# I started Vodka Dosing today



## trouble93

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Well here we go...I started my Vodka dosing today. I am using Grey Goose Vodka 80 proof 40% alc by vol. Nothing but the best, but the type doesn't matter. I wanted to start this post with a few pics but my camera acts like it doesn't want to be part of this. I will get some up very soon.
The set up:
75gal mostly SPS a few LPS and a few Leathers. 2x 400watt Metal Halide with 20k XM bulbs 2x28watt T5's and one 48" 54watt 460NM Actinic. Light cycle Actinic come on 1pm T5's come on at 2pm MH on at 3 T5 out at 5pm MH out at 10pm Actinic out at 11:30pm. 700gph hang on over flow Maga flow 3 sump. 20gal fuge with Macro and Mangroves. Phosban reactor did have De*Nitrate in it but will replace with Carbon. 3 Moded Maxi-jet 1200 and a Mag 7 return pump for 7000gph over all flow.Protein Skimmer Coralife (hob)
Water perimeters:
Temp 80.1
Salinity1.026
PH 8.3
NO3(Nitrate)20+ppm
PO4(phosphate).5ppm
Cal.480
Alk.12.2
Mag.1450
Dosing: I dose 22ml of 2 part B-Ionic everyday for Cal. & Alk.
Starting dose of Vodka is .3ml for the first 3 days. Dosing accuracy is of the utmost importance. I had to take Net Water Volume dosing 1ml per 25gal of aquarium Volume. Did not count water Volume for sump,fuge,and reactor.
Reason for Vodka dosing:
As you can see my nitrates and phosphates or high for a stonie tank IMO for any reef tank I put 20+ because at times my NO3's go as high as 40ppm. There are 7 fish in this tank(high bio load) I feed different types of food. This leads to discoloration in the coral. SPS are sensitive to high NO3's. I had a little hair algae but my CUC and sailfin tang has taken care of that. I have tried many different way to lower my Nitrates in the past. Up to this point I had been doing weekly water changes but now I am going to back off a bit so I can watch my perimeters and make sure the dosing is working.
Summary:
I will keep you all up to date as I go along. I hope this help someone who is thinking of going in this direction. And please any comments are welcome.


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## JIM

**o2 Back up a couple of steps, and explain to me about Vodka dosing, believe it or not in all my years of fishkeeping, i never knew you had to supply the cocktails for these fish. I hardly ever even offer them a free beer.*


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## trouble93

JIM said:


> **o2 Back up a couple of steps, and explain to me about Vodka dosing, believe it or not in all my years of fishkeeping, i never knew you had to supply the cocktails for these fish. I hardly ever even offer them a free beer.*


It adds a carbon source to lower Nitrates & Phosphates. Also aids in coloration of coral and crystal clear water.


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## JIM

*Sweet, learn something everyday Thanks for that lesson, Carry on *


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## MediaHound

Been seriously considering vodka dosing as well, subscribing to your thread James so I can follow along with your updates. 
Congrats on your decision and lets hear how it goes.


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## fishfinder

Is this only for saltwater tanks?


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## trouble93

O.K after a long night of being on pin and needles. Here's what we have since my lights have not come on yet I can't see anything in any detail just yet, but all fish have made it through the night. Just dosed 22ml B-Ionic and .3ml of vodka. I will try and get some pic up soon.
Temp.79.7
PH.8.2
Cal. 440
Alk.12.2
NO3 still the same(20+ppm)
PO4 still the same(.5ppm)


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## orion

*r2*r2*r2*r2*r2*r2


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## MediaHound

You plan to do 1 test daily from here forward?


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> You plan to do 1 test daily from here forward?


No every few day or so. I just wanted to see if there was any empact right away. My Cal & Alk pretty much stays the same anyway. And I have a pin point for PH and Temp. By the way the test kits I'm using are.
Salifert for:
Phosphate, Mag, Alk
API for:
Nitrate and Cal.


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## drhank

Good luck. The practice is fairly common in Europe. I think you could accomplish the same thing with either a heavily stocked fuge or a turf scrubber though and save the Vodka for yourself.


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## trouble93

Here are a few pics of the tank. Like I said for the reason I'm dosing first is high nitrates are not healthy and I'm not happy with the color. These pieces do have much better color.


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## orion

fishfinder said:


> Is this only for saltwater tanks?


yessir salt only never heard or seen used on fresh


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## trouble93

fishfinder said:


> Is this only for saltwater tanks?


Sorry I looked pass your question but as someone else said this is for saltwater.


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## MediaHound

Great that you snapped some pics, now we know what your "before" tank looked like. 
How soon do you think before a color change in the corals will become noticeable?


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## MediaHound

I have zero nitrates (tested with Salifert), I want to do it just for color. Am I crazy?


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## fishfinder

Do you think that in part the inhabitants look more vibrant since the alcohol might be killing off some bad bacteria in the tank making them healthier? Or maybe its just a 'blush' such as you would see in someone slightly intoxicated? I would think that it would be an irritant, if anything.


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## trouble93

drhank said:


> Good luck. The practice is fairly common in Europe. I think you could accomplish the same thing with either a heavily stocked fuge or a turf scrubber though and save the Vodka for yourself.


I thought about a turf scrubber but I just didn't have the room. Then when I started to see more and more post on Vodka dosing and said there my next project. You make a good point we are so far behide our cross the pond counter-parts alot of this is just comming to light for us.


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## trouble93

fishfinder said:


> Do you think that in part the inhabitants look more vibrant since the alcohol might be killing off some bad bacteria in the tank making them healthier? Or maybe its just a 'blush' such as you would see in someone slightly intoxicated? I would think that it would be an irritant, if anything.


