How much Kalkwasser ?

[viceversabrd]

I've got a mixed reef tank predominantly softies and LPS with some easy SPS. I have been dosing All for Reef, daily dosing of 11 ml per day. This has kept my dkH at a stable 8.9 and 450 ppm for Ca. I want to switch to kalkwasser or at least try 50/50 kalkwasser/ AFR. Looking for a pH boost and to stimulate Coralline growth (zero Coraline growth so far). Tank is currently 9 months old a 34 gallon cube with a 20 gallon sump (total water volume of 40 gallons). So, If my daily demand of AFR is 11ml what would this equate to in kalkwasser volume (if I'm making a saturated kalkwasser solution [2 tsp/gal]). Or, If I plan to split AFR/Kalk what would be starting dose of Kalk if I drop AFR 5.5ml/day. I plan on dosing kalkwasser with dosing pump not ATO. Also, with only dosing half dose of AFR my plan is to start dosing isol8 MT to make up for the reduction in trace elements. I feel like some of the colors of my coral have not been as vibrant and I think this may be due to lack of trace, as the chaeto in my fuge has absolutely blown up over the past 2 months. While I like the chaeto for silent nutrient absorption I worry it may be sucking too many trace elements. I'm not running a skimmer, am running a reef mat 250 with Rox carbon.

 

[rishma]

AFR is about 53x the potency of saturated kalkwasser.

 

[viceversabrd]

So, if I want to replace 5.5ml of AFR/day I would need to dose 291.5ml of kalkwasser, man that is a huge volume. With my glass lid, I don't even think my evap rate/day is that high

 

[bobnicaragua]

Don’t overthink things at this point. You have a young tank with low uptake. I don’t see the point in dosing All for reef and kalk.

My choice would be kalk overnight, for the PH boost. It won’t matter much at this point, but it will be more beneficial as your tank grows in. You’ll do fine with either method.

Just saw your post above; If you have a glass lid and low evaporation, all for reef may be the way to go.

 

[viceversabrd]

Don’t overthink things at this point. You have a young tank with low uptake. I don’t see the point in dosing All for reef and kalk.

My choice would be kalk overnight, for the PH boost. It won’t matter much at this point, but it will be more beneficial as your tank grows in. You’ll do fine with either method.

Just saw your post above; If you have a glass lid and low evaporation, all for reef may be the way to go.

haha I hear you, I really like AFR, and would solely dose AFR, I just really want coralline on the rock work, I like the look and for nuisance algae prevention. I've been researching a decent amount and it seems like a lot of people have issues getting coralline to grow in AFR only tanks.

 

[rishma]

So, if I want to replace 5.5ml of AFR/day I would need to dose 291.5ml of kalkwasser, man that is a huge volume. With my glass lid, I don't even think my evap rate/day is that high

I started with kalk because I have always used kalk, and added in All-for-Reef when I reached the max kalk I wanted to dose. Now about 1/3 of my alkalinity demand is from Kalk, 2/3 is from AFR.

You won’t see much pH boost with 300 ml kalk over night.

 

[rishma]

haha I hear you, I really like AFR, and would solely dose AFR, I just really want coralline on the rock work, I like the look and for nuisance algae prevention. I've been researching a decent amount and it seems like a lot of people have issues getting coralline to grow in AFR only tanks.

I cannot see why AFR would not support coralline growth. I have tons of coralline. I don’t think it’s from my little bit of kalk

 

[viceversabrd]

I cannot see why AFR would not support coralline growth. I have tons of coralline. I don’t think it’s from my little bit of kalk

I know, I don't think the mechanism is understood, but I didn't dose for the first six months and had the start of coralline. Since dosing AFR the past 3 months it seemed to have totally arrested coralline growth, which is crazy since my dkh/Ca where super low til I started dosing afr. But, it seems like Im not the only one to think that AFR affects coralline growth. These are two comments, but Ive found quite a few of these anecdotes.

 

[rishma]

I know, I don't think the mechanism is understood, but I didn't dose for the first six months and had the start of coralline. Since dosing AFR the past 3 months it seemed to have totally arrested coralline growth, which is crazy since my dkh/Ca where super low til I started dosing afr. But, it seems like Im not the only one to think that AFR affects coralline growth. These are two comments, but Ive found quite a few of these anecdotes.

Hmm. I’m skeptical. Correlation is not causation.

I wish it would suppress my coralline growth a bit. It’s a pest in my tank.

 

[viceversabrd]

Hmm. I’m skeptical. Correlation is not causation.

I wish it would suppress my coralline growth a bit. It’s a pest in my tank.

I agree , however I am experiencing it and it seems other have to. My plan is to switch back to 100% AFR once I get the coralline to a point where the rock work is covered, hopefully stopping more growth and keeping rock work covered while not becoming a nuisance. It's not foolproof but it's my rough plan. Just love the bright purple tanks.

 

[rishma]

I agree , however I am experiencing it and it seems other have to. My plan is to switch back to 100% AFR once I get the coralline to a point where the rock work is covered, hopefully stopping more growth and keeping rock work covered while not becoming a nuisance. It's not foolproof but it's my rough plan. Just love the bright purple tanks.

One thing to consider when dosing kalkwasser is you are not dosing magnesium. Coraline algae consumes magnesium. I’d suggest dosing 1-2ppm for every 2.8dkH worth of alkalinity you dose via kalk.

You could also consider supplementing AFR with a small additional magnesium dose. Up to 1ppm per 2.8 dKH dosed via AFR. AFR has Mg, but might be a little lower than what is consumed. I do not think this is your coralline limiter, you probably have plenty of Mg from the salt mix.

