Is Kalk all it’s cracked up to be?

VelasCorals

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LETS FIND OUT! :nerd:


After some research and a great thread, here on R2R, I decided to start dosing Kalk! It’s not that I didn’t want to before but I didn’t realize how easy and CHEAP it is to do. I seriously wish I done this a year ago. I know I can’t be the only one that didn’t realize how easy it is. I’m all over the forums and never came across all the info until a few weeks ago. If you would like the background on Kalk make sure to read btkrausen's thread to get the background info.


GOALS: Spread the word so more people can enjoy the benefits of KALK! On top of that I’m checking my Calc and Alk readings daily and charting them out to see what happens with no daily dosing of a two part. I'll do this for about a month, then weekly and then montly. I would like to keep the calc at 400-420ppm and the Alk 10-12dkh. Once I reach those level with two parts I'm going to see if the Kalk will keep them there.

For equipment I went with the Two Little Fishies Kalk Reactor and JBJ ATO. I already had the JBJ ATO so spending a little cash on the TLF Kalk reactor was a no brainer. I also purchased some extra clamps and a few things that were unnecessary. This is everything I’m using.

Parts List:
- 10 gallon tank (RO/DO Reservoir) $15
- TLF Kalk Reactor $64.99
- JBJ ATO $109.99
- 3 feet of ½ ID Clear Flex Vinyl Tubing $1.19/ft
- BRS 1 Gallon Kalkwasser $11.99
- Maxijet 1200 $21.99

$227.53 for everything.

This is if you don’t have an ATO already and need to buy everything new with no other discounts. I did buy some extra clamps and a ball valve but none of it’s needed even though you will see it in the install.


Quick Tank Background:

Mixed 60 gallon reef with LED lighting around 70 gallons total water volume with sump and fuge.

_-4-6.jpg





Next, I’m going to post the pictures I took of the install to show how easy it was. Then, I'll post of the results that I've been recording. I'm first dosing 2 part to get the Calc and Alk up to the desired levels and see if the Kalk will maintain it.
 
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btkrausen

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Thats great man, glad to hear it. I've been pushing kalk on people for years, telling people about its benefits. Its such an easy setup, and the benefits really outweigh the cost. How long have you been dosing it now?
 
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VelasCorals

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Thats great man, glad to hear it. I've been pushing kalk on people for years, telling people about its benefits. Its such an easy setup, and the benefits really outweigh the cost. How long have you been dosing it now?

I started on 1/31/2011. However, in that time I've been also using 2 part to get the calc and alk up. My weekly water changes just weren't cutting it anymore and without me realizing it my calc has been 320ppm for a while and my alk at 7dkh because I was relying only on water changes to keep my numbers where they were.
 
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VelasCorals

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Here's the goods...

Pretty TLF box!
IMG_1593Small.jpg


This is what you get... it's so simple!
IMG_1600Small.jpg


Tubing 1/2" ID
IMG_1596Small.jpg


JBJ ATO.. already hook up so I don't have an install for it
IMG_1598Small.jpg


Few extra clamps to hold the tubing to the maxijet
IMG_1594Small.jpg


Here's the setup before adding the reactor. Simple and effective!
IMG_1597Small.jpg
 
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VelasCorals

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Next step...

Putting the reactor together... again very easy.

This is what you end up with.


Connecting the tubing that goes into the reactor.
IMG_1601Small.jpg


This is the sprinkler head at the end of the inlet tubing that actually mixes the kalk every time the ATO is turned on.
IMG_1602Small.jpg


Next, slide all the connected tubing into the reactor.
IMG_1603Small.jpg


The directions say to make sure it's lined up in the middle so this is what it looks like.
IMG_1604Small.jpg
 
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VelasCorals

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You don't even need any clamps, just pump everything on the fittings...

IMG_1605Small.jpg


Filled it up about 3/4 the way with RO/DI
IMG_1606Small.jpg


Because of space restraints I chose to place the reactor in the RO/DI reservoir itself. You can also hang it on the sump or on the back of your aquarium if you want.
IMG_1607Small.jpg


I used the bottom screw to make sure the reactor was level and then hooked up the outlet tube the drips all the kalk water into the sump.
IMG_1608Small.jpg
 
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VelasCorals

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This is where the fun beings.

I hooked up the check valve so the mixed kalk can't siphon back to the reservoir.
IMG_1609Small.jpg


Then I hooked that up to the maxi jet 1200 that has the prober GPH specs for the unit (around 300gph).
IMG_1610Small.jpg

IMG_1612Small.jpg


Here's some stuff you don't need to do unless you have a pump that is too power for the unit over 300gph. For some reason I wanted to hook up a ball valve to slow down the flow out of the reactor but the flow is already a drip with the maxijet 1200 and the ball valve open all the way.
IMG_1612Small.jpg

IMG_1614Small.jpg

IMG_1615Small.jpg


All done with the ball valve.
IMG_1616Small.jpg
 
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VelasCorals

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Here's another part of the install that isn't necessary but I figured since I had an extra powerhead I would use it. It's basically a lower powered rio powerhead to mix the kalk that is dripping into the sump faster. I didn't want the pure kalk to go straight to the fuge.
IMG_1619Small.jpg

IMG_1619Small.jpg



Now for the last part of the process.