I have watched it very close and I thought I lost a coral band Shrimp but he was molting. So the inhabitants of the tank are doing business as usual.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> I have zero nitrates (tested with Salifert), I want to do it just for color. Am I crazy?


 If you have 0 NO3 and don't have a phosphate problem I would just look into lighting. What type of light are you using now?


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> Great that you snapped some pics, now we know what your "before" tank looked like.
> How soon do you think before a color change in the corals will become noticeable?


Call it crazy but I have a monti cap that was yellow turned green and today it was alot lighter then it had been. That blue tip stag has more color today then it has had as well.


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## trouble93

Wanted to add a few more pics. I will post some more information on the day 3 dosing later. I don't want to pat myself on the back yet, I may still have a algae bloom I may have to deal with. "But so far So good"I just checked the tank with a flash light and all the night life is doing well. And my skimmer is going nuts. The monti cap in the 2nd pic is suppose to be purple with blue polyps, this will be a good piece to watch. The white spots on the top is from falling on top of a Leather so hope to see that come back aswell. In the middle of the 3rd pic a little off to the right is a Acropora Digitata (Lavender) and no visable Polyps. Another piece that will be a good indicator. Also in the 2nd photo bottom right hand corner is a green Pocillopora it's brown in pic with very little polyp extension(should be bushy). Hoping this piece will color up some. I hope there are a few hobbyists still following this post. And I hope that I am giving enough information as I go along. If I'm missing anything please feel free to point it out. Thanks


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## drhank

Interested in dosing vodka? Give this a read.

Vodka Dosing by 'Genetics' and 'Stony_Corals' - Reefkeeping.com


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## trouble93

drhank said:


> Interested in dosing vodka? Give this a read.
> 
> Vodka Dosing by 'Genetics' and 'Stony_Corals' - Reefkeeping.com


I read that...This is what people are getting alot of information from as a matter of fact alot of my own research came from this very article.


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## trouble93

Dosing information for day 3. Today is the last day of .3ml dosing. I didn't think it was possible but today the tank is more clear then it's has ever been. At one time I thought about ozone and they told me that my water would be up to 30% clearer and I didn't think it could get any clearer then it was. I was wrong!!! And there is a Goniopora that had not come all the way out today the polyps are out about 1.5in. Frogspawn, Hammer and torch looks like they have double in size. I will do a water test this evening and post results.


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## MediaHound

trouble93 said:


> If you have 0 NO3 and don't have a phosphate problem I would just look into lighting. What type of light are you using now?


 I attribute my zero nitrates and undetectable phosphates to 1) my 10g refugium (chaeto under a 96w PC) (miracle mud mixed with mineral mud 50/50 as the substrate for the fuge), and 2) my phosban reactor filled with phosguard. Those things are primarily my main ability to export and otherwise neutralize/break down nitrate and phosphate. 

I'm running very powerful lighting on my 180g tank, its 3x250w MH and 4x39W T5 (Maristar fixture on Blue Wave ballasts) + 8 banks of 4x1w LEDs. I do experiment with different bulbs, and even thinking about going with all T5 to trim back there a bit... 

Lighting aside, I think vodka might still help with color and that's why I would do it if I took the plunge.


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## beaslbob

trouble93 said:


> I have watched it very close and I thought I lost a coral band Shrimp but he was molting. So the inhabitants of the tank are doing business as usual.


You'de molt too if you had been dosed with vodka


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## drhank

:glasses-wink: Jarred, if you'll just start dosing yourself an hour before you start looking at your tank it should have the same effect!


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## MediaHound

lol


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> I attribute my zero nitrates and undetectable phosphates to 1) my 10g refugium (chaeto under a 96w PC) (miracle mud mixed with mineral mud 50/50 as the substrate for the fuge), and 2) my phosban reactor filled with phosguard. Those things are primarily my main ability to export and otherwise neutralize/break down nitrate and phosphate.
> 
> I'm running very powerful lighting on my 180g tank, its 3x250w MH and 4x39W T5 (Maristar fixture on Blue Wave ballasts) + 8 banks of 4x1w LEDs. I do experiment with different bulbs, and even thinking about going with all T5 to trim back there a bit...
> 
> Lighting aside, I think vodka might still help with color and that's why I would do it if I took the plunge.


I see a different look to the tank all the way around. Just be careful with the dosing it's better to under dose then over dose. I would say lighting is not your issue. I did everything you are doing with your system and still end up with NO3 problems.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> lol


+1


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> You'de molt too if you had been dosed with vodka


Good one Bob!!! How are you my friend? Let me hear some feed back. What do you think?


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## trouble93

I'm alittle disappointed this evening. I really have no reason to be but I am. Did a water test this evening.
NO3 about 20ppm
PO4 .25
For all I read I know it takes weeks to see a drop in water levels but I was sure something was happening. Looking on the bright side water has never been clearer and a few pieces are showing some improvement. Well tomorrow is the first day of the double dose. So my dose moves up to .6ml. Well more tomorrow.


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## beaslbob

trouble93 said:


> Good one Bob!!! How are you my friend? Let me hear some feed back. What do you think?


Fine and thanks.

the vodka dosing goes against my leiden, planted tank approach.

I just don't like feeding bacteria (usually anaerobic) to consume nutrients easily consumed with macro algaes in an aerobic environment.

but your tank is getting clearer so I wish you the best.

My fear is you will eventually crash the tank and/or have cyano problems.

But that's just my fear based upon no experience.

