How to raise Alk and Ca

[Peer.Boerner]

I can’t remember how to go about raising both Alk and Ca without impacting each one. So far I’ve tried sodium bicarbonate to raise Alk and it worked. Got to 9 from 8.3 which is what I wanted. Ca was at 380. Added Red Sea Part A using calculator and got Ca to 500. Higher than the 450 I wanted but okay. Checked my Alk and it’s now 7.7. Should I have used something other than Part A to raise Ca? Did the Part A react with my Alk to bring it down proportionately with the increase in Ca? Appreciate any guidance you can share or article I should read. Still learning.

 

[exnisstech]

Any reason you don't want to use a standard 2 part like ESV or even a single solution like AFR? Unless I'm misunderstanding and you intentionally want to control each individually which can still be done with 2 part or one if the diy recipes.

 

[Peer.Boerner]

Thanks. I’m dosing fully saturated Kalk. I wanted to get Alk and Ca to the point that Kalk will hold the values. Trying to avoid 2 part but even with that, I need my ca and alk set at the right level first

 

[Pntbll687]

Thanks. I’m dosing fully saturated Kalk. I wanted to get Alk and Ca to the point that Kalk will hold the values. Trying to avoid 2 part but even with that, I need my ca and alk set at the right level first

Kalkwasser is a good option for maintaining alk and calcium. It generally has apotency that is really close to a 1:1 ratio that people like to dose.

All For Reef is another one part option that gets dosed in one solution and takes care of alkalinity and calcium.

Whatever option you choose, you'll still need regular 2-part options available to make general adjustments. Not every system consumes alkalinity and calcium in the exact 1:1 ratio, and can become "unbalanced" and need an adjustment. Tropic MArin, to their credit, even states on the instructions for AFR to have two part additives on hand. But you know, who reads those pesky instructions.

 

[Peer.Boerner]

Kalkwasser is a good option for maintaining alk and calcium. It generally has apotency that is really close to a 1:1 ratio that people like to dose.

All For Reef is another one part option that gets dosed in one solution and takes care of alkalinity and calcium.

Whatever option you choose, you'll still need regular 2-part options available to make general adjustments. Not every system consumes alkalinity and calcium in the exact 1:1 ratio, and can become "unbalanced" and need an adjustment. Tropic MArin, to their credit, even states on the instructions for AFR to have two part additives on hand. But you know, who reads those pesky instructions.

Many thanks. So is your advice that I should use a 2 part in quantities large enough to raise Alk and ca to where I want them ?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Many thanks. So is your advice that I should use a 2 part in quantities large enough to raise Alk and ca to where I want them ?

What are your levels now? Folks often think kalk and AFR are not useful for boosting levels when they can be.

 

[Peer.Boerner]

What are your levels now? Folks often think kalk and AFR are not useful for boosting levels when they can be.

Calcium very high at 500 measured with Aqua Forest. Alk at 7.7 also measured by AF. I was trying for anything for Ca between 400 and 450 and Alk for 9.

 

[mpw213]

I had a similar problem to yours where I couldn’t keep both Alk and Ca where I wanted. For my tank all for reef would raise my calcium higher than I wanted when I was right enough to keep alk at a good number.

My solution had been finding the dose of all for reef to keep my calcium stable, and using Red Sea foundation in addition to keep all stable. They don’t seem to interact like when I was using foundation A and C together

 

[Peer.Boerner]

I had a similar problem to yours where I couldn’t keep both Alk and Ca where I wanted. For my tank all for reef would raise my calcium higher than I wanted when I was right enough to keep alk at a good number.

My solution had been finding the dose of all for reef to keep my calcium stable, and using Red Sea foundation in addition to keep all stable. They don’t seem to interact like when I was using foundation A and C together

Thanks for your insight

 

[exnisstech]

I ran a 180g for almost 6 years using only kalk. I used ESV 2 part prior to that so I had my alk and calcium where I wanted them before starting the kalk. I targeted 8 dkH and kalk kept up but I was dosing 7200 ml fully saturated kalk a day.

 

[Peer.Boerner]

I ran a 180g for almost 6 years using only kalk. I used ESV 2 part prior to that so I had my alk and calcium where I wanted them before starting the kalk. I targeted 8 dkH and kalk kept up but I was dosing 7200 ml fully saturated kalk a day.

Yes I had a 120 about 7 years ago that I ran 12 years prior using Kalk in my ATO. worked great and I’m sure it will now too. Just wondering about getting my Ca and Alk closer to what I want before relying on Kalk. I suspect something like AFR or larger amounts of 2 part will do it. But I was wondering if I should instead use calcium chloride and sodium bicarb

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Calcium very high at 500 measured with Aqua Forest. Alk at 7.7 also measured by AF. I was trying for anything for Ca between 400 and 450 and Alk for 9.

I recommend calcium at 400-550 ppm, so calcium at 500 ppm is fine, IMO. It will still be fine (509 ppm) if you use kalk to boost alk to 9 dKH

If you can up the kalk, that’s a fine plan. If it is evaporation limited, then dosing sodium bicarbonate/carbonate/hydroxide each day to bring up alk more is also a fine plan.

 

[Peer.Boerner]

I recommend calcium at 400-550 ppm, so calcium at 500 ppm is fine, IMO. It will still be fine (509 ppm) if you use kalk to boost alk to 9 dKH

If you can up the kalk, that’s a fine plan. If it is evaporation limited, then dosing sodium bicarbonate/carbonate/hydroxide each day to bring up alk more is also a fine plan.

Many thanks Randy! I’ll use bicarbonate since I have a bunch. I won’t worry about the Ca at 500

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Sounds good. It may drop back again, but you can keep boosting it as needed.

Happy Reefing!

 

[Pntbll687]

Many thanks. So is your advice that I should use a 2 part in quantities large enough to raise Alk and ca to where I want them ?

Only if you are limited to evaporation with kalkwasser

If you're planning an using kalk as the main supplementation, I would keep adding kalk until you reach your goal levels or you hit the limit you can dose everyday.

If you hit the limit, then add in a small amount of other alkalinity product to get it where you want it.