vodka

[hdelectraglide]

Has anyone tried vodka dosing their tanks:confused::confused::confused:

[jeremyreef]

i have not, but know of a few people who have.

[chromiumlux]

How old is your tank? How deep is your sandbed. There are some good articles out there at www.advancedaquarist.com (http://www.advancedaquarist.com) that detail this. Also see www.melevsreef.com (http://www.melevsreef.com) for info on this method. Once you start dosing you have to continue dosing to maintain your parameters. I would recommend you read as much as possible on this subject.

[jeremyreef]

also this is usually a last resort process

[TechGuy40]

Yeah once in my 29. I mixed up my VSV mix with my top off water, and killed nearly everything in my tank. Everything was covered in slime. No O2 in the water. So proceed with caution! If you do it, start much smaller than you think you will need then ramp up the dosage.

[hdelectraglide]

hey thanks for everyone input.Ive read alot about vodka dosing . my parameters are close to untraceable i was just wondering if their was anybody dosing

[marinelife]

No dosing here!

[rayviv]

I use to until I got ulcers.

[TechGuy40]

I use to until I got ulcers.

Stuff is pretty rough. Anyone ever dose Mojitos? Didn't do much the one time I accidentally tried it.

[hdelectraglide]

after reading all the post and write ups on using vodka as a carbon source i am thinking of trying. i do understand that if i overdose i will kill most things. i will start out slow if i decide to start I'll post my results

[jeremyreef]

we look forward to the results, i was checking out reef geek and noticed they had these http://www.reefgeek.com/care_&_maintenance/Additives_&_Supplements/NP_BioPellets/ dont know if our sponsors carry them or not :huh: but its probably cheaper to do yourself anyway.

[marinelife]

Yeah here is a post about this product:
http://www.saltgeeks.com/forums/showthread.php?511-NP-Biopellets-Solid-Vodka-Dosing-Pellets

[jeremyreef]

ha, yeah forgot about that one. :D

[hdelectraglide]

i started dosing for a 50 gal very slow dosing about 1/2 of my water volume but i really need a bigger skimmer i'll keep you updated. i will tell you this i started 2-11-10 my water has never looked so clear im dosing .2ml the first 3 days moving to .4 ml

[hdelectraglide]

im on week two .45ml twice daily skimmers are going crazy skimmate is very dark and smelly no3 still at 10 api, po4 .5 api the water is very clear .

[chromiumlux]

Are you going bt Meleve's recomendations on his site?

[hdelectraglide]

Ive never seen that , my dosing regiment comes from a RC thread

[chromiumlux]

same thing I beleive

[hdelectraglide]

Nemo and Dori had a huge fight last night and sorry to say nemo has an alcohol problem his was admitted into AA the vodka dosing has came to a halt. hahaha

[jeremyreef]

haha funny stuff :laugh:

[TechGuy40]

Alright. So I have been dosing for one week now. All the Hair algae is gone, Bryopsis is white and falling off. My Skimate is crazy, nasty crap. My water is getting cloudy, so I need to cut it back a bit.


http://img72.imageshack.us/img72/3277/img3086g.jpg
http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/5756/img3083ga.jpg
http://img40.imageshack.us/img40/8117/img3082lx.jpg

[marinelife]

You just need to bring me some of those pretty coral frags!

[TechGuy40]

You just need to bring me some of those pretty coral frags!

I'll be at the swap. Bringing three, might bring some stuff to raffle if you guys want.

[marinelife]

cool deal.

[hdelectraglide]

hey you need to cut it back by .5ml be carefull buddy

[TechGuy40]

hey you need to cut it back by .5ml be carefull buddy

I would if I was using the normal method. My ALK is 12, and my PH is 8.2. If I understand this correctly, thats because of a lower O2 level in the water, which corresponds to the cloudy water (bacterial bloom).

Anyone here have an ORP meter?

[Aquatic Specialists]

I think I brought you an oxygen test kit...lol

[TechGuy40]

I think I brought you an oxygen test kit...lol


Oh SNAP! I forgot all about that, thanks for the reminder!

My Skimmer is overflowing again today lol.

[hdelectraglide]

Oh SNAP! I forgot all about that, thanks for the reminder!

My Skimmer is overflowing again today lol.

its funny how quick they fill up

[hdelectraglide]

I would if I was using the normal method. My ALK is 12, and my PH is 8.2. If I understand this correctly, thats because of a lower O2 level in the water, which corresponds to the cloudy water (bacterial bloom).

Anyone here have an ORP meter?

that is correct about the o2 how fast are dosing twice daily or all at once and what times , how much are you up too ?

[TechGuy40]

that is correct about the o2 how fast are dosing twice daily or all at once and what times , how much are you up too ?

I'm dosing Sugar and Vinegar. 15Ml in the morning and night. Its not as strong as vodka, so I am using much more. Down to 5Ml now.

And I cleaned the skimmer yesterday.

[mayhem_audio]

todd could you explain a lil more about the surger and viniger

[TechGuy40]

http://glassbox-design.com/2008/the-vsv-method-faq/

[hdelectraglide]

are you dosing vsv or just sv

[TechGuy40]

are you dosing vsv or just sv

Just SV. No vodka here in the house if you know what I mean.

Remember in the store I was concerned about my skimmer? Its nuts man, its been overflowing everyday. I tried wet skimmate, I tried running the skimmer wide open. Same thing. Super thick skimmate, that won't settle down.