And worth at most .02


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> Fine and thanks.
> 
> the vodka dosing goes against my leiden, planted tank approach.
> 
> I just don't like feeding bacteria (usually anaerobic) to consume nutrients easily consumed with macro algaes in an aerobic environment.
> 
> but your tank is getting clearer so I wish you the best.
> 
> My fear is you will eventually crash the tank and/or have cyano problems.
> 
> But that's just my fear based upon no experience.
> 
> And worth at most .02


I tried that approach but to know avail. I have been alittle leary of cyano, but I have planed to act quick at first sign. I value your opintion Bob that's why I asked.


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## beaslbob

And I value your experiences also.

Keep us posted.

Best tank ever


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## trouble93

Not much to report yesterday was the first dose at .6ml Water is still very clear. And the skimmer is going nuts. I add a sea clone skimmer for a little back up. I am starting to get little brown spots on the sand. It maybe alittle algae but it's not new. I have feed the Mark Wiss Black power and that happens most of the time. I am changing one of my ballast this weekend. I could have gotten away with jusr changing the capacitor but for the same money I can redo the whole thing. On one side of the tank you can tell it's getting a little dim. I was going to change them before I started the dosing, but I thought maybe I should be changing to much rightnow. Well here is a pic of the ballast in question and don't mind the wiring that will be taken care of as well.


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## trouble93

It's been a few days since I have up dated you on the dosing. I have done a few thing in the past few days. I have changed one of my ballast, I was going to do them both but I didn't want to shock the system. I added another power box.I think this one looks a little neater. This is the old one Next week I will rap all hanging wires and also add a box around the ballast. O.K. on to the dosing. Today my dose went up to .11ml It's been one week since I started and already I have notice a big change in some pieces and I'll show you what I mean later in the post. My NO3(Nitrates) has not change much(right around 20) but my PO4(Phosphates) has come down (.01). I did have to stop dosing for Cal. for a day or so it jumped up to about 520ppm and Alk is holding at 12.5ppm Mag is 1500ppm. It has killed me not to do a water change this week I have not gone a week without a water change since I have been reef keeping. The reason being I need to know just what impact the dosing is having. And if I change the water I can't get a true reading. In this past week my Monti cap that was burned by a Leather has healed. This is beforeAnd this is afterAnd it's not just SPS' but Leather aswell this is a Red Fuzzy Finger Leather before and this is after just one week May aswell give you a LPS this is a torch before And this is the same piece a week later I have to say before this week it had not opened up like is at all and I've had it for about 2 month's now And as you can see the Goby doesn't go far from his hole. Also this week I went to my local fish store and he had a few pieces that where dying so I took them to see if I can bring them back. Here is one of them Lets see what happens. There are 3 more pieces but I'll hold them for later. As always any questions or feedback is welcome.


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## MediaHound

Thanks very much for the update. I actually eagerly await your updates because as you know I am considering dosing vodka, but just for the purpose of enhancing color... 
Glad to hear your phosphates are coming down, good job.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> Thanks very much for the update. I actually eagerly await your updates because as you know I am considering dosing vodka, but just for the purpose of enhancing color...
> Glad to hear your phosphates are coming down, good job.


Thanks...My bigest thing is I want it all to happen over night. If I have learned anything in this hobby is anything that happens over night most of the time it's not good.


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## trouble93

O.K. did a water test today and low and behold NO3 10ppm PO4 0.1ppm. So it's starting to work. Skimmer is pulling a very dark green skimmate. Started to redose for Cal. & Alk started at 15ml and my Vodka dose is .11


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## trouble93

Mental note... if you are dosing no matter what you are dosing you just can't stop. You can how ever cut your dose. Now let me tell you why or how I came to that conclusion, not only am I dosing Vodka for Nitrate and phosphate reduction. I also dose B-Ionic for Cal & Alk. Over the weekend my Calcium jump up to over 500ppm. So I stopped dosing for two days. Calcium did come down to about 460ppm but my alkalinity bottomed out. It went from 12.5 to 9.6 so now I have to play a balancing act to get them back on track. I did loose a Acro. It was a very small frag about a 1/2in. I think it was do to lack of light though it was on a shelf under a Hammer and I think it blocked out the sun from the little guy, it has more then doubled in about 2 weeks. Well more later.


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## MediaHound

Bummer.. dosing pumps make life easy though.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> Bummer.. dosing pumps make life easy though.


I think I'm going to invest in one for the B-Ionic, but there is no since in doing one for the Vodka. To small of an amount.


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## Dmaaaaax

That was one very interesting read and something I have never heard before, as a freshwater enthusiast. I wonder if it would have similar results in freshwater soley for lowering Phosphates and nitrates? How much water do you change and how often?

One other thing I have read about that should work on both fresh and salt water tanks is the addition of Mangroves to the tank/sump. The roots can survive in fresh, brackish and salt water and they are natures way of removing chlorine, ammonia, nitrates, and phosphates as well as other stuff. Has anyone tried this or compared it to the vodka method? (although this does not add carbon to the corals for that extra pop in color)


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## Dmaaaaax

Oh...and is there anything like Excel for salt tanks? Excel is an inorganic carbon source made by Seachem. Would an inorganic source work?


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## trouble93

Dmaaaaax said:


> That was one very interesting read and something I have never heard before, as a freshwater enthusiast. I wonder if it would have similar results in freshwater soley for lowering Phosphates and nitrates? How much water do you change and how often?
> 
> One other thing I have read about that should work on both fresh and salt water tanks is the addition of Mangroves to the tank/sump. The roots can survive in fresh, brackish and salt water and they are natures way of removing chlorine, ammonia, nitrates, and phosphates as well as other stuff. Has anyone tried this or compared it to the vodka method? (although this does not add carbon to the corals for that extra pop in color)


I could be wrong on this because I have never heard of it being done I am not a expert. The reason I believe it wouldn't work for FW is the Vodka Dosing is also killing bacteria you don't find in FW hince there would be no buffer there. And you would more then likely end up with more Phosphates just because the Vodka would be your main carbon source. To much carbon can leed not only phosphates but a few other algae. And to the second part of your post I do have Mangroves as well as Macro Algae. With my large bio load the stuff in the sump couldn't keep up.


