Like calcium and strontium, magnesium is used in the calcification of skeletons of reef organisms. In many cases, magnesium is used in place of calcium for calcification. In addition to its role in calcification, magnesium is used by organisms ranging from bacteria, to coralline algae to fish.
How can you be sure if magnesium levels are deficient? There are a couple of indications; severely depleted levels of magnesium (below 800 mg/L) can cause depressed pH levels and an inability to maintain proper calcium levels (more on ionic imbalance).The best way to tell if you need a magnesium supplement, though, is to test for it using a magnesium test kit such as Seachem's Reef Status®: Magnesium & Carbonate and Borate Alkalinity.
If you've determined your magnesium levels are low, supplementation with ions™ is necessary. ions™ restores magnesium by employing the most concentrated (90,000 mg/L), fully dissolved magnesium and does so without adding any ammonia. Other liquid magnesium supplements inherently contain ammonia because the magnesium chloride used in their production contains ammonia. This is a result of the mechanisms for deriving and/or producing magnesium chloride. aquavitro has gone to considerable lengths to remove this contaminant and a proprietary process makes ions™ the first and only liquid magnesium supplement that does not contain ammonia.
Using a fully dissolved magnesium is critical. Some magnesium supplements use a magnesium source that is simply not soluble, that is, unavailable. This means it can never be utilized by reef organisms, and is, consequently, of no value. If the product itself is milky white or the instructions direct the user to shake well, more than likely, a substantial amount of magnesium is not being utilized (the same is true of calcium products). ions™ also includes strontium and boron in the NSW ratio of 1.7:1 to avoid ionic imbalance with long term use.
Directions:
Beginner: Use 5 mL for every 90 L (25 US gallons) twice a week. Check magnesium once a week and adjust amount or frequency accordingly. Note: each inner cap thread is approximately 1 mL.
Advanced: Check magnesium level, then follow addition regimen above until magnesium is adjusted to 1200-1350 mg/L. Each 5 mL/90 L (25 US gallons) will raise magnesium by about 5 mg/L. Quantity or frequency can be adjusted, but do not exceed 25 mL/90 L (25 US gallons) per day. Thereafter, use as required to maintain magnesium.
Unlike competing products that require multi-day interval dosing. ions™ can be dosed daily and within minutes of the entire aquavitro line.
FAQ:
My tank only has a magnesium level of 1050 mg/L. I have been using ions™ daily for the past week and my magnesium level is not increasing very much. Do you know why this is?
A: Each standard dose of ions™ will raise magnesium by 5mg/L. In cases where magnesium is severely low, it is acceptable to add up to 5X the recommended dose each day in order to see a more notable increase in magnesium. Unfortunately, it will take a large quantity of any magnesium supplement in order to increase magnesium by such a large amount (about 300mg/L in your case). For the future, you may want to look into using a salt that contains a more appropriate level of magnesium, such as our salinity.
What if I want to raise strontium without raising magnesium
A: Strontium use by corals is not completely understood; much of its use seems linked to temperature or the absence of calcium in systems. It is a factor in the stability in the skeletal systems of corals. Typically, its rate of utilization will not exceed the rate of magnesium utilization. So ions™ offers a continuous supply necessary for all systems. So will it build up? No, it shouldn’t, but if it does, there is a margin of safety of 10X natural seawater for strontium. Any normal water change would negate this concern. If one wanted to run elevated levels of strontium, by all means use Reef Strontium™.
Do you still have a second seal on the ions bottles, 150 mL, 350 mL?
A: No, we have actually used a special cap style on the aquavitro line that prevents the need for an additional seal. The cap will seal tightly once closed.
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