What Magnesium do you guys use to keep Kalkwasser in check?

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

A couple days

Yes, nothing but test error. Real magnesium consumption rarely exceeds 1-2 ppm per day.

 

[Florida Man]

Yes, nothing but test error. Real magnesium consumption rarely exceeds 1-2 ppm per day.

Hello, I see you have commented on a few forums I’m reading about KalKwasser.I’ve ordered KalKwasser and a new ATO pump. I’m running a WB Cube 20 I’ve had setup for over 1.5 years. Are there some other forum posts I should follow and read to gain more knowledge? BRSTV makes it seem so easy, but I am not in favor into rushing into something. My pH ranges between 7.7-8.0. Thanks for the advice and knowledge.

 

[Dav2996]

Hello, I see you have commented on a few forums I’m reading about KalKwasser.I’ve ordered KalKwasser and a new ATO pump. I’m running a WB Cube 20 I’ve had setup for over 1.5 years. Are there some other forum posts I should follow and read to gain more knowledge? BRSTV makes it seem so easy, but I am not in favor into rushing into something. My pH ranges between 7.7-8.0. Thanks for the advice and knowledge.

I like using a doser to dose kalkwasser. It’s less stuff to clean if the pump fails. Also I have similar tank size as you I recommend half or 1/3rd strength. Like I started at 1 tablespoon per 5 gallons and moved up slow. I am at 2.5 per 5 gallons of RO. My consumption is increasing so I will increase it with time. I can make 80 gallons of kalkwasser for 20$. I think it’s great and cheap. Watch magnesium though.

 

[Florida Man]

I like using a doser to dose kalkwasser. It’s less stuff to clean if the pump fails. Also I have similar tank size as you I recommend half or 1/3rd strength. Like I started at 1 tablespoon per 5 gallons and moved up slow. I am at 2.5 per 5 gallons of RO. My consumption is increasing so I will increase it with time. I can make 80 gallons of kalkwasser for 20$. I think it’s great and cheap. Watch magnesium though.

Thanks for the info. Do you have any pictures of your tank and setup?

 

[Dav2996]

Thanks for the info. Do you have any pictures of your tank

I use this dosing pump. One hose goes down to RO resivoir and the other goes to the top of the tank. I dose 900ml of water a day because that is close to my evaporation rate. I dose it all day.

X1 Bluetooth MicroPump

Bluetooth Controllable Dosing | Stand-Alone or With Other Kamoer X1 MicroPumps Kamoer X1 Dosing Pumps are perfect for almost any aquarium that needs liquids dosed up to 12 times per day or all the way down to one time every 30 days. The single channel dosing pump can be controlled on its own, or...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[nereefpat]

Hello, I see you have commented on a few forums I’m reading about KalKwasser.I’ve ordered KalKwasser and a new ATO pump. I’m running a WB Cube 20 I’ve had setup for over 1.5 years. Are there some other forum posts I should follow and read to gain more knowledge? BRSTV makes it seem so easy, but I am not in favor into rushing into something. My pH ranges between 7.7-8.0. Thanks for the advice and knowledge.

This is a great forum. Do you have any specific kalk questions?

 

[Dav2996]

Thanks for the info. Do you have any pictures of your tank and setup?

Sorry it looks messy but I got a lot going on and not a lot of space.

 

[Gatorpa]

I use this dosing pump. One hose goes down to RO resivoir and the other goes to the top of the tank. I dose 900ml of water a day because that is close to my evaporation rate. I dose it all day.

X1 Bluetooth MicroPump

Bluetooth Controllable Dosing | Stand-Alone or With Other Kamoer X1 MicroPumps Kamoer X1 Dosing Pumps are perfect for almost any aquarium that needs liquids dosed up to 12 times per day or all the way down to one time every 30 days. The single channel dosing pump can be controlled on its own, or...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

I use the same pump
Dose 2000ml of kalkwasser per day with 2 tsp per gallon.
I use a 5 gallon water jug that has a pretty tight top to prevent air and evaporation from affecting the supply
I dose mainly at night 0000-1000 helps keep the pH up at night.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Hello, I see you have commented on a few forums I’m reading about KalKwasser.I’ve ordered KalKwasser and a new ATO pump. I’m running a WB Cube 20 I’ve had setup for over 1.5 years. Are there some other forum posts I should follow and read to gain more knowledge? BRSTV makes it seem so easy, but I am not in favor into rushing into something. My pH ranges between 7.7-8.0. Thanks for the advice and knowledge.

If you want a deep understanding of what kalkwasser is, these threads will help, especially the first one and the second one for a summary:

What Your Grandmother Never Told You About Lime by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com

The Many Methods for Supplementing Calcium and Alkalinity - REEFEDITION

Chemistry And The Aquarium: Metals In Limewater

This article expands on the basis of the claim that limewater may be able to deliver lower quantities of some metals compared to calcium reactors and it also provides some experimental data that demonstrates this claim.

reefs.com

The Degradation of Limewater in Air - Reefkeeping.com

Aquarium Chemistry: Magnesium And Strontium In Limewater

Because of a potential imbalance between the amount of magnesium and strontium used by corals, and the amount delivered by limewater, using limewater can potentially lead to depletion of both ions in aquaria.

reefs.com

 

[Florida Man]

This is a great forum. Do you have any specific kalk questions?

I am going to invest in the A3 Apex when it goes on sale for Black Friday for some automation and everything kind of centralized for my tank.

My concern is raising my pH too quickly by putting too much of the KalKwasser into the tank at once. I’m not sure of my daily evaporation rate as I haven’t been logging it as much. I did just upgrade my ATO to the Duetto dual sensor. I have one of the Kaomer dosers but haven’t started using it yet. I need to invest some quality test kits. Which ones do you prefer as I get ready to embark on this quest? Is it better to dose KalKwasser vs. putting it through a doser? I do weekly water changes from 3-5 gallons.