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## trouble93

Dmaaaaax said:


> Oh...and is there anything like Excel for salt tanks? Excel is an inorganic carbon source made by Seachem. Would an inorganic source work?


 Excel is used as a chemical media for removing toxins...The Vodka is a primary carbon source. So as a stationary resin via phosban reactor or filtration sock would not always or may take longer to get throughout the whole system.


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## trouble93

O.K. 14 days in and my tank looks awesome. I'll take some new pics later on today as well as water test. My sand cleared up and I have new growth all over the place. More color in some pieces. I have added a phosban reactor with activated carbon to help remove any toxins. My water is already crytal clear but my skimmer is pulling some ugly green skimmate and I have to empty the cup almost daily. Tomarrow my dose goes up to .16ml hopefuly I can see Nitrates about 10ppm this weekend. I think when it's time for me to redo my bulbs I'm going to go with 14k insted of 20k. Don't get me wrong I love the blue shimmer but with more white light I should get even more growth. At first having the 20k's was the best thing ever, but looking more into it the sun is 5.5k that's why 67k does so well for fresh water plant tanks. But when you spend $75.00 or more per bulb that's not something I can just run out and change every week. Another thing I've been looking into is I'm putting a lot into my coral but what about the fish? This is something I came across Vitamin C I do use amino acid as a supplement weekly. I don't want to use over kill on my system, but knowledge is power. The more I learn with this hobby the more I find out I don't know.


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## MediaHound

I've looked into and I'm starting astaxanthin supplementation for coloration enhancement.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> I've looked into and I'm starting astaxanthin supplementation for coloration enhancement.


Which product? How did you hear about it? And do you know anybody who does it? I'm glad to see that there are others in this hobby that take the time to look things up. So many people go by hear say. I know that Astaxanthin is good for coloration in fish and crustacean and for Humans it's a antioxidant. Astaxanthin is one of a group of natural pigments known as carotenoids(Carotenoids are a class of natural fat-soluble pigments found principally in plants, algae, and photosynthetic bacteria). In nature, carotenoids are produced principally by plants and their microscopic relatives microalgae(not macro algae). Over all it's a more of a red hue pigment not sure what it will do for other colors on the reef. I tried to harvest micro algae at one time, but I gave up on it. It's a lot of work. I do have a friend in West Virginia that has a good culture starting to take off in a stand alone system. He is however having a problem keeping it going in his display system. When are you starting it? And how are you dosing it? Are you going to post it as you go along? I'll be looking forward to following your progress.


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## MediaHound

I have it and its mixed in a mechanism to deliver it of fine particles of other food sources. Depending on my findings, I'll post a new thread about it at some point so I don't hijack yours.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> I have it and its mixed in a mechanism to deliver it of fine particles of other food sources. Depending on my findings, I'll post a new thread about it at some point so I don't hijack yours.


I wouldn't worry about being Hijacked and since we are doing the same thing looking for the same results just using routes it may be a benefit to someone who is already watching this thread. What do you think about the color hue being mostly red? And are you going to try to raise Micro Algae?


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## trouble93

I do have a update. No3 Po4 have come down alittle. Skimmate is almost black. One thing I had to do is readjust my dose. I was using cc's for the first few weeks since it was such a small dose, but now that I'm up over a full ml I adjusted and all is well. Pics are coming soon.


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## robertmathern

pics man pics. I need pics lol nice thread


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## trouble93

robertmathern said:


> pics man pics. I need pics lol nice thread


 I will get some up soon. Thanks


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## trouble93

O.K. here are a few pics this is a pic of a monti cap:[
This toadstool is one of my first coral in this tank...Up to about two weeks ago it never opened fully but look at it now: 
The pictures really don't do the pieces justice. I will keep you updated.


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## MediaHound

Thanks for the pics! 

I am not trying to raise the micro algae but I am feeding the astaxanthin mixed in a powder form. We shall see what the red pigment does. Some corals might benefit, some might not change, some might take a different shade, not sure really. But I do know that it is used in the trade and so lets see what happens in my reef.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> Thanks for the pics!
> 
> I am not trying to raise the micro algae but I am feeding the astaxanthin mixed in a powder form. We shall see what the red pigment does. Some corals might benefit, some might not change, some might take a different shade, not sure really. But I do know that it is used in the trade and so lets see what happens in my reef.


Looking forward to see how it goes


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## beaslbob

*J/k*

Now that you have been using vodka for a few days how do you feel?


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## trouble93

*Re: J/k*



beaslbob said:


> Now that you have been using vodka for a few days how do you feel?


Alittle woozy Bob


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## trouble93

O.K. for the news we all have been waiting for...Drum roll please. A little over 3 weeks in and NO3(Nitrates) have gone from about 35ppm to 10ppm PO4(phosphates) from .5 down to .1 So what would this post be without a few pictures. I have been talking about how clear the tank is:

This is from the long side through 4 feet of water and under actinics. And here is a few random shots of a few pieces



And remember the Pocillopora midway rightside:

This is it now still doesn't have all it's color yet, but look how much fuller it is:

So this is where we're at for now. My dose is just under 1 1/2ml. And as always, keep the feed back coming.


