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Sera Magnesium plus

Altohombre

Altohombre

seriously I know this company is german or spanish or something, but I can't understand their english directions either. What do they mean by...

"Dosage: 5 ml sera magnesium plus increas the magnesium level in 2 liters (0.5) gal.) of water by 60mg/l (ppm). sera magnesiumplus can be added directly to the aquarium. We recommend increasing the magnesium level max. 10mg/l (ppm) per day."

I have a 46g tank that I would like to try to increase my magnesium up about 200-300.


P.S.- anyone tried or heard about the idea of upping magnesium to 1800 in order to help rid hair algae? I don't want to kill anything good.
 
J

jonathan.

It seems that 5ml will raise the magnesium level of 1/2 a gallon by 60ppm.

So, for a 46g tank, you'd need to add quite a bit I'm guessing. Unless I read that wrong.
 
P

poconofishy

Hi Altohombre,
I hope you're testing your water chemistry levels. We get queries every so often into www.wetwebmedia.com about snails falling of the glass. My theory is that it is related to high magnesium/low calcium levels. I've copied a query that I answered below if you are interested in further reading. Anyway, my point is, if you decide to raise your magnesium levels, please make sure you are testing your levels as you go and keep a close eye on your livestock, particularly your snails, you might even consider moving snails to another tank temporarily. BTW Sera is a German company. Their test kits are made by Merck so I presume they are good, though I don't have any personal experience with them as I have not had a tank set up for several months. You might want to consider increasing the volume and frequency of your water changes to help with the hair algae. Scott Fellman has a few nice articles regarding such here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/nutrientcontrol.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/scottsh2ochgart.htm
Good luck
Michelle



One snail laid on his side half open for ~12 hours others have not moved for
several days on end. I have not noticed any snail deaths.
<<Here is my theory: You are likely seeing paralysis from the high Mag levels/
low Calcium. Magnesium Sulfate (MgSO4) in the human acts as a central
nervous system depressant. It blocks neuromuscular transmission by
decreasing the amount of Acetylcholine released by motor nerve impulses. A
secondary effect is the relaxation of smooth muscle tissue. MgSO4 is also the
most commonly used tocolytic agent, it decreases the frequency and intensity
of uterine contractions associated with preterm labor. It is also used to
prevent seizures and convulsions..Mag toxicity is a huge concern in something
the size of a human, let alone a tiny snails. When MgSO4 is given in a
hospital setting the antagonist, calcium, typically calcium gluconate, is kept
at the bedside. Patella Tendon reflexes are continously monitored for for
signs of diminished or absent reflexes related to the risk of overdose. This
is why I suspect your problems may be related to the Calcium level and
Magnesium levels in your tank.>>
 
Phyl

Phyl

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
You don't need high mag to get rid of regular hair algae. Only byropsis, as Wendy mentioned.

Interesting info, Michelle. Thanks!
 
D

duijver

Altohombre: my mag is floating around 1800-1900 (according to my Sera Mag test) and I have a pretty good amount of hair algae in my tank. It's now covered with red algae or cyano but it's there. Calcium levels are pretty much off the charts as well - even after weekly water changes of ~20% for 3 weeks. I will admit that the Coraline growth is pretty strong though..

I have noticed that the Nerite snails are very lathargic and I often find them hanging out outside of the tank... I never considered mag as a possible reason. Interesting concept. As a side note.. the Sera instructions, on the testing equipment, is not overly newbie friendly..
 
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