Using ozonizer without ORP controller( in reef tank)- ok?

[BigShot]

This is how I plan to connect Coralife ozonizer to my 90 gallon reef tank.

The dosage will be 3mg/10gallons (max dosage for the ozonizer I have) .

It will be connected to the venturi port of my BakPak2 skimmer.

I was told that the usual dosage is around 5mg/10 gallons, but that is all I have right now, so I hope 3mg/10 gallons will still be somewhat sufficient.

I was also told that since I connect the ozonizer to venturi of skimmer, I really should not worry about passing water through carbon, because one will react by the time water goes to the main tank.

The main question I ponder is can I do without ORP controller for a few months?

Especially since the dosage is way less than the recommended average.

So the questions that remain are:

- Should I run the ozonizer all the time?

- What are some overdose symptoms in fish and inverts that I should keep an eye on?

- Will 3mg/10 gallons still be beneficial?

- Is it possible for the ORP to be too high?

- And finally will ozone take out any essential trace elements, such as iodine, calcium, strontium, magnesium etc… that I should increase supplementation of?



Thanks,

Luke

 

[Anonymous]

O3 is basically organic bleach

if you feel you must use it, i'd seriuosly recommend getting an orp controller, as overdosing can be disastrous

not only does each system have it's 'correct dose' that can differ from a 'formulated value', a systems needs/response can change over time

fwiw-i've seen wonderfully healthy tanks w/a relatively low orp, and very crappy lookin ones w/a 'good' orp

systems can also develop an 'ozone dependancy' a phenomenon caused by the O3 not letting the more natural checks and balances develop and prosper-then, if the O3 generator fails, the system crashes quite rapidly-due to the sudden rise in organics, that normal regular maintenance would have otherwise kept at low parameters

best to not get obsessed w/numbers on a meter, and just take good care of your tank :wink:

just my $0.02

hth

 

[Anonymous]

Will 3mg/10 gallons still be beneficial?

Will 5mg/10 gallons still be beneficial?

O3 is useful if ORP is too low. There are tons of literature of the application in waste water treatment, and similar to protein skimmer and wetdry, the "de-commericalization" of the technology had found its applications in aqurium. I am sure you are aware of the basics, so I am not going to explain too much. The reason that I ask the question above is that you really need to have a reason for the use of it. There are only a few situation that a tank will be more difficult to keep due to the lack of the use of O3, and in vast majority of the cases, it is not needed at all.

Without the ORP controller, it is difficult to make sure you need the O3. You may be able to use a pH controller as a substitute (there is a stronge correlation between ORP and pH), but it is still kind of difficult to figure out. Even if you have the ozonizer and an ORP controller, you may still find no need for O3.

Oh, BTW, O3 is not organic... just a minor point.