Ever use CHatGPT for Reef Chemistry? Don't lol

Randy Holmes-Farley · Nov 7, 2024

We've been down this road many times, but today another reminder of its fallibility, which could have added a hundreds of times too much additive to a tank.

CHATGPT GOOD CALCULATING? Randy: Not even close

Hey, guys, I would like to confirm whether what chatgpt wrote to me is correct, can you take a look at it?| My question was: "I have MnCl₂ + 420 manganese (10 grams of powder dissolved in 1000 ml of water). I would like to raise the manganese level in my aquarium, which has 2500 liters of...

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Peace River · Nov 9, 2024

Good reminder! ChatGPT may have its place, but be wary of using it for reef chemistry.

ReefStable · Nov 9, 2024

I have, and it was very far off. I was looking for very specific probes for reef tanks and it tried to get me to go down the path of Ion Selective Electrodes. Which in itself seems to be perfectly viable. But I was looking for a way to measure Phosphate/Phosphorus. It was VERY firm that this electrode exists and that the people at the companies like NT and Hanna were all lying to me.

I haven't tried to go much deeper than that after that response.

It IS good at getting you down different paths though. I hadn't heard about ISEs until it suggested them. Just assume that everything it suggests is an idea from someone in high-school or early college. Double/Triple check the idea and look for what's missing.

Jaden9933 · Nov 9, 2024

i actually just asked it something similar last night about adding All For Reef to raise alkalinity. it said adding 0.196ml to my 25 gallon system would raise DKH from 7.7 to 8.8. i’m not a chemist by any means, but that just didn’t seem right to me. i’ve added 1ml before and tested 24hours later to see the effect, but it was the same as the day before.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Nov 9, 2024

Jaden9933 said:
i actually just asked it something similar last night about adding All For Reef to raise alkalinity. it said adding 0.196ml to my 25 gallon system would raise DKH from 7.7 to 8.8. i’m not a chemist by any means, but that just didn’t seem right to me. i’ve added 1ml before and tested 24hours later to see the effect, but it was the same as the day before.

The full effect of adding 0.196 mL of AFR to 25 gallons is less than 0.02 dKH.

Use this calculator and the entry for Randy's recipe #1. It underestimates the AFR effect by only about 13%.

Reef Chemistry Calculator

Jaden9933 · Nov 9, 2024

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
The full effect of adding 0.196 mL of AFR to 25 gallons is less than 0.02 dKH.

Use this calculator and the entry for Randy's recipe #1. It underestimates the AFR effect by only about 13%.

Reef Chemistry Calculator

I assumed it wouldn't make much of a change at all, so I went with the bottle directions (starting with 5ml) and was going to test today at the 24 hour mark to see the change. I will definitely be using the calculator for all future dosing, thank you!