High Calcium

[Mikek]

So, I'm showing some high calcium levels and have a few questions. First, here are my levels: Spec Grav 1.024
Ammonia and Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10
Alk 280ppm
PH 7.8
and Calcium just over 520
Questions: 1) As long as PH stays ok, will my fish and inverts be ok?
2) This was after a tank upgrade in which several of my coral seem to have died, will dead coral spike the ammonia?
3) Orange stuff is forming on my new base rock, is this from the calcium, and should I be worried?
4) Will this inhibit algae growth? And is the calcium killing my algae?
5) My Mushrooms seem to be doing great, is this calcium spike GOOD for coral growth?
6) Anything else I should be concerned about if the other levels keep testing ok?

Sorry for all the questions, but you guys are all great with the answers.

Thanks in advance for your input!

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

Cal. Is a little high, just keep an eye on it. Are you dosing?
Yes corals are living, so if it dies, the nitrogen cycle may be off.
"orange stuff" needs a picture to id it. I highly doubt its anything with cal.
Mushrooms absorb little to no cal. They dont have a skeleton growing.
Watch mag. Levels.

 

[RockStacker]

What test kit are you using?
You had another thread where you are using test strips. Are you using test strips for Calcium too?

Paper test strips generally have bad resolution so they could be off by as much as 50 points or more.

I would recommend that you do not try to make any adjustments to your water parameters until you get a reliable test kit.
Until then, just keep up the water changes as new mixed saltwater has the proper parameters for most reef tanks.

 

[Mikek]

I haven't been making any adjustments other than a changing water with premixed. I'm not using strips for the Calcium, using API liquid test. And I know API isn't the most reliable, but I was basing it off the fact the the API had been showing normal levels up till recently...however, I am happy to report, as of today, I am getting normal levels again...about 460. Funny thing on these threads...it seems whenever I am using a liquid test, everyone says "oh that's why, use strips", and then I use strips, and everyone says strips are bad, use liquid...lol...that's why I usually base it off my baseline...if a test has been consistently giving me one reading, and suddenly it shoots up, then I figure there's something to worry about... ;)

 

[RockStacker]

API liquid kits, while not the "best" are leaps better than test strips.

The reason test strips can be so inaccurate is that the reagents infused in the paper tend to have very short shelf life. So you could be getting accurate readings for a few weeks then suddenly go off-scale afterwards.