best kalk stirrer and dosing procedure and why? nighttime low pH solution

[Alpha Aquaculture]

Hello Reef2Reef!

I'm looking into complimenting my calcium reactor by adding some kalkwasser. My pH is dropping too low at nighttime and I think the kalk would be a great way to suck up some of that excess CO2 and bring my pH up. I have heavily aerated water and reverse daylight algae already so I believe this is a necessity. I have just changed the timing on my calcium reactor as well to further help my pH problems. Its only on now from 10am to 6pm. I also like the Ca that kalk will add for my lps because so far only a few days into the calcium reactor being off for 2/3 of the day my calcium has been dropping slowly (my alk has been steady still).

What kalk stirrer or doser should I buy? I always seem to buy the wrong equiptment and then have to upgrade. All advise is appreciated.

What is the best procedure for adding kalk as far as timing or amounts or anything? Do I have the right thinking about this topic? Is there a better alternative I am overlooking?


All constructive criticism is greatly appreciated. Thank you kindly for your time.

Kris :xd:

 

[RBursek]

First for every 1dkh drop in Alk it drops 7ppm in Ca, most kits will not beable to measure it. 2 tsp of Kalk per gallon of RO/DI water is saturation. Dripping is a PITB I have mine on a Toms Aqualifter pump $12.00 on sale at MD on a $8.99 timer, 3 min every 2 hours takes care of my MU water and PH.
http://www.marinedepot.com/Tom_Aquatics_Aqua_Lifter_Dosing_Pump_Accessories_for_Aquarium_Overflow_Boxes-Tom%60s_Aquatics-OE1137-FIOFOA-vi.html

 

[Alpha Aquaculture]

First for every 1dkh drop in Alk it drops 7ppm in Ca, most kits will not beable to measure it. 2 tsp of Kalk per gallon of RO/DI water is saturation. Dripping is a PITB I have mine on a Toms Aqualifter pump $12.00 on sale at MD on a $8.99 timer, 3 min every 2 hours takes care of my MU water and PH.
Tom Aquatics Aqua-Lifter Dosing Pump

I have a aqua lifter already (actually two of them, lol). It seems like kalk mixed in a 5g bucket and the aqualifter on a timer would work. What about all of these kalk reactor/stirrers? There are diff sizes and some are super expensive. Is it necessary to have my kalk mixture stirred and what are the benefits?

 

[gilmour01]

i run a precision marine kalk reactor inline with my ATO. its fed with a litermeter dosing pump. it was bit pricy to set up, but so far its been bullet proof. ( i actually like the GEO reactor better, but its a little more $)

 

[uchin]

i run a precision marine kalk reactor inline with my ATO. its fed with a litermeter dosing pump. it was bit pricy to set up, but so far its been bullet proof. ( i actually like the GEO reactor better, but its a little more $)

Hi what kind of kalk and how much you have in your reactor? Are you running your reactor pump three times a day for two min?

 

[Alpha Aquaculture]

i run a precision marine kalk reactor inline with my ATO. its fed with a litermeter dosing pump. it was bit pricy to set up, but so far its been bullet proof. ( i actually like the GEO reactor better, but its a little more $)

I have a GEO Calcium Reactor and I like it maybe I should look into that GEO Kalk Reactor.



What is the real benefit of a kalk reactor vs the simple method?

 

[RBursek]

No once it is mixed it will settle out and you do not want to take the Kalk from the bottom, keep the container covered but beable to let air in.
What Your Grandmother Never Told You About Lime by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
I am surprized I did not post it sooner.

 

[Paul_N]

I have a GEO Calcium Reactor and I like it maybe I should look into that GEO Kalk Reactor.



What is the real benefit of a kalk reactor vs the simple method?