[hdelectraglide]

Just SV. No vodka here in the house if you know what I mean.

Remember in the store I was concerned about my skimmer? Its nuts man, its been overflowing everyday. I tried wet skimmate, I tried running the skimmer wide open. Same thing. Super thick skimmate, that won't settle down.

what are your levels no3 po4

[TechGuy40]

what are your levels no3 po4

Zeros. Broke down and made some VSV as shown here: http://glassbox-design.com/2008/achieved-through-observation-and-experimentation/

And an awesome read for anyone trying this:

http://zeovit.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7671

[marinelife]

So how are the corals now!

[TechGuy40]

So how are the corals now!

Colors are returning on most. Only certain color corals changed. It was weird. The greens got pale, some grey, blues stayed the same, purple turned brown. Stylos all bleached, but are returning to normal. Something is lacking with this method. If you read the article its confusing, but makes sense. We don't understand something about this process.

[marinelife]

That is what scares me, this method seems to work but I hate doing anything like this to my tank.

[TechGuy40]

That is what scares me, this method seems to work but I hate doing anything like this to my tank.

Unless you have an algae issue, or really want to push the colors of your coral I wouldn't. Some report incredible coloration afterwards, some like me get bleaching. But one thing is for sure, it definitely reduces nutrients, and quickly at that.

I would call it a last resort. I will stop as soon as I know the nuisance algae are gone.

[hdelectraglide]

My colors all started to pop but i am moving VERY slowly and just vodka and I MUST STRESS SLOWLY or you will crash your tank!
i started maybe 6 months ago and i am just now at 1.9ml

[mayhem_audio]

now does the proof of the vodca make a diffrence ??? and why vodka maybe the corals would like a lil jager??? i really want to know the benificial properties of the vodka (what chemicial compounds are are working that are not in other liquads )

[TechGuy40]

now does the proof of the vodca make a diffrence ??? and why vodka maybe the corals would like a lil jager??? i really want to know the benificial properties of the vodka (what chemicial compounds are are working that are not in other liquads )

Vodka is Ethanol and water. The ethanol is a carbon source for bacteria to consume along with nitrates, and phosphates.

[mayhem_audio]

so this is like a last resort when active carbon and a phosban reactor does not work

[hdelectraglide]

so this is like a last resort when active carbon and a phosban reactor does not work

not really just another way to control N03 PO4

[TechGuy40]

Enough said :p

http://img130.imageshack.us/img130/1562/img0272jd.jpg

[hdelectraglide]

Enough said :p

http://img130.imageshack.us/img130/1562/img0272jd.jpg

looks good

[TechGuy40]

looks good

Bring us up a fresh sample and we can get a test done for you, see where you are at!

[chromiumlux]

Tech, you stated you were going to quit dosing after you had algae under control. I thought I read in melev's thread on vodka dosing that you had to maintain after the initial dosing regimen. So as to ensure the same bacterial levels you have acheived from the dosing. Is it wise to just quit? Just a thought.

[hdelectraglide]

Tech, you stated you were going to quit dosing after you had algae under control. I thought I read in melev's thread on vodka dosing that you had to maintain after the initial dosing regimen. So as to ensure the same bacterial levels you have acheived from the dosing. Is it wise to just quit? Just a thought.

Ive started and stop several time with no adverse affects. but they do say you should lower the dose to the week before the levels dropped and this would be your maintenance dose

[chromiumlux]

Yeah that is what I had read. Thanks Jack.

[TechGuy40]

Tech, you stated you were going to quit dosing after you had algae under control. I thought I read in melev's thread on vodka dosing that you had to maintain after the initial dosing regimen. So as to ensure the same bacterial levels you have acheived from the dosing. Is it wise to just quit? Just a thought.

Thats what I read also. Algae is under control now, but I still haven't stopped. I might be a bit and see what happens. Havn't really decided yet :p

[hdelectraglide]

Thats what I read also. Algae is under control now, but I still haven't stopped. I might be a bit and see what happens. Havn't really decided yet :p

i really see no reason to stop maybe lower dose to the week before the reading. its just like running carbon just a little more touchy (imo)

[rayviv]

How old is your tank? How deep is your sandbed. There are some good articles out there at www.advancedaquarist.com (http://www.advancedaquarist.com) that detail this. Also see www.melevsreef.com (http://www.melevsreef.com) for info on this method. Once you start dosing you have to continue dosing to maintain your parameters. I would recommend you read as much as possible on this subject.

I pulled up both links Andy and still could not find about the vodka dosing. Can you help me find the info I need to check it out? I have to do something about this algae. Thanks!

[marinelife]

Here is the one http://www.melevsreef.com/vodka_dosing.html

[dogfytr]

man that seems like work to me

[hdelectraglide]

I pulled most of my information off of reef central and its not much work when I'm already dosing calcium any how

[hdelectraglide]

I pulled up both links Andy and still could not find about the vodka dosing. Can you help me find the info I need to check it out? I have to do something about this algae. Thanks!

Hey ray do your research before you jump probably the number one thing you need is a good skimmer to pull out all the bacterias and there is a great article on reef central

[hdelectraglide]

I have started and stopped several time with no ill affects

[rayviv]

Here is the one http://www.melevsreef.com/vodka_dosing.html
Thanks Eric

Hey ray do your research before you jump probably the number one thing you need is a good skimmer to pull out all the bacterias and there is a great article on reef central

Thanks H. Home work it is