Maintenance CaRx

[Roberto CRC]

Hi all,

I have a query regarding the maintenance of the calcium reactor.

I have noticed that when I do the drip adjustment, for example I leave 3 drops per second, then for about a month the drip has dropped to almost 1 drop per second. To solve it, I just open the drip key completely and start adjusting again to get the 3 drops per second.

This is normal?

Is it up to you?

Must we be servicing the reactor?

Regards.

 

[swk]

That's one of the reasons that calrx gets a bad rap. Running a standard feed pump leads to this exact issue that can cause instability in the tanks alk.

The best solution is to get a dedicated peristaltic feed pump like a masterflex.

 

[Roberto CRC]

That's one of the reasons that calrx gets a bad rap. Running a standard feed pump leads to this exact issue that can cause instability in the tanks alk.

The best solution is to get a dedicated peristaltic feed pump like a masterflex.

Thanks, but I have some doubts with your explanation.

What is a masterflex?

What is bad rap?

To feed the reactor I use a direct line that comes out of the pipeline of my return pump.

Both for the inlet and outlet water reactor use 1/4 "hose for RO DI with quick connect wrenches.

Regards

 

[swk]

Bad reputation for being unstable

Google masterflex pump for calcium reactors.

Too much info for me to write about. There is info readily available all over the internet.

 

[agent462]

Masterflex is a company that makes peristaltic pumps and they have become popular with calcium reactor people. Google the various reefing forums and you'll see them a lot.

The bad rap is constant tuning/adjusting of calcium reactors. There are two problems usually related to this: 1) cheap regulators; 2) how it's fed.

When you feed with a pump that is just geared towards GPH it becomes fairly unreliable and you use some sort of control valve on the output to provide head back to the pump so it drips out.

When you feed with a peristaltic pump you are feeding or pulling an exact amount of water through the reactor. The key is finding a reliable peristaltic pump that can hold up to constant use.

 

[Roberto CRC]

Masterflex is a company that makes peristaltic pumps and they have become popular with calcium reactor people. Google the various reefing forums and you'll see them a lot.

The bad rap is constant tuning/adjusting of calcium reactors. There are two problems usually related to this: 1) cheap regulators; 2) how it's fed.

When you feed with a pump that is just geared towards GPH it becomes fairly unreliable and you use some sort of control valve on the output to provide head back to the pump so it drips out.

When you feed with a peristaltic pump you are feeding or pulling an exact amount of water through the reactor. The key is finding a reliable peristaltic pump that can hold up to constant use.

Perfect, thanks for the explanation, now it's clear to me.

As you say the important thing is to find a peristaltic pump that can run 24/7 for a long time.

 

[agent462]

Some people also do a combination of both feed pump and peristaltic on the output. Again, the key is predictability on the effluent drip (output) which the peristaltic gives you in this scenario. The feed pump can be variable all you want in this scenario as long as it is reliable.