Dosing with calcium reactor??

[Bigjay615]

This may be a premature question...
I have a 180g that I've been running successfully with LPS and sps for a few years now.
Coming back after a major aptasia breakout and subsequent strangling of a lot of my corals...
I just ordered the trident so I can track consumption easier. And am taking dos off water change detail. So I'll have one to integrate.
What would be a good suggested product for dosing along side the calcrx?
In theory the calcrx is giving me a supply of most elements needed.
Maybe coral ab+??
Shouldn't need 2 part I guess...

Well... I guess that's why I'm asking for help... I just don't know.

It always seemed like the evolution was to go from 2 part to a calcrx in my readings. But who knows?

Any help or direction will Certainly be appreciated... Even if it's wait and see your tests.

Thanks!
J

 

[Dburr1014]

This may be a premature question...
I have a 180g that I've been running successfully with LPS and sps for a few years now.
Coming back after a major aptasia breakout and subsequent strangling of a lot of my corals...
I just ordered the trident so I can track consumption easier. And am taking dos off water change detail. So I'll have one to integrate.
What would be a good suggested product for dosing along side the calcrx?
In theory the calcrx is giving me a supply of most elements needed.
Maybe coral ab+??
Shouldn't need 2 part I guess...

Well... I guess that's why I'm asking for help... I just don't know.

It always seemed like the evolution was to go from 2 part to a calcrx in my readings. But who knows?

Any help or direction will Certainly be appreciated... Even if it's wait and see your tests.

Thanks!
J

With a carx most people dose Kalk to keep the ph up.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

In theory the calcrx is giving me a supply of most elements needed.

Not true. It is only supplying what is in the coral skeletons (or whatever it is) used for media . It does nothing to replace all of the elements taken up in tissues of hard corals, soft corals, macroalgae, etc.

 

[Dburr1014]

Not true. It is only supplying what is in the coral skeletons (or whatever it is) used for media . It does nothing to replace all of the elements taken up in tissues of hard corals, soft corals, macroalgae, etc.

Randy, are you saying that some of the elements are only taken up by the soft tissue when the coral was alive? That those elements are not deposited into the skeleton at all?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Randy, are you saying that some of the elements are only taken up by the soft tissue when the coral was alive? That those elements are not deposited into the skeleton at all?

All elements can get into calcium carbonate at some level, but that may not be the primary sink for most, an if all you do is use coral skeletons, you will not get the large amount of those ions that are mostly tissue components rather than skeletal components.

Folks intuitively recognize this for N and P, but it applies to lots of other ions, such as iron, manganese, silicate, etc.

 

[freepizza80]

I add kalk with my calcium reactor and dose AB+. I have hundreds of various corals with 50+ acro colonies and this combination has always been good for me.

 

[thatmanMIKEson]

I add kalk with my calcium reactor and dose AB+. I have hundreds of various corals with 50+ acro colonies and this combination has always been good for me.

I'd love to see it no threads available

 

[Ancient Mariner]

I use both a Ca reactor and ESV 2 part dosing and nothing else. My SPS growth is vigorous. I use 2 part because my CaRx is running at max (100 bubbles/min) so I need to add more through the 2 part. No need for anything else that’s not in ESV 2 part. I would guess frequent water changes would accomplish the same supplementation as 2 part.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I use both a Ca reactor and ESV 2 part dosing and nothing else. My SPS growth is vigorous. I use 2 part because my CaRx is running at max (100 bubbles/min) so I need to add more through the 2 part. No need for anything else that’s not in ESV 2 part. I would guess frequent water changes would accomplish the same supplementation as 2 part.

The trace elements in ESV two part (coupled with removing tank water to maintain salinity) are functionally identical to a very, very tiny water change each day.

Here’s a copy and paste of my discussion from a previous thread:
Just to be clear, ESV-B-ionic is a great two part (IMO), but IT IS NOT a trace element supplement. It is not designed to offset even the tiniest bit of demand for something like iron or manganese.

Those trace elements are there for a different reason.

Two parts raise salinity by necessarily adding Na+ and Cl-.

If you only used sodium carbonate and calcium chloride, sodium and chloride rise over time, pushing up salinity.

When you maintain the reef tank salinity by replacing some water with RO/DI, everything is lowered again.

If you do not include all elements, from magnesium and potassium all the way down to iron and other trace elements, then all of those will eventually be depressed to undesirable low levels (although water changes help that).

 

[Ancient Mariner]

The trace elements in ESV two part (coupled with removing tank water to maintain salinity) are functionally identical to a very, very tiny water change each day.

Here’s a copy and paste of my discussion from a previous thread:
Just to be clear, ESV-B-ionic is a great two part (IMO), but IT IS NOT a trace element supplement. It is not designed to offset even the tiniest bit of demand for something like iron or manganese.

Those trace elements are there for a different reason.

Two parts raise salinity by necessarily adding Na+ and Cl-.

If you only used sodium carbonate and calcium chloride, sodium and chloride rise over time, pushing up salinity.

When you maintain the reef tank salinity by replacing some water with RO/DI, everything is lowered again.

If you do not include all elements, from magnesium and potassium all the way down to iron and other trace elements, then all of those will eventually be depressed to undesirable low levels (although water changes help that).

I’m just saying that anything more isn’t necessary for good SPS growth.

 

[maroun.c]

As mentioned by Randy the media you use will dictate what it's supplying. In my Dastaco Ca reactor the media doesn't supply much other than alk and ca for example. The types of corals u keep, fuge, algae reactor, composition of salt you use, frequency and volume of water changes you do.... Will all lead to different imbalances with time. As tank matures a few icp tests and a constant adjustment of dosing of elements that u see getting depleted will lead u to a more scientific decision of what to dose to keep things balanced.

 

[Bigjay615]

Thanks everyone for the info. Makes sense. I figured small amounts of trace elements would be part of the coral skeletons. But more is. Def necc...

 

[Bigjay615]

I’m just saying that anything more isn’t necessary for good SPS growth.

Beautiful!

 

[Bigjay615]

I’m just saying that anything more isn’t necessary for good SPS growth.

Beautiful!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I’m just saying that anything more isn’t necessary for good SPS growth.

It is certainly true that lots of elements come with food (a widely and oddly ignored input of trace elements). Water changes also can add them. Maybe these are enough in many cases. In other cases they may not be.

My point is that it is not correct to say that a CaCO3/CO2 reactor provides all that is necessary.

 

[Bigjay615]

Understood. And even if they did consumption would likely be higher than able to be provided by single method, I would imagine.