Get a
mg test kit. In order to hold your
ca at 400 - 450ppm you will need to keep your
mg levels roughly 1350ppm. (Rule of thumb is 3 times your
ca)
Alk is important to keep stable but a lot of folks are still stumped when they just can not quite get the
ca into the 400 plus range.
mg acts as a sort of 'buffer' for your
ca so make sure its also in line. ($$ Nother test kit please ; ) Also, just my 2 cents here..I use
kalk and while it is great for keeping your
alk and
ca levels stable, you should look into some turbo calcium or other calcium additive designed to raise
ca. The danger in someone new to
kalk using it to raise
ca is the possible overkill. Can wreak a little havok on your
alk/
ph causing nifty little issues of its own. Either way, take your time and test frequently while you make changes. Remember..generally speaking, nothing good happens fast in a tank!
GL!