Kalk in ATO - couple of questions

acr0p0ra

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There is a ton of info out there regarding Kalk in ATO but I just want to confirm these points before starting.

I have a 500g system and I am dosing about 220mL of ESV Bionic per day and my ALk is still a bit low - 7.5.

I want to start using Kalk in my 20g ATO container and I am struggling to find these answers.

1. I have some old containers of kalk that I bought with the sole purpose of injecting aiptasia. I am assuming it doesn't but, does Kalk go bad?

2. As I mentioned, I have a 20g container for ATO. I was going to use 30 teaspoons of Kalk. Is this amount a good starting point?

3. Do I add the Kalk each time I refill the ATO container?

4. Do I clean out the ATO container each time it empties or do I just add on top of what has settled to the bottom?

5. To fill my ATO container, I normally use a pump from my main 60g tank that is hooked up to my RODI. When it comes to mixing the Kalk with my RO water in the 20g container, can I add the 30 tsp to the container first then use the hose to swirl the Kalk and mix it? I am not sure how mixed or dissolved it is supposed to get. I could put a maxi jet in there for 2 minutes also if this is better.

I'm sure a lot of these questions would be answered as I begin to use it but I would rather check with the pros since I have a fair amount of livestock in these tanks :)


TIA!
 

Townes_Van_Camp

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1. doesn’t go bad but it can cake and draw in moisture making it less soluble. It’s not very soluble in the first place.

2. I started with a very low amount, 2.2 g (that’s about 1/3 teaspoon) per gallon and worked my way up from there.

3 & 4. Clean it out and add kalk each time. You do not want the undissolved solids floating around your tank.

5. Stir very little. I would fill 1/2 of my container, add the appropriate amount, then top off. No power head and I may not even stir it to be honest. The addition of the last 1/2 should be enough agitation to mix it.
 
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RunBikeSwim

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FWIW, if I had put in the expenses for a 500 gal system and want to use Kalk, a Kalk reactor would be my next purchase along with a dosing pump. You’ll be using it at or near full saturation and can do it more accurately.
 

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