Mike O'Brien
02-24-2008, 05:22 PM
Most of us end up using quite a bit of Magnesium supplement. Salt mixes are generally low in Mg, and it is depleted quite fast in our tanks, especially by Coralline algae. Good thing is that if you can get a hold of the raw materials you can make an adequately pure, ionically balanced Magnesium supplement for fraction of the cost of the commercially available supplements. Compared to B-ionic Magnesium, you can make 50 gallons for the cost of 1.
The tough part for most is getting the right type of Magnesium Chloride. Most are not suitable for use, but there is MAG Flake and Pellets from The Dead Sea Works. This has been tested and is pure enough for our use. Don't assume that another brand is. If you live in an area where it snows you might be able to find this because it's sold as a de icer. I got mine at Home Depot. Here is a picture of the bag.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y157/Mike0101/IMG_0076.jpg
The second ingredient is common Epsom salts that can be purchased about anywhere. Just be sure it says U.S.P., The United States Pharmacopeia. That ensures that it's food grade and of adequate purity.
Either of the ingredients is suitable for use for a small addition of Magnesium, but for an ionically balanced supplement that can be used on a continual basis, this recipe is preferred.
OK, here is the recipe that I came up with to make a gallon of Magnesium supplement.
1097 grams of Mag pellets
108 grams of Epsom salts.
Start with two containers. I use gallon water jugs. For best results, the salts should be fully dissolved separately before mixing. You want to use enough water to make one gallon. This will be less than a gallon of water, so start with about 1/4 gallon to mix the Epsom salts, and 1/2 gallon to mix the Mg Cl. When they are fully mixed, combine the two and fill the jug the rest of the way with water.
There will be some precipitation formed. This is Calcium Sulfate. It is OK for it to get in the tank as long as you are not dosing it into the display tank where it might land on corals. I prefer to filter that out using a coffee filter. That yields a perfectly clear liquid that can be added where you like.
Here is the rational for the recipe, in case someone can find an error in my thought process.
It takes 31.5 grams of Mag pellets to raise Mg 100 ppm in 10 gallons of water. That is the potency I'm looking for. To get the 10:1 ratio I divide 31.5 by 11, and then subtract the result, 2.86 from 31.5 which leaves 28.64. So basically since Epsom salt has a very similar potency to the Mag flake, the ratio would be 29 grams of Mag pellets and 3 grams of Epsom salts to make 100 ml of solution. Running the math to make 1 gallon or 3785 ml results in 1097 grams of Mag pellets, and 108 grams of Epsom salts.
The tough part for most is getting the right type of Magnesium Chloride. Most are not suitable for use, but there is MAG Flake and Pellets from The Dead Sea Works. This has been tested and is pure enough for our use. Don't assume that another brand is. If you live in an area where it snows you might be able to find this because it's sold as a de icer. I got mine at Home Depot. Here is a picture of the bag.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y157/Mike0101/IMG_0076.jpg
The second ingredient is common Epsom salts that can be purchased about anywhere. Just be sure it says U.S.P., The United States Pharmacopeia. That ensures that it's food grade and of adequate purity.
Either of the ingredients is suitable for use for a small addition of Magnesium, but for an ionically balanced supplement that can be used on a continual basis, this recipe is preferred.
OK, here is the recipe that I came up with to make a gallon of Magnesium supplement.
1097 grams of Mag pellets
108 grams of Epsom salts.
Start with two containers. I use gallon water jugs. For best results, the salts should be fully dissolved separately before mixing. You want to use enough water to make one gallon. This will be less than a gallon of water, so start with about 1/4 gallon to mix the Epsom salts, and 1/2 gallon to mix the Mg Cl. When they are fully mixed, combine the two and fill the jug the rest of the way with water.
There will be some precipitation formed. This is Calcium Sulfate. It is OK for it to get in the tank as long as you are not dosing it into the display tank where it might land on corals. I prefer to filter that out using a coffee filter. That yields a perfectly clear liquid that can be added where you like.
Here is the rational for the recipe, in case someone can find an error in my thought process.
It takes 31.5 grams of Mag pellets to raise Mg 100 ppm in 10 gallons of water. That is the potency I'm looking for. To get the 10:1 ratio I divide 31.5 by 11, and then subtract the result, 2.86 from 31.5 which leaves 28.64. So basically since Epsom salt has a very similar potency to the Mag flake, the ratio would be 29 grams of Mag pellets and 3 grams of Epsom salts to make 100 ml of solution. Running the math to make 1 gallon or 3785 ml results in 1097 grams of Mag pellets, and 108 grams of Epsom salts.