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## beaslbob

Looks real good.


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> Looks real good.


Thank-You my friend


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## robertmathern

nice. I dosed vodka last night and the tank looked much better. But I got to ask you something was I supposed to add the vodka to the tank lol


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## trouble93

robertmathern said:


> nice. I dosed vodka last night and the tank looked much better. But I got to ask you something was I supposed to add the vodka to the tank lol


Well it would help LOL


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## beaslbob

I always get kick at the jokes these threads start.

I also wonder why vodka. Would Jim Beam work as well?


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> I always get kick at the jokes these threads start.
> 
> I also wonder why vodka. Would Jim Beam work as well?


Well it would work for you but not your tank...The Vodka is distilled. Where your Jims Jacks Marys Shirleys Toms are not. Pop quiz name some more drinks named after people.


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## beaslbob

Yea but jims are distilled also. and Jim is filtered through charcoal as well.

But it (and they) are aged in wood Kegs that have been charred on the inside. That is what gives them them amber color. Prior to that it is a nice clear almost 100% alcohol

Perhaps it is the aging.


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> Yea but jims are distilled also. and Jim is filtered through charcoal as well.
> 
> But it (and they) are aged in wood Kegs that have been charred on the inside. That is what gives them them amber color. Prior to that it is a nice clear almost 100% alcohol
> 
> Perhaps it is the aging.


Aged and colored


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## trouble93

Up date: faring well NO3 @ 10ppm PO4 @ .1 I added a box around my ballast this weekend


And I added a few more LPS' pieces as well



Will add some more later.


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## MediaHound

Good work on the shrouding and congrats on the new corals. Always good to take a pic of a new coral so as time flies by you can look back and remember just how big it was when you got it. Hope the fungia makes many more for you.


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## MediaHound

May I kindly suggest a smoke detector inside there also btw, safety first.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> May I kindly suggest a smoke detector inside there also btw, safety first.


There is a detector over head and one in the hallway and Dry chemical extinguisher hanging on the inside of the stand. I had to add another electrical fuse box on the outside of the room because I am pulling so much power in that one room. Thanks you always have to think safety first.


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## trouble93

Wanted to give a little update. My dose is up to 2ml and my NO3 is down to 10ppm PO4 is about .1 I have alot of growth and I'm starting to see more color. The skimmate that is coming out of the skimmer is almost like mudd. It went from like green tea to weak coffee. I guess it's all the organic waste. My skimmer is at the end of my system so the water has to come through pads rock rubble macro algae and mangroves before it gets to the skimmer and it's still pulling this dark sluge.


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## trouble93

I don't know if anybody is still with me at this point but I have some awsome news. First let me give you some water levels:
I won't waste time with Ammonia(NH3-4) Nitrite (NO2) or PH because these levels were never a issue. So to get to the heart of the matter.: 

Magnesium (Mg)
Natural Seawater Value: 1280 mg/L
Acceptable Range: 1100 to 1400 mg/L

Mine 1350

Alkalinity (meq/L)
Natural Seawater Value: 2.5 meq/L
Acceptable Range: 2.5 to 5.0 meq/L

Mine is alittle on the high @ 10.6(3.77meg/L) but I am bring it down it was between 11.5(4.11meg/L) & 12.5(4.46meg/L) 

Calcium (Ca)
Natural Seawater Value: 400 mg/L
Acceptable Range: 350 to 450 mg/L

Mine 450

Now for the big two the reason I had to go this rout:

Phosphate (PO4)
Natural Seawater Value: 0.030 mg/L
Acceptable Range: 0.000 to 0.250 mg/L

Mine .1

Nitrate (NO3)
Natural Seawater Value: 0.050 mg/L
Acceptable Range: 0.000 to 25 mg/L

Mine 0-5mg/L

Specific Gravity
Natural Seawater Value:1.026 Some Oceans 1.027
Acceptable Range: 1.022 to 1.026

Mine 1.025 

For the most part I try to keep mine at 1.026 but I had a miss hap with my skimmer and lost a lot of water on the floor and insted of mixing new saltwater I added fresh water and it came down to 1.025 I'll bring it up the first time I do a water change.

Summary:
I started 5 weeks ago my Nitrated were around 35-40 ppm Phosphate was around 1 ppm in a mostly stony(LPS & SPS and a few large Leathers) reef tank. The reason I looked into Vodka dosing was for over a year I have had problems with controling my Nitrates throwing good money after bad. I could never get them below 20ppm and even if I got them down to 20ppm it wouldn't stay there. I have a large fish load in this tank and I feed it evey day food for the fish food for the coral and even though I run a sump with macro algae and mangrove plants and a good skimmer. I want to touch on the skimmer and skimmate. When I started my skimmate looked like green tea and some where around week 3 it started to look like weak coffee and now it's looks like mudd. And the reason for this is because of all of the organic waste and the depletion of NO3 & PO4. The very first thing I notice was within the first few days my tank was super clear. My tank has alway been clear, I use to think my tanks couldn't get any clearer but I was wrong. My present dose as of this morning is 3ml then I'll cut that in half and that will be my maintenance dose. Another reaso I started the vodka dosing was to get some color back in the tank. everything had started to turn brown. And know I'm seeing color come back into most of the corals and growth in just about every piece in the tank.(I'll post pics later on today) I have to say I have found no draw backs by dosing with vodka. Early on I had some trouble with my Calcium but that was another issue all together. I want to thank everyone who has taken this ride with my, but it's not over yet. And if you just pick it up at the end shame on you. This was a chance to trouble shoot a problem you maybe having in your tank without the risk. LOL Like I said I still have a ways to go. This wasn't just about dosing. I have just about done rebuild in this thread. The next thing I am going to do is redo my hood. A friend of mine is making me a new hood. Since my lights and the hood were done with not much planning I kinda just throw everything together. So I added a power box and a box to not only hide my ballasts but to cool them aswell as they hang on the wall behind the tank all that left is the hood and that should done early next week. Thanks again and I'll pick this up again over the weekend.