 

[viceversabrd]

One thing to consider when dosing kalkwasser is you are not dosing magnesium. Coraline algae consumes magnesium. I’d suggest dosing 1-2ppm for every 2.8dkH worth of alkalinity you dose via kalk.

You could also consider supplementing AFR with a small additional magnesium dose. Up to 1ppm per 2.8 dKH dosed via AFR. AFR has Mg, but might be a little lower than what is consumed. I do not think this is your coralline limiter, you probably have plenty of Mg from the salt mix.

Yes I’ve been looking at Mg as well, definitely more of crapshoot but have been dosing Tropic Marin biomag 1-2x week.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

So, if I want to replace 5.5ml of AFR/day I would need to dose 291.5ml of kalkwasser, man that is a huge volume. With my glass lid, I don't even think my evap rate/day is that high

Which is the primary reason it is not used more often in high demand tanks.

 

[viceversabrd]

Which is the primary reason it is not used more often in high demand tanks.

Yes I see, I’ve never seen someone post the exact volume of Kalkwasser they’re dosing but now I’m starting to get the picture, it’s a lot of fluid compared to 2 part, afr, etc

 

[Troylee]

I started with kalk because I have always used kalk, and added in All-for-Reef when I reached the max kalk I wanted to dose. Now about 1/3 of my alkalinity demand is from Kalk, 2/3 is from AFR.

You won’t see much pH boost with 300 ml kalk over night.

Exactly what I did and do.. my tank ran on strictly kalk till it couldn’t keep up then I kicked all for reef in and I’m currently dosing 200ml daily. My kalk is in the top off that evaps around 3 gal a day.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Yes I see, I’ve never seen someone post the exact volume of Kalkwasser they’re dosing but now I’m starting to get the picture, it’s a lot of fluid compared to 2 part, afr, etc

Usual amounts are like 1-2% of the tank volume, replacing all or nearly all evaporated water.

 

[Reef Puncher]

hey bud little backstory. i started with All for Reef. But my ph was not hitting a consistent 8.2, mainly at night it dropped down to 7.8 or 7.9 then spiked at 8.2 during peak light.
So i swapped to kalkwasser at night and AFR during day and i have kept it ever since.

I have a 65 gallon display 20 gallon sump, so 85 gallons and i dose 1900 mls of kalk from 11pm to 11am. I then dose 20 mls of AFR around 11:30am.

That keeps my ph high and my alk stable around 8.7

Let me know if you have any questions. remember dont add any acro corals until you see corraline taking off. you can also add corraline in a bottle but it grows best around stable 8.2 ph

i use this and an automated dosing pump. this one is small and hides well in cabinet. but you need a large container for kalkwasser. i have to replace this every 4 days. if you want to make kalk less often go bigger. a 5 gallon container would have you refilling like once every 12 days or so for your tank probably. but you cant use an open bucket, it needs to be close to air tight. open air hitting it reduces its effectiveness.

 

[Daniel Doherty]

hey bud little backstory. i started with All for Reef. But my ph was not hitting a consistent 8.2, mainly at night it dropped down to 7.8 or 7.9 then spiked at 8.2 during peak light.
So i swapped to kalkwasser at night and AFR during day and i have kept it ever since.

I have a 65 gallon display 20 gallon sump, so 85 gallons and i dose 1900 mls of kalk from 11pm to 11am. I then dose 20 mls of AFR around 11:30am.

That keeps my ph high and my alk stable around 8.7

Let me know if you have any questions. remember dont add any acro corals until you see corraline taking off. you can also add corraline in a bottle but it grows best around stable 8.2 ph

i use this and an automated dosing pump. this one is small and hides well in cabinet. but you need a large container for kalkwasser. i have to replace this every 4 days. if you want to make kalk less often go bigger. a 5 gallon container would have you refilling like once every 12 days or so for your tank probably. but you cant use an open bucket, it needs to be close to air tight. open air hitting it reduces its effectiveness.

Brilliant info. I am currently setting up a big tank and am going to start dosing. I am going to dose ATI essentials. Would running my refugium during the night help ?

 

[Billgasser]

Can you decrease your Kalk dose if you added NaOH? Is there some ratio or formula to use if you decided to substitute NaOH for some Kalk primary due to the volume of kalk used or is it 1:1 ? #RandyHolmes

 

[viceversabrd]

hey bud little backstory. i started with All for Reef. But my ph was not hitting a consistent 8.2, mainly at night it dropped down to 7.8 or 7.9 then spiked at 8.2 during peak light.
So i swapped to kalkwasser at night and AFR during day and i have kept it ever since.

I have a 65 gallon display 20 gallon sump, so 85 gallons and i dose 1900 mls of kalk from 11pm to 11am. I then dose 20 mls of AFR around 11:30am.

That keeps my ph high and my alk stable around 8.7

Let me know if you have any questions. remember dont add any acro corals until you see corraline taking off. you can also add corraline in a bottle but it grows best around stable 8.2 ph

i use this and an automated dosing pump. this one is small and hides well in cabinet. but you need a large container for kalkwasser. i have to replace this every 4 days. if you want to make kalk less often go bigger. a 5 gallon container would have you refilling like once every 12 days or so for your tank probably. but you cant use an open bucket, it needs to be close to air tight. open air hitting it reduces its effectiveness.

Thank you, I am going to try to implement something similar. What pump do you use to dose the Kalk ? Im assuming it's not ATO but would have to be a more heavy duty continuous dosing pump? Is that PH not too high ? I thought optimal range was like 8.1- 8.4 ? Yeah, definitely not going to try any acros for awhile, currently enamored with torches and gonis.