How to Start Using Coral Essentials

One of the most common questions we are asked is "How do I start using your marine aquarium supplements range"? It's a simple answer, and simple instructions to follow, just like using our products here at Coral Essentials. However it is one question we feel needs to be answered well to ensure your experience using our products is the absolute best it can be.

The first step in any tank supplementation is to dose, Calcium, Carbonate (Alkalinity) and Magnesium. If you are transitioning from another range then you can allow a week gap between finishing up on your previous range to your preferred Coral Essentials dosing routine so you can see the difference when CE kicks in. However stopping any trace elements could also mean stopping your Calcium, Carbonate/Alkalinity & Magnesium dosage and therefore de-stabilising your aquarium, which we don’t want this for your aquarium. So to make sure your aquarium can be the best it can be while you make the change we recommend you have an ICP-OES analysis done. Once you know where your aquarium is sitting in terms of trace elements or any major parameters then you can use the calculators to set the dose rates for your new Coral Essentials.

If you’re already using a pre-mix or balling type solution for your trace elements that’s combined with calcium, carbonate/alkalinity and magnesium supplements you can make the switch to Coral Essentials easy by working out how much of the 3 primary care you are dosing in parts per million (ppm) (their bottles should give you this information, if not just reach out to us). Then again use the calculator on the CE website to see how many mL of CE will be needed to achieve the same ppm.

We think it is key to do an ICP-OES test when making the change to Coral Essentials. If any levels are causing alarm then you may need to detox your aquarium before starting on Coral Essentials by stopping some or all of the previous range. Know your aquarium stock level, this is important and examples of what we consider to be low, medium and high stocked aquariums can be found on the website. This is relevant for “easy dosing” using the directions on the bottle. We want your aquarium to be amazing. Make use of our website and social media platforms for information or to contact us, we are happy to help you wherever you find us.

Now we can progress to this handy step by step guide to using the the Coral Essentials range from the very beginning and giving your corals the unfair advantage.

Nutrition Step

Start by adding a half recommended dose of Coral Power Amino in the morning and Coral Power Gro at night. Then over 2 weeks gradually increase the dose to the full recommendation of 2 drops per 100L in a heavily stocked tank. You can also use the “ready” versions of these and hook them up to your dosing pump for an even more carefree approach. The dosing rates for these products are detailed on the bottles and each of the product webpages below. The CE powdered food is a massive hit among reefers too and that’s because like all the products we develop them on a fully operational coral farm called Sustainable Reefs. The Coral Power Food Is a pure mix of nutritious foods with no added fillers or preservatives. Use this to get your coral growing and consuming skeleton building elements faster.
Testing Step

Test & monitor your nutrients (primarily nitrate & phosphate).  Decide on the Nitrate and phosphate levels you require for your aquarium. If additional Nitrate and Phosphate are required to keep up with consumption you can use our Nitrate Up and Phosphate Up.
Test & monitor Calcium/Alkalinity(Carbonate)/Magnesium (CAM) levels and determine your steady rate of consumption using the Coral Essentials Primary care range that consists of Calcium + Trace, Carbonate + Trace & Magnesium + Trace. You can test your rate of consumption by stopping all dosing for a 24-48hr period (2 days 48hrs is best).  Test the levels and record them on Day 1 and stop dosing at this set time you do the tests. Make sure you continue to do your usual feeding and nutrient dosing to make sure the conditions are as close to normal as possible for your tank. Test levels at the same time on Day 2, once again record them and do not dose again. Test again at the same set time on day 3 and record the levels. Average the drop in levels for each of Calcium, Alk and Mag over the 2 days and this then becomes your daily usage. Set the amount of your Calcium, Alk and Mag to dose using our Calculator.  You can also use the powdered “Up” range of the Calcium, Carbonate and Magnesium to make stand alone solutions without trace elements and add the traces manually which we will cover soon. Set your dosing pumps to this determined dosage rate to match your consumption.
Nutrient Reduction Step

You may like to help your beneficial bacteria populations for nitrate and phosphate reduction and organic waste removal by adding Coral Power Bacteria Food and Bio Clean. Coupled with a good skimmer this combination will help reduce waste and unwanted nutrients. Also reducing harmful waste by employing the use of our Activated Carbon and Zeolite will greatly improve your water clarity and quality.
Trace Elements Step

if required you can now add a small amount of trace elements A, B & C to the aquarium by adding the dose by hand.  If you mix up your own Calcium, Alk and Mag you can add the trace elements to your mixes using our online Coral Essentials calculator method and mixing instructions to DIY on each of the Calcium Up, Carbonate Up and Magnesium Up pages. If you’re using the pre-mix Coral Essentials Calcium + Trace,  Carbonate + Trace and Magnesium + Trace which have Trace levels mixed for a low to medium stocked aquarium you may need to add more of a certain trace element to adjust the parameters which is covered next.

ICP-OES analysis Step

After a couple of weeks of dosing your aquarium and keeping the aquarium nutrients & CAM levels stable using the trace elements it’s a good idea to send off a sample for ICP-OES analysis. Once you get the results back you can use our handy ICP Calculator to adjust your trace element addition or ask us for more information on the Coral Essentials Support Group linked below. You will also find we offer an extensive range of stand alone elements in the Coral Power range to fine tune your aquarium water parameters even further and refer to our ICP Calculator. Refer to the individual webpages here for more information on each of theses elements and dosage rates as you require it.

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Black label “Juice” and CVE+ Step

We offer a range called the black label series or sometimes called “The juice” that currently contains 2 types of product that can be broken down into a more manually used version and the newer version which is a lot easier. The manual style bottles are the original black label, Chroma+, Vibrance+ and Energy+ which are designed to bring your aquarium up another level. They come in 50ml and 15ml bottles. The newer version is CVE+, it’s a mix of all 3 of the above in a slightly differently ratio as well as being made so you can dose it straight from the bottle using a dosing pump and no refrigeration required. Use this range once your aquarium has been fine tuned for CAM & trace element uptake to give your corals a never before seen and unrivalled level of health and colour.
Final Step

Enjoy your Coral Essentials powered aquarium full of healthy & vibrant corals. If you ever need any assistance please don’t hesitate to join the Coral Essentials Support Group. Thank you for choosing Coral Essentials.