PS: I forgot to add the reason for no water changes I wanted to make sure the vodka was doing the job. I will do one this weekend.


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## jrodriguez

i got to say that that tank is one of the nicest tanks i have seen in a long time...good job on keeping us up to date. its always risky to try new things but it is worth the outcome. 

very nice job trouble!!!

YAY!!!


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## trouble93

jrodriguez said:


> i got to say that that tank is one of the nicest tanks i have seen in a long time...good job on keeping us up to date. its always risky to try new things but it is worth the outcome.
> 
> very nice job trouble!!!
> 
> YAY!!!


We take a pieces of ponds,rivers,lakes and oceans and put them in our homes and at best all we can do is guess. It's a shame we know more about space then we do about the oceans right here on Earth alot of people don't understand the responsibility we have when we take on this hobby. Thanks again


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## trouble93

O.K. I took a few pics this one is my skimmer cup. I just wanted to show what the skimmate looks like while dosing vodka. Not only is it this dark all the time but I have to clean the cup just about every day.

Now some coral shots

It would help alot if someone could tell me what type of Zoos these are in the top left corner








I don't like this pic that much it's not showing the true color I had to take it on a angel



Today was the first day at dosing 3ml and did a 15gal. water change the first one in over a Month. More updates to come.


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## beaslbob

Look good and thanks for update.

On alk is the 10 dkh or meg/l?


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> Look good and thanks for update.
> 
> On alk is the 10 dkh or meg/l?


 I fixed it Bob...It's 10.6dkh(3.77meg/L
thanks for pointing that out.


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## beaslbob

trouble93 said:


> I fixed it Bob...It's 10.6dkh(3.77meg/L
> thanks for pointing that out.



awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww


even better*Glasses*


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
> 
> 
> even better*Glasses*


It's getting there.


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## trouble93

My updates are coming just about once a week now because thing are settling in and everything is going according to plan. Water levels this week are cal.440ppm Alk. 3.06mg/L No3 5ppm Po4 .25 I added a neon green Bubble Tip Anemone I had always feared add a anemone before because of my Nitrates there is a rock anemone in the tank but they can take it alittle better. Funny things is I placed to in a spot I would like to have had it, but now it has a foothold in the very back of the tank out of sight. My maroon clown took right to it though. Hopfully it not done moving yet. I also added a few more LPS' a Bubble Coral (white) a Favites Brain Maroon and a red Lobophyllia. I'll post pics later.


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## trouble93

It's been almost 2 Months And the tank is right where I wanted to get it. With Vodka Dosing I have reached my target. So here is where everything was:
Temp 80.1
Salinity1.026
PH 8.3
NO3(Nitrate)35ppm
PO4(phosphate)1ppm
Cal.480
Alk.12.2/ 4.34meg/L
Mag.1450

And now:

Temp 79.8
Salinity1.025
PH 8.1
NO3(Nitrate)0ppm
PO4(phosphate)0ppm
Cal.450
Alk.9.6/ 3.43meg/L
Mag.1350

The tank looks better then I could ever hope for. I have been able to feed like crazy. I didn't have any major set backs. I guess I wanted it to happen a lot faster then it did. So when it wasn't droping I thought something was wrong you just don't know how much I wanted to amp up the doses before I was suppose to but I didn't. At the same time I have a friend that was dosing his tank aswell and added more then his tank was ready for and he ran into all kinds of problems, from algae blooms to dead fish. It says how important it is to stick to your proper dose. Anyway I want to thank everyone who took this ride with me. And for those who are looking for a way to lower Nitrates and phosphates I have to say this works well, but do your home work first. I tried everything you can think of first. I battled with high nitrates for more then a year before I came across vodka dosing. And I found this to be the answer. My ending dose was 4ml before my NO3's and PO4's came down to 0 So I cut it in half to 2ml and this is what I dose to maintain those levels along with my Cal and Alk dose but I will soon add a kalk reactor for those. Once again thanks and I will post pics later on today. By the way I did take this time to add some more rock and move some coral around as you will see in the new pics.


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## beaslbob

Excellent for your tank and excellent thread.

can hardly wait for pictures.


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> Excellent for your tank and excellent thread.
> 
> can hardly wait for pictures.


I did manage to take some good ones today, but for some reason if can't find the cord to put the on the computer. I'll put a house wide APB out on it tomorrow. Thanks Bob


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## trouble93

Here are a few updated photo's







As you can see there is new growth all over the place. If you have time go back over this thread and you can see the differents in a lot of these same pieces. I have some more pics up on a new thread feel free to check them out to. Thanks again


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## trouble93

10 Weeks in and everything looks awesome no phosphates no Nitrates. I ordered new bulbs today and they should be here on Wed. I'll post some new pics after I get them on. Macro algae is coming up out of the sump. Mangroves are growing well and there is no algae to speak of. I have to take that back since I can feed so heavy I get a little browning on the sand the day after but that clears up in a day or two.


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## WhiteGloveAquatics

I envy your fish, I cant make it 10 weeks straight on just vodka.


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## trouble93

WhiteDevil said:


> I envy your fish, I cant make it 10 weeks straight on just vodka.


 Do you mean for you or just the tank?