Thanks.

 

[Florida Man]

If you want a deep understanding of what kalkwasser is, these threads will help, especially the first one and the second one for a summary:

What Your Grandmother Never Told You About Lime by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com

The Many Methods for Supplementing Calcium and Alkalinity - REEFEDITION

Chemistry And The Aquarium: Metals In Limewater

This article expands on the basis of the claim that limewater may be able to deliver lower quantities of some metals compared to calcium reactors and it also provides some experimental data that demonstrates this claim.

reefs.com

The Degradation of Limewater in Air - Reefkeeping.com

Aquarium Chemistry: Magnesium And Strontium In Limewater

Because of a potential imbalance between the amount of magnesium and strontium used by corals, and the amount delivered by limewater, using limewater can potentially lead to depletion of both ions in aquaria.

reefs.com

Thank you for this. I will do some reading this fine afternoon!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I am going to invest in the A3 Apex when it goes on sale for Black Friday for some automation and everything kind of centralized for my tank.

My concern is raising my pH too quickly by putting too much of the KalKwasser into the tank at once. I’m not sure of my daily evaporation rate as I haven’t been logging it as much. I did just upgrade my ATO to the Duetto dual sensor. I have one of the Kaomer dosers but haven’t started using it yet. I need to invest some quality test kits. Which ones do you prefer as I get ready to embark on this quest? Is it better to dose KalKwasser vs. putting it through a doser? I do weekly water changes from 3-5 gallons.

Thanks.

Kalkwasser dosing needs to be done very slowly, unless it’s a very small amount.

pH is unlikely to get too high if the dosing of clear limewater (kalkwasser) does not exceed the daily evaporation rate, and is spread out over the day and night.

 

[Gatorpa]

I am going to invest in the A3 Apex when it goes on sale for Black Friday for some automation and everything kind of centralized for my tank.

My concern is raising my pH too quickly by putting too much of the KalKwasser into the tank at once. I’m not sure of my daily evaporation rate as I haven’t been logging it as much. I did just upgrade my ATO to the Duetto dual sensor. I have one of the Kaomer dosers but haven’t started using it yet. I need to invest some quality test kits. Which ones do you prefer as I get ready to embark on this quest? Is it better to dose KalKwasser vs. putting it through a doser? I do weekly water changes from 3-5 gallons.

Thanks.

I dose 2L of saturated Kalk over a 10 hour period at night.
It doesn’t jack the pH you can see below the effect.
The little stair steps are when the dosed pump kicks on.

 

[Florida Man]

I dose 2L of saturated Kalk over a 10 hour period at night.
It doesn’t jack the pH you can see below the effect.
The little stair steps are when the dosed pump kicks on.

Thank you! Are you a Gator Physician Assistant? I’m buying the Apex System for Black Friday as I want to be able to see a graph of the pH and monitor other items.

 

[Dav2996]

Thank you! Are you a Gator Physician Assistant? I’m buying the Apex System for Black Friday as I want to be able to see a graph of the pH and monitor other items.

I like Red Sea and salifert test kits. API is not accurate enough.

Reasons in my opinions it better to dose Alk.
1. It won’t clog it like an ATO pump.
2. Can replace tube easily for 50cents on doser.
3. Kamoer will tell you how much liquid left in your resivoir and a ATO will not do that.
4. Kamoer will spread out the doses and dose it evenly through the day. Some days are hot and ATO will dump more kalk then normal rather same amount daily.
5. I recommend using a 2nd or 3rd dosing pump to balance it while using it in case your using too much of one specific chemical. Like using two part to add more if you exceed kalk usage.

 

[Gatorpa]

Thank you! Are you a Gator Physician Assistant? I’m buying the Apex System for Black Friday as I want to be able to see a graph of the pH and monitor other items.

Yes I am. Class of 98’

Apex is great but it still is a machine and sometimes gets a bit wonky. but i’ve had one for 6 months.

Look into using the ABC reagents much cheaper.

 

[nereefpat]

My concern is raising my pH too quickly by putting too much of the KalKwasser into the tank at once.

As long as you split up the kalk additions throughout the day and night, that won't be an issue. I would also add that if you are aerating the tank with a skimmer and powerheads, the pH won't get too high.

I need to invest some quality test kits. Which ones do you prefer as I get ready to embark on this quest?

KalKwasser needs to be added based on alkalinity test results. My favorite hobby alkalinity kit that I've used is Salifert, but there are others. I would only trust some kind of titration kit for alk, over digital ones or meters.

Is it better to dose KalKwasser vs. putting it through a doser? I do weekly water changes from 3-5 gallons.

A doser is better than through an auto top off, or through a reactor, since a doser will be constant instead of changing with evaporation.

I like that you are performing water changes. People seem to be doing less and less of those lately.

 

[Dav2996]

As long as you split up the kalk additions throughout the day and night, that won't be an issue. I would also add that if you are aerating the tank with a skimmer and powerheads, the pH won't get too high.

KalKwasser needs to be added based on alkalinity test results. My favorite hobby alkalinity kit that I've used is Salifert, but there are others. I would only trust some kind of titration kit for alk, over digital ones or meters.

A doser is better than through an auto top off, or through a reactor, since a doser will be constant instead of changing with evaporation.

I like that you are performing water changes. People seem to be doing less and less of those lately.

I love 0 water changes.

 

[nereefpat]

I love 0 water changes.

You would

 

[Florida Man]

Yes I am. Class of 98’

Apex is great but it still is a machine and sometimes gets a bit wonky. but i’ve had one for 6 months.

Look into using the ABC reagents much cheaper.

Very nice. I had a friend graduate that program a few years ago.

I will check it out. Thank you.