I probably should be running a Calcium reactor, but it's setup has been daunting and I'm actually afraid to try one. Plus I have other more important things I want to implement on my 340 gallon system plus cost is still a factor.
I spend maybe $15 per year on a near 10 lb bag of Baking Soda and then bake it in the oven to get the PH boost.
I buy calcium chloride from BRS, a 7 lb bag lasts me close to 6 months. I also dose magnesium chloride / sulfate mixture (As I don't do water changes very often).
I also dose red sea A, B, C, D trace elements and chaeto grow (20-30 ml per week of each). A 500 ml bottle of each lasts around 15 weeks - almost 4 months. $160 / around 4-6 months = $25-40 a month. Vs. a calcium reactor that runs probably $800+.
I also am dosing small amounts of kalkwasser to slowly transition from calcium / alk. IF I do that I spend even less on calcium as kalkwasser is significantly cheaper. Could be closer to the $20-$25 per month with trace elements.
It would take me around 2 years to pay for a calcium reactor plus the setup and tuning it. I just am not sure I'm that confident in my skills to get it setup properly and then tune it so it doesn't burn my corals.
I'm currently dosing 144 ml of alk and calcium per day plus 1.5 liters of kalkwasser per day. I drip kalkwasser 24/7 with a peristalic pump.
The second reason I'm not sure on a calcium reactor is with the baked baking soda and Kalkwasser dosing my ph high point is 7.9. Without those its around 7.5-7.6. If a calcium reactor lowers PH, I'd be screwed.
At this point, I might buy a step doser to increase my dosing of kalkwasser from 1.5 liters per day to 1 gallon per day. I'm struggling to keep alk up with my current regimen. Corals have really taken off though. Especially LPS stuff.
For now, my next big purchase is a megasized UV. Probably a Lifegard 120 watt. I've got all the plumbing parts for it (2 gate valves, an apex add on for flow meter and the 2 inch flow meter) just need the UV to be in stock. Also just picked up a plank auto feeder. Looking to see how that works for auto feeding freeze dried and alternative to frozen foods when I'm gone on vacation.
Then over the next year I'll decide how to expand dosing to increase my dosing capacity. I feel like I need to raise PH first. I've debated finding a way to dispense pure oxygen to the sump to drive ph up. That may be cost prohibitive. Or expand my ATS to twice the size to see if that could help drive oxygenation of the water and CO2 removal. Too many options!
I spend maybe $15 per year on a near 10 lb bag of Baking Soda and then bake it in the oven to get the PH boost.
I buy calcium chloride from BRS, a 7 lb bag lasts me close to 6 months. I also dose magnesium chloride / sulfate mixture (As I don't do water changes very often).
I also dose red sea A, B, C, D trace elements and chaeto grow (20-30 ml per week of each). A 500 ml bottle of each lasts around 15 weeks - almost 4 months. $160 / around 4-6 months = $25-40 a month. Vs. a calcium reactor that runs probably $800+.
I also am dosing small amounts of kalkwasser to slowly transition from calcium / alk. IF I do that I spend even less on calcium as kalkwasser is significantly cheaper. Could be closer to the $20-$25 per month with trace elements.
It would take me around 2 years to pay for a calcium reactor plus the setup and tuning it. I just am not sure I'm that confident in my skills to get it setup properly and then tune it so it doesn't burn my corals.
I'm currently dosing 144 ml of alk and calcium per day plus 1.5 liters of kalkwasser per day. I drip kalkwasser 24/7 with a peristalic pump.
The second reason I'm not sure on a calcium reactor is with the baked baking soda and Kalkwasser dosing my ph high point is 7.9. Without those its around 7.5-7.6. If a calcium reactor lowers PH, I'd be screwed.
At this point, I might buy a step doser to increase my dosing of kalkwasser from 1.5 liters per day to 1 gallon per day. I'm struggling to keep alk up with my current regimen. Corals have really taken off though. Especially LPS stuff.
For now, my next big purchase is a megasized UV. Probably a Lifegard 120 watt. I've got all the plumbing parts for it (2 gate valves, an apex add on for flow meter and the 2 inch flow meter) just need the UV to be in stock. Also just picked up a plank auto feeder. Looking to see how that works for auto feeding freeze dried and alternative to frozen foods when I'm gone on vacation.
Then over the next year I'll decide how to expand dosing to increase my dosing capacity. I feel like I need to raise PH first. I've debated finding a way to dispense pure oxygen to the sump to drive ph up. That may be cost prohibitive. Or expand my ATS to twice the size to see if that could help drive oxygenation of the water and CO2 removal. Too many options!