people reported hit/miss with it going bad. I do double-check and calibrate based on Hanna on occasions. My Trident NP is surprisingly “accurate”, very close to Hanna.

— /yolo

@BackbayReef

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🧠Reef GuruOP

Joined May 2026265 posts1,033 pts★5.0(2)

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Sep 2#8

This is my testing apparatus since I’m super lazy to do this manually. My gifted son 3d-printed the Trident-Mini’s to match the shelf. 😍

— /yolo

@janiners305

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🌸Polyp Whisperer

Joined Aug 202672 posts284 pts📍 Glendora, CA

🔧 Build Contributor

Sep 2#9

I love that!! It is so clean and sleek! How hard was it to swap over the internals to the minis? Our trident is usually within +/-0.8 for the alk. Cal is wayyyy off. I tested the other day with the Salifert and got 480, but the trident read 330. Mag is also within a point or 2 of the Saliferts. I'd like to grab the NP Trident, but we are now limited on space in the stand, so not quite sure where I'd put it.

— 105 gallon mixed reef - SPS/Torch/Goni

@Thresher

😎 Cool Kids⛰️Aquascaper

Joined Aug 202621 posts93 pts📍 On the beach preferably

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Sep 2#10

We've all been there brother. Backbayreef, you're not welcome here! Those PED have been banned for coral growth and you're running a lab.

🤣🤣

— Enjoy life, be nice!

@BackbayReef

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🧠Reef GuruOP

Joined May 2026265 posts1,033 pts★5.0(2)

🔧 Build Contributor

Sep 2#11

@Thresher wrote: We've all been there brother. Backbayreef, you're not welcome here! Those PED have been banned for coral growth and you're running a lab. 🤣🤣

As usual, you continue to crack me up!! lol Hey - I did change a few gallons the other day while acclimating my new angel. That counts, right? 😀

— /yolo

@BackbayReef

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🧠Reef GuruOP

Joined May 2026265 posts1,033 pts★5.0(2)

🔧 Build Contributor

Sep 2#12

@janiners305 wrote: I love that!! It is so clean and sleek! How hard was it to swap over the internals to the minis? Our trident is usually within +/-0.8 for the alk. Cal is wayyyy off. I tested the other day with the Salifert and got 480, but the trident read 330. Mag is also within a point or 2 of the Saliferts. I'd like to grab the NP Trident, but we are now limited on space in the stand, so not quite sure where I'd put it.

Super easy to swap over and no tools required. What’s cool - diagnosing stuck fluid/tubings with the mini is easy, just lift the lid. Topping off and replacing reagents is 10x easier - I hated sliding the old tray to replace reagents! If no longer on warranty, you should totally swap it out to save space.

— /yolo

@janiners305

SCRM😎 Cool Kids🌸Polyp Whisperer

Joined Aug 202672 posts284 pts📍 Glendora, CA

🔧 Build Contributor

Sep 2#13

@BackbayReef wrote: Super easy to swap over and no tools required. What’s cool - diagnosing stuck fluid/tubings with the mini is easy, just lift the lid. Topping off and replacing reagents is 10x easier - I hated sliding the old tray to replace reagents! If no longer on warranty, you should totally swap it out to save space.

Good to know. Thank you! I will ask hubby about the warranty. I think we got this one from a warranty swap last year, but my memory is garbage.

— 105 gallon mixed reef - SPS/Torch/Goni

Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned…

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