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## trouble93

I'm still at it...Since the Vodka did it's job I have cut my dose in half from 6ml to 3ml and still no NO3 and no PO4. And everything looks awesome, but what is a post with no pic's






I will up date again in a few weeks


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## nahda

Dear all 

i amhaving a red color of No2 test , i dont know what is the reason .

i started to change 20% of water evryday .

there are no carbon stone ( the black stone in my filte system ) is it the reason why the no2 is high .

please advise .

thanks


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## trouble93

nahda said:


> Dear all
> 
> i amhaving a red color of No2 test , i dont know what is the reason .
> 
> i started to change 20% of water evryday .
> 
> there are no carbon stone ( the black stone in my filte system ) is it the reason why the no2 is high .
> 
> please advise .
> 
> thanks


What type of test are you using? how old is it? And what kind of filter? Tell us about you system. The more we know the better we can help.


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## nahda

trouble93 said:


> What type of test are you using? how old is it? And what kind of filter? Tell us about you system. The more we know the better we can help.


my aquarium is a nano cube aquarium 24 .

the filter system is having a three stage 

the test i made is just today and it is a no2 test .and it is giving me a red color which is much hihger than the dangerous level .

thans


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## Sweet Tee

Very interesting thread trouble! I never knew what a little vodka could do 

Looks great!


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## trouble93

nahda said:


> my aquarium is a nano cube aquarium 24 .
> 
> the filter system is having a three stage
> 
> the test i made is just today and it is a no2 test .and it is giving me a red color which is much hihger than the dangerous level .
> 
> thans


NO2 are your Nitrites...How long has the tank be up and running? I would do about a 20% as fast as possible. Nitrites at any level above 0 can be bad for all your livestock. Have you had anything die? And I know some nano's or all in one tanks come with a skimmer does yours have one? You need to find what is causing this spike. Have you checked your Ammonia and Nitrates? What are those levels? Have you added any new live rock? And how much do you have in the tank?


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## trouble93

Sweet Tee said:


> Very interesting thread trouble! I never knew what a little vodka could do
> 
> Looks great!


 Thank-You I'll get some new pics up it looks even better since I took the last pics.


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## trouble93

At last check Nitrates 0 phosphates 0 my dose has been cut in half for about a Month now and I'm ready to cut it again. I did add a turf scrubber so I cut cut out the Vodka altogether. It's done it's job. I will be adding pics of the scrubber.


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## trouble93

I have not updated this post in awhile. Everything is going well...Tank looks awesome. No phosphates no Nitrates Cal 440 Alk 2.51meg/l PH 8.2 salt level 1.026. This is a pic of one SPS when I started.


And this is the same piece a few weeks ago

Color is a lot better now then it was when I first started. I did add a turf scrubber to this system to help maintain these levels, so I will be cutting out the Vodka altogether in the next few weeks. Well that's it for now. All feed back is welcome.


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## beaslbob

nahda said:


> Dear all
> 
> i amhaving a red color of No2 test , i dont know what is the reason .
> 
> i started to change 20% of water evryday .
> 
> there are no carbon stone ( the black stone in my filte system ) is it the reason why the no2 is high .
> 
> please advise .
> 
> thanks


During the initial cycling of a tank nitrItes can peg the test kit and on my fist tank for weeks. What I do is not add any food until the nitrItes drop down. Which should only take a day or two if no food was added during the first week of new fish. But in that first tank it took a week before they dropped.

my .02


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## beaslbob

trouble93 said:


> At last check Nitrates 0 phosphates 0 my dose has been cut in half for about a Month now and I'm ready to cut it again. I did add a turf scrubber so I cut cut out the Vodka altogether. It's done it's job. I will be adding pics of the scrubber.


I guess you have better use for your vokda


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## orion

come here and gimme a vodka dose*r2*r2*w3


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> I guess you have better use for your vokda


I wish it would work for me like it has for the tank...but for me it works in reverse it make the tank clear but it sure would cloud me up.


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## trouble93

All is well everything still on target. This is one of the latest pics of the tank.

Thanks for stopping by.


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## reefcrazy

I see vodka has been doing good for you. Your tank is looking nice. I have been doing around about the same with sugar and you can tell its working.. I went with sugar because its a much safer for me if I miss a day or two or a week its no big deal I just start over and it won't do any thing.. But like I say WHAT EVER WORKS FOR YOU IS THE WAY TO GO*old dude Good luck with the dosing and keep up the good work


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## trouble93

reefcrazy said:


> I see vodka has been doing good for you. Your tank is looking nice. I have been doing around about the same with sugar and you can tell its working.. I went with sugar because its a much safer for me if I miss a day or two or a week its no big deal I just start over and it won't do any thing.. But like I say WHAT EVER WORKS FOR YOU IS THE WAY TO GO*old dude Good luck with the dosing and keep up the good work


Thanks...How do you set your dose up? Do you just add the sugar to the tank or do you put it water first then pour it in? The reason I asked was I think I'm going to start dosing another tank with vitamin c or sugar to see what works better as far as dosing and what is being dosed.


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## reefcrazy

I started with one teaspoon on the first night and then went to one and half the next and went up a half every night until the tank clouds up in the morning then just go back a half of a teaspoon. Then every time it clouds take off a half of a teaspoon.... It works good let me no how you do with it...... O ya I just put in the sump no need to mix up


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## trouble93

reefcrazy said:


> I started with one teaspoon on the first night and then went to one and half the next and went up a half every night until the tank clouds up in the morning then just go back a half of a teaspoon. Then every time it clouds take off a half of a teaspoon.... It works good let me no how you do with it...... O ya I just put in the sump no need to mix up


So your looking for it to get cloudy? Other wise how clear is the tank? With vodka the tank is clear as a bell always. The reason I going to do another dosing method is I never want to give false information in all honesty I can't say this one is better then that one if I never tried it for myself. The good thing is I have enough tank to do it with.