I made a DIY monstrosity based on the GEO concept. It holds like 2 gallons of water. I used the Mrs. Wages with it for the past year and half and just tried the BRS stuff since an LFS started carrying it and the BRS stuff is more potent and I have to use less. I put about a cup of it in. I tried the drip method but it was a PITA so I built this and now I only fill it once every 4 weeks. I have a mixing pump that goes off for like 5 minutes twice per day. I dose at night only and it keeps my ph about 8.0 during the night. I can tell when I need to add more as my ph will start to dip to 7.9 at night.

 

[Alpha Aquaculture]

Thank you for the links. I have been reading through RHF's articles and learning. I am now dosing kalk as well as using my calcium reactor. I am not seeing much of a change in my pH and I have added nearly 4 gallons of the clearer kalk from the middle of the 5g bucket over three days now in my 120g. I mixed 45ml in 5g using Kent's kalk (I had it lying around). How much are you adding per day RO wise assuming nearly maximum saturation of kalk? What else are you using for calcium/alk in your tank? How big is your tank?

How much do you have to mix the kalk powder with RO when dosing manually?


Also, are the only benefits of a kalk reactor/stirrer that you can add a lot of kalk at once and not have to mix it every week? Please list the benefits of using a reactor/stirrer.



Thank you very much for all the questions :xd:

 

[Just Clownin Around]

to answer your questions there are several reasons to add a stirer
good mixing of the kalk and ro to keep saturation up and also use the kalk(instead of jus dumping the white build up evry few weeks on the bottom of your manual bucket)
adding it once every few weeks as opposed to every 3 days
sealed setup better than exposure to air
phosphate removal(binding- happens with manual dosing and kalk stirer when using kalk)
bad things
when it goes nuts your tank is in trouble
more electricity
more room needed
cost

if you ph does not jump when you add the kalk manually now then its not conc enough. i would add a few more teaspoonfuls and then mix it again, i think you will see better results doing it that way,ensures saturation, also has a better chance to strip undesirables out of the ro if there is any

 

[Paul_N]

When you say your ph is too low what are your numbers at night and in the morning?

 

[WWC]

What do you mean by " when it goes nuts your tank is in trouble" would you collaborate a little further please

to answer your questions there are several reasons to add a stirer
good mixing of the kalk and ro to keep saturation up and also use the kalk(instead of jus dumping the white build up evry few weeks on the bottom of your manual bucket)
adding it once every few weeks as opposed to every 3 days
sealed setup better than exposure to air
phosphate removal(binding- happens with manual dosing and kalk stirer when using kalk)
bad things
when it goes nuts your tank is in trouble
more electricity
more room needed
cost

if you ph does not jump when you add the kalk manually now then its not conc enough. i would add a few more teaspoonfuls and then mix it again, i think you will see better results doing it that way,ensures saturation, also has a better chance to strip undesirables out of the ro if there is any

 

[Alpha Aquaculture]

When you say your ph is too low what are your numbers at night and in the morning?

8.0 during the day but had been dropping to 7.7 some nights. I have been more successful with the nuances of dripping kalk in the last few days and it has been working well to keep my nighttimie pH at least at 7.8. I am concerned with the toxins and all in kalk. I know they precipitate but...


What is the absolute most pure kalk available?

 

[Alpha Aquaculture]

to answer your questions there are several reasons to add a stirer
good mixing of the kalk and ro to keep saturation up and also use the kalk(instead of jus dumping the white build up evry few weeks on the bottom of your manual bucket)
adding it once every few weeks as opposed to every 3 days
sealed setup better than exposure to air
phosphate removal(binding- happens with manual dosing and kalk stirer when using kalk)
bad things
when it goes nuts your tank is in trouble
more electricity
more room needed
cost

if you ph does not jump when you add the kalk manually now then its not conc enough. i would add a few more teaspoonfuls and then mix it again, i think you will see better results doing it that way,ensures saturation, also has a better chance to strip undesirables out of the ro if there is any

So... you just make sure the reactor is mixing hours before it starts dripping to avoid adding the impurities that need to precipitate?


Is it always advantageous to have a larger kalk reactor considering my tank is 120g?


