Introduction

Potassium should be maintained around 400ppm. Potassium is important element in the reef aquarium but is only consumed in small amounts and is normally maintained by regular water changes. However increasingly people are finding it to be deficient in their aquariums especially when using ULNS systems.

Increasing your Potassium level in your tank is fairly easy and can be done by using an "off the shelf" liquid additive. For small tanks/adjustments this can be effective, however for the larger tanks/adjustments then it is more cost effective to add Potassium Chloride.

If your Potassium levels are high, then test a fresh salt mix to see what the Potassium levels are, if unusually high then consider changing your salt brand. Carrying out regular water changes with a salt containing less Potassium than your tank level, will gradually bring the Potassium levels down.

Application

Using the calculator below find out the dosage amount. Weigh the dosage carefully.

Mix the dose with .5 to 1 litre of RO water. Stir thoroughly to dissolve the salts until the mixture is clear. Then drip the mixture slowly over the course of several hours into a high flow area of the tank such as weir, sump return area etc.

Due to the sensitivity of marine organisms, it is not advisable to raise potassium by more than 10 ppm per day.

When increasing potassium, it is not advisable to perform other supplements at the same time.

Excess potassium levels can lead to algae blooms, so do not overdose.

If you are unsure about anything discussed above, raise a thread in the 'Help and advise' or 'Chemistry' areas of the forum.