Coral / invert water parameters

[leon1972]

Hey gys. I just got my RODI, YAY!!!!! , and changed over my first batch of water. What I want to know is what testing needs to be done to let me know my water is ready for coral and inverts?
Here are the test I have done and their results
Nitrates 20 ( this is the max they can be in a reef tank right?)
Nitrites .05 ( has never been zero, this is the lowest value for the test. Could just be trace elements)
Ammonia .25 ( has always been .25. Again that's lowest value detectable. Wonder if it's trace amounts from the tap water)
Phosphate 5.0 (first time testing for this. Assuming from tap water for now)
Alkalinity 2.8
Ph 8.4
I tested for copper just to make sure there was none in my tap water.
Do I need to do any additional testing and what do I want everything to be for corals and inverts? Anything I can do to accelerate the process of removing these evil elements?

 

[leon1972]

I know I need to get my ammonia and nitrites back to zero and my nitrates at 20 or lower. What about my phosphates? Do they need to be zero? Do I need to be testing for anything not on this list I'm already testing for since I was using tap water?

 

[BL1]

Phos should be as close to 0 as possible. What your testing for is fine, unless you start keeping lots of hard corals/clams then you'll need to test for calcium, magnesium, and alk.

 

[leon1972]

And I want magnesium to be zero and calc to b 450 right?

 

[Dana42078]

mag should be bout 1350ppm

 

[leon1972]

Is magnesium another element that is conumed by corals or inverts or is it just safe at that level?

 

[BL1]

These numbers are according to Randy Holmes-Farley but, you want:
Calcium 380-450
Alk 2.5-4
Magnesium 1250-1350
pH 7.8-8.5

Everyone's parameters will be slightly different and everyone will have what they think is best but those numbers are safe ranges for everything.

 

[BL1]

Is magnesium another element that is conumed by corals or inverts or is it just safe at that level?

The corals will actually use up the calcium, here's an article that will probably give you way more information then you wanted on the subject Aquarium Chemistry: Magnesium In Reef Aquaria — Advanced Aquarist | Aquarist Magazine and Blog

 

[Dana42078]

Yes! Randy is a reef god! I keep my mag on the higher end. I lost some acans due to low mag and slightly low cal...and prolly could have been the fact it was a young tank who knows...