Non DIY Sodium Carbonate 2-Part Product in the UK?

[bruced1000]

Hi folks,

I am looking to implement 2-part/balling method using sodium carbonate, however most products I see being sold here in the UK use sodium bicarbonate. I would like to run my pH a little higher, hence my interest in using soda ash.

BRS soda ash is not available here, and although I am not opposed to baking my own, I would quite like the simplicity of a commercial option.

Curious to know if anyone is aware of a product using sodium carbonate. Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

[Jekyl]

Baking soda

 

[FishyFishFish]

Google Soda Ash UK

I'm not sure what 'grade' it is but it looks to be freely available.

 

[bruced1000]

Google Soda Ash UK

I'm not sure what 'grade' it is but it looks to be freely available.

I am aware it’s available, however I wouldn’t trust using it in my tank. Baking soda ash would be my best bet. Was just curious if anyone knew of any brands selling a 2-part that used soda ash

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I am aware it’s available, however I wouldn’t trust using it in my tank. Baking soda ash would be my best bet. Was just curious if anyone knew of any brands selling a 2-part that used soda ash

Sure. Most commercial two parts use sodium carbonate because it is more soluble.

ESV B-ionic for example.

What is available to you?

 

[bruced1000]

Sure. Most commercial two parts use sodium carbonate because it is more soluble.

ESV B-ionic for example.

What is available to you?

Unfortunately no ESV over here.

I’ve compiled a list of the main options we have:

Tropic Marin - Sodium carbonate/sodium bicarbonate
Fauna Marin - Sodium Bicarbonate
Aquaforest 1+2+3+ - Sodium Bicarbonate
Red Sea Foundation - Unknown
ATI Essentials Pro - Unknown
Brightwell Reef Code - “Inorganic Carbonate & Bicarbonate”
Quantum Aragonite - Sodium carbonate/sodium bicarbonate
Reef Zlements Complete - unknown, but does claim to raise pH
Nyos Balling - Sodium Bicarbonate
Seachem Reef Fusion - Sodium carbonate/sodium bicarbonate

Maybe I’m overthinking it, but the idea of dosing purely soda ash does sound appealing.

 

[bruced1000]

Bump

 

[The Opinionated Reefer]

I'm in the UK, just use ATI Essentials Pro. That's potent stuff and readily available. You can buy in 10L bottles which last a longtime.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

With Tropic Marin Balling, you can use sodium carbonate or sodium hydroxide as the alk part and use the other parts the same, if you want.

I expect several of the products listed have a considerable amount of carbonate relative to bicarbonate, but it is a little surprising to me that the European companies seem to gravitate to bicarbonate. Perhaps there are quality or cost issues driving that.

 

[bruced1000]

With Tropic Marin Balling, you can use sodium carbonate or sodium hydroxide as the alk part and use the other parts the same, if you want.

I expect several of the products listed have a considerable amount of carbonate relative to bicarbonate, but it is a little surprising to me that the European companies seem to gravitate to bicarbonate. Perhaps there are quality or cost issues driving that.

This is probably my best option.

Whats the best way to calculate dosage when substituting bicarbonate with soda ash? As I presume you can no longer dose all 3 equally? Apologies if this is a silly question.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

This is probably my best option.

Whats the best way to calculate dosage when substituting bicarbonate with soda ash? As I presume you can no longer dose all 3 equally? Apologies if this is a silly question.

You can if you make the concentrations correctly, but I do not know what concentrations Tropic Marin uses.

You can always dissolve an appropriate amount of sodium carbonate to give the same alk potency as a sodium bicarbonate solution, but the reverse is not always true due to lower solubility of sodium bicarbonate.

Sodium carbonate is exactly 1.58 times as potent as sodium bicarbonate on a weight basis. So if a recipe calls for 1 gram sodium bicarbonate, you need 0.63 grams of sodium carbonate.