Bulk Reef Supply Kalk! SO CHEAP!
IMG_1621Small.jpg


By the recommendations of TLF I'm using 1 cup of kalk based on 10.5 gallons of evap per week. Right now in the winter my evap rate is probably around 12 gallons a week but I wanted to follow the chart to keep it simple.
IMG_1623Small.jpg



Here we go...
IMG_1624Small.jpg



Added all the kalk and put the lid on.
IMG_1625Small.jpg



Turned the ATO back on and here we go!
IMG_1626Small.jpg


Very simple, and after about 24 hours the kalk settled on the bottom and the mixture that is dripped into the tank is clear and not milky at all. When the reactor turns on the bottom turns milky and it mixes.

Now the install is done I'm going to continue recording the data from the reactor. I'm just about at the levels I want to start with and will post the data soon.
 

btkrausen

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Congrats, what a great write up. I have been curious about the TLF reactor on how it performs. So it looks like it mixes by using the power of the incoming water?

I'm using a big reactor on my tank, a Precision Marine. It uses a powerhead to mix it up, and the powder never goes above 2/3 of the reactor, even when mixing. I've been wanting to do a big write up on kalk and its benefits on here...looks like you beat me to it :)
 
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VelasCorals

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Congrats, what a great write up. I have been curious about the TLF reactor on how it performs. So it looks like it mixes by using the power of the incoming water?

I'm using a big reactor on my tank, a Precision Marine. It uses a powerhead to mix it up, and the powder never goes above 2/3 of the reactor, even when mixing. I've been wanting to do a big write up on kalk and its benefits on here...looks like you beat me to it :)

Thanks! Yes, it uses the flow from the power head with your ATO or timer turns on to mix the kalk on the bottom via the sprinkler head.

Also, I could be wrong but I didn't think you want the thick powder mixture in your tank. It's the clear kalk mixture that you want to be dripped in your tank after the sediment settles to the bottom waiting to be mixed again. The beauty of the reactor is it only mixed it on demand so the mixture is more pure every time it's need (when the ATO kicks on). Please correct me if I'm wrong. From what I've been reading you can skip using the reactor and just mix 5 or 10 gallons at a time but by the end of the week the mixture isn't at potent.
 

btkrausen

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Yup thats correct. What I tell people is that you want the water saturated with the kalk going into the tank, and not the kalk powder itself.

You are also right about mixing it in a tub, however, as the week goes on, the potency of the lime water will be reduced. This is exactly what a reactor addresses. With a reactor, you generally have the same potency of lime water going into the tank, and will take much longer to "wear down" per say. I put maybe a few teaspoons in my reactor every month, if that.

Watch your pH and calcium levels, and when they start to trend downwards, put a small scoop of kalk in to bring it back up.
 
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VelasCorals

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numbers-2.jpg



numbers-1.jpg



Okay so here are my numbers. I started fresh after a water change and the numbers were 340ppm for the calcium and 7dkh for the alk, too low! I then started to use Brightwell two part to get the numbers up. You can see that I overdosed the alk just a bit. Luckily no negative effects came out of it.

So, going forward I'm going to see if the kalk alone will keep the calc and alk at those levels or close. I'll probably post each night what I come up with and what you guys recommend I do.

Please any feedback is appreciated!
 

thewackyreefer

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Thanks for this write up. I've been considering purchasing a kalk reactor myself and all of the recent posts on here definitely have me leaning towards adding one to my system.
 

btkrausen

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Nice job, and great idea on the log. I have a tank log for all measurements and dosages for the last 5 months at least. Its helped me maintain my levels and gives me an idea on how much of what to get to the level I want in my specific tank. I also had line charts like you, but after like 55 data points, it didn't want to draw them for me anymore, haha.

Numbers are looking good. I would let that kH drop just a little if you can, but let it go slowly by itself. The kalk should maintain it at a steady level. If you find you need it higher, put in a little more kalk. This will also save you cash on buying Bionic :)
 

thewackyreefer

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Definitely a nice job and great idea on the log. I have a tank log too but as I said in the post above haven't been dosing kalk yet.

Numbers do look good.
 

btkrausen

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Thanks for this write up. I've been considering purchasing a kalk reactor myself and all of the recent posts on here definitely have me leaning towards adding one to my system.

Its a great investment, and everyone that I've helped set one up has seen a big improvement in their growth. Let me know if I can help with anything, as I've been running a kalk reactor for years.
 
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VelasCorals

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I almost forgot. I took pictures of 3 corals before I started that I can use for comparison. I'll take more pictures tomorrow and see if we can find some noticeable growth in a week.
 
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VelasCorals

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so once you put the kalk in the reactor do you turn the reactor on right away or do you have to wait 24 hrs?

I turned it on right away. The instructions didn't say anything bad about doing that. It was a little milky but I don't think it hurt anything.
 
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