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## reefcrazy

trouble93 said:


> So your looking for it to get cloudy? Other wise how clear is the tank? With vodka the tank is clear as a bell always. The reason I going to do another dosing method is I never want to give false information in all honesty I can't say this one is better then that one if I never tried it for myself. The good thing is I have enough tank to do it with.


To get it cloudy is to no how much to dose by the teaspoon.. And yes its clear as can be


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## trouble93

reefcrazy said:


> To get it cloudy is to no how much to dose by the teaspoon.. And yes its clear as can be


Thank-you for helping me find my next project.


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## trouble93

Thanks for hanging in there with me. Again as my last post everything is still on track 0 No3's 0 Po4's. A few weeks ago I add a turf scrubber:

And cut out my vodka Dose all together. The tank is crystal clear and jumping with color. The scrubber is picking up any algae so instead of growing in the tank it all grows on the screen. Next step will be to add a calcium reactor to get away from daily dosing all together. Well here are a few pics.








Any questions or comments are welcome.


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## beaslbob

sounds like you didn't have a hangover.


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## MediaHound

Did you seed your turf scrubber with any algae? Can you give more info about how you made it and what algae you plan to grow in there, etc?


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> sounds like you didn't have a hangover.


From what I hear you can only get a hang over if you drink it.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> Did you seed your turf scrubber with any algae? Can you give more info about how you made it and what algae you plan to grow in there, etc?


Yes I did seed it I used some algae that was inside of one of the power heads. This is a post on the turf scrubber build. I have to warn you I stop posting on it abruptly because I don't like playing oneupmanship and another poster began to take over my post.But since this post I have made a few changes. I added a second bulb and I upped the flow going from a maxi-jet 1200 to a mag. 3 pump and a different type of screen. I'll get some updated pics tomorrow of the whole unit part by part.
http://www.aquariumforum.com/f37/turf-scrubber-5gal-bucket-5309.html


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## A Fish Guy

Curiosity..............

I noticed a guy "Jim" was banned....... How did he work that out.

Is it pretty easy to get banned here?


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## trouble93

A Fish Guy said:


> Curiosity..............
> 
> I noticed a guy "Jim" was banned....... How did he work that out.
> 
> Is it pretty easy to get banned here?


Well they say curiosity killed the cat, I'm almost sure if you put your mind to it you'll find it's not that hard to get banned. As far as Jim goes I have no clue of what bought about his being banned.


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## MediaHound

trouble93 said:


> Yes I did seed it I used some algae that was inside of one of the power heads. This is a post on the turf scrubber build. I have to warn you I stop posting on it abruptly because I don't like playing oneupmanship and another poster began to take over my post.But since this post I have made a few changes. I added a second bulb and I upped the flow going from a maxi-jet 1200 to a mag. 3 pump and a different type of screen. I'll get some updated pics tomorrow of the whole unit part by part.
> http://www.aquariumforum.com/f37/turf-scrubber-5gal-bucket-5309.html


Excellent, got it, thanks.


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## MediaHound

A Fish Guy said:


> Curiosity..............
> 
> I noticed a guy "Jim" was banned....... How did he work that out.
> 
> Is it pretty easy to get banned here?


He was a moderator/administrator here, and at the end of his stretch he stirred up trouble and caused a lot of problems, went far off the deep end. 
In fact, he was banned from a handful of aquarium forums due to his antics.
PM for any more info needed.


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## trouble93

MediaHound said:


> Excellent, got it, thanks.


I need some feed back...Let me know what you think. Thanks my friend.


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## trouble93

Somebody please tell me how my thread(about Vodka Dosing) turned into posts about how and why members are banned? Shouldn't this be addressed in general information? Or is this a case of Adult A.D.D


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## beaslbob

and you are correct.

I'll correct my posts.

now pass the vodka


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## trouble93

beaslbob said:


> and you are correct.
> 
> I'll correct my posts.
> 
> now pass the vodka


Thanks Bob, have one on me


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## trouble93

It's been one Month since I cut the vodka...Everything is still where it was when I stopped.
Nitrates 0-5
Phosphates 0
Calcium 460-480
Alk 2.51meg/L
The turf scrubber has tripled in production over the last two weeks. Even a few little strands of red looks like Cyno, but no algae in the tank.


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## beaslbob

trouble93 said:


> It's been one Month since I cut the vodka...Everything is still where it was when I stopped.
> Nitrates 0-5
> Phosphates 0
> Calcium 460-480
> Alk 2.51meg/L
> The turf scrubber has tripled in production over the last two weeks. Even a few little strands of red looks like Cyno, but no algae in the tank.


very good.

gee a cycling tank goes from brown to red to geen algae.

Perhaps a mature ats goes from green to red to brown. *r2


thanks for update.

my .02


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## trouble93

Bob I think it's just like "ICH" it's in every tank or at least the formula is. I haven't changed my feeding habits it's still heavy so I'm not surprised. At least it's growing where it suppose to be growing.


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## trouble93

Wow it's been over a year since I have updated this post. I was just looking over and it's alot of good info here. Now for the update. I don't add vodka as much because of the addition of a saltwater planted tank and I no longer have the turf scrubber up. I still feed as heavy as I always have. A few month back I did have a nitrate spike it went all the way up to 10ppm. It's been two years since I got my nitrates under control using vodka and I have to say it worked well for me.


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