What is the best kalk reactor/stirrer and why?



Thank you so much for the time to answer my many questions!

 

[Alpha Aquaculture]

What do you mean by " when it goes nuts your tank is in trouble" would you collaborate a little further please

I am also curious about the answer to this but I would guess:



It could add too much RO/kalk mix and lower your salinity too much.

This would also increase your calcium beyond acceptable levels... causing a spike and possible precipitation of calcium in your display??

The kalk reactor could add kalk during the period the reactor mixes and thus add unprecipitated cloudy kalk causing settlement of this precipitate on your corals


How would the reactor 'go nuts'? It seems to me like the problem would be more likely associated to an ATO that was connected to the reactor if you solely top off with kalk instead of plain RO.

I guess the valve controlling the drip could always break and allow for a faster flow than a drip causing a spike in levels but it seems more likely that this valve would just stop dripping due to calcium deposits blocking it


Who can teach me more? or correct me where I am wrong?


Thank you all for your time :xd:

 

[RBursek]

I trid the drip method and it is a PITB to keep it regulated and the container level lowers, so that is why I use a pump on a timer. 2tsp per gallon is max saturation adding more is usles unles you add some vinagar with it. and the you can raise saturation but get into carbon problems and posible algae outbreaks. I have no idea what was ment when a reactor goes nuts but if it would add too much I would worry about a raise in PH more then anything. Kalk is not ment to raise Ca but to help maintain levels and PH control when used for MU water. If mixed in a container and used with a pump on a timer once mixed and settled out is the perfered way to use it, but do not take the pump suction off of the bottom of the container, mine is about 1/2" above the bottom and it is a 7gal camping water container with an open air vent on top.

 

[RBursek]

To answer the question what is the highest grade of Kalk Mrs Wages pickling lime is food grade, BRS is pharmaceutical grade, I do not know if that is the same as Lab grade or not. Also to help manage Alk and PH, dosing with soda ash (baked baking soda) for Alk will raise PH at the same time, but may just raise it equally and still have a night day differential, which I believe will always be there to some degree.

 

[Acroholic]

What do you mean by " when it goes nuts your tank is in trouble" would you collaborate a little further please

If you have an ATO with a Nilsen (Kalk Stirrer) in line, then if you develop a leak in the system somewhere your ATO will start working, and if it goes continuously, then you run the chance of dumping a lot of pure Kalk into your tank, spiking the pH up to dangerous levels.

An upward pH spike is the danger more than lowering your SG from too much fresh water being added.

The way to deal with this possibility (I do these things) is to:

1. Limit your ATO reservoir to a few gallons, and do not have your RODI hooked to it via a float valve so it continuously produces water. That is a recipe for disaster if you do have a leak, because your ATO has an unlimited supply of water to dump into the system in that scenario. A limited volume ATO reservoir is safer.

2. Use a controller to regulate power to your ATO and your Kalk Stirrer. I have a RKL set so that if the tank pH spikes past 8.5, it turns power OFF to the ATO and the Kalk Stirrer, preventing any further water or kalk additions until I can deal with the problem.

 

[slovan]

I use a Deltec kalkstirrer with a LiterMeter III. It is about as fail safe as you can get when it comes to dosing kalk. The LMIII can only dose what you program so it eliminates the possibility of it overdosing your tank. You can also use a liquid level controller on it as well to shut down the power of the LMIII if your sump level gets too high.

The kalk stirrer isn't a pressurized unit so the water level reaches the top and then it flows out to the sump. It is about as simple as it gets. Plus the stirrer is nice because you don't need to keep a maxijet submerged in kalk to stir it up. Not to mention the pump gets loud as the kalk cakes onto the impeller and bushings.

 

[surfjeepzx]

Maybe try this: run the CR at night when the biggest dip occurs but turn it up from where it was originally set. This should help balance the lower numbers at night once the day time level is established. Then if you need a slight bump to get one or another parameter into line use two part.

I think you're over thinking the solution. :nerd: