Adding distill vinegar through the Kalk reactor

[OrionN]

I need to add more Ca and Alkalinity to my 65 gal tank. I am top off with a kalk reactor. The reactor is feed using a dosing pump that draw RO water from a 5 gal can. I want to add a specific amount of vinegar to the RO water tank as I fill up the container every 5 days or so.
I do have a very well run and maintenance skimmer for this tank. Is there a down side to this? I think in addition to keep the Ca and Alkalinity up, this will also added organic into the water so that there will be an increase population of bacterial and other micro organism. This in turn feed the tank, and or also skim out with my skimmer.
Am I correct in thinking that adding acetic acid to the tank will not deplete alkalinity (not like adding Hydrochloric acid).
If my skimmer works well, then the net effect would be adding more Ca and Alkalinity. At the same time, this will reduce the nitrate and phosphate in the tank.

Any idea? I have start to do this with my 65 gal reef. It really boost my Ca and alkalinity.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Vinegar won't reduce alkalinity (at least not once it is metabolized), but there really isn't an optimal way to combine it with a reactor. It is best dosed from a settled reservoir of vinegar and calcium hydroxide (if you want the increased potency).

The main reason is you should not store highly diluted vinegar. It will be metabolized by bacteria and end up producing CO2. That will actually deplete the limewater in the reactor, rather than increase it.

I dose vinegar and limewater separately. The vinegar is dosed with a 1.1 ml per min BRS pump.

 

[OrionN]

How dilute is your vinegar?
I am thinking of dosing concentrated vinegar directly to the Kalk reactor. Concentrated enough to keep bacterial from growing. Once it is in the Kalk reactor, the high pH there should keep bacterial from growing. The bacterial will not be able to break down the acetic acid to CO2 and carbonate until in the tank. the pH of vinegar should help dissolve even more CaOH.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Once in the top off reservoir, it is necessarily very dilute.

 

[OrionN]

Once in the top off reservoir, it is necessarily very dilute.

I am thinking of two lines into the Kalk reactor (or two lines joint with a Y) one would have RO and the other would pump in full strength vinegar draw directly from my 1.5 gal distill vinegar. I would set the the vinegar line to dump in 10-100 once or twice a day. This way the concentration of the acetic acid keep algae or bacterial from growing. Once in the Kalk reactor, it would help dissolve the CaOH and increase the potency of the Kalk solution. It would be hard to dump in 200 cc per 24 hrs unless I get very specialized pump. As is, I just turn the pmup on 2-4 times a day 50 ml or 100 ml at a time.
I think with the acetic acid in the Kalk reactor, the pH of the solution come out would be the same, except the Ca and alkalinity would be much higher, depends on how much vinegar of course.
I think I am going to do this unless you can point out any reason why I should not.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

If you can engineer slowly adding it 24/7, that's best (and the problem). If you add it only once a day, you will dissolve a lot in that portion and the normal amount the rest of the day. Overall, that will probably give you more potency than before.

 

[OrionN]

I think I am not being clear.

The reactor is a 16X8 inches so there is about 3 gals in it. If I dump 50 cc of acetic acid into the reactore 4 times a day. An the drip rate only 2 gal a day from the second pump (continuous), the net effect of adding Acetic acid 4 time a day versus continuous would be minimal in my opinion.
The kalk would be add countinous, not 4 times a day. It is the acetic acid to the kalk reactor that is added 4 times a day.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Right. So you'd get a burst of calcium, alkalinity and vinegar into the tank each time right after the vinegar addition to the reactor. That is probably OK.

 

[OrionN]

I got everything around the house, including a spare Cole-Palmer pump. I will set this up this weekend. Will see how it work. I will do this to my 65 gal in the office. I have not check Ca and alkalinity or add any thing to that tank other than Kalk for years (and water change with IO). I will check level and post level before and weekly check and see.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Sounds good.

Good luck.