Anyone use limewater (kalk) via ATO?
- Thread starter Tswifty
- Start date
bertmauricio
New member
I'm basically running the same setup described here. RO/DI container connected to my ATO Aqualifter pump, which is connected to a Reeftek kalk reactor. ATO pump is contolled by the float switch in the sump. I have the float switch plugged into a timer that is set for 1/2 hour intervals starting at midnight, 3am, and 6am. That's enough to top off my evap rate and help maintain Ph during lights out.
It's only been running for a month. Walmart is the cheapest place for Mrs. Wages if you can find it there but you can also order from the company direct for about $4 each if Walmart doesn't have it.
Tswifty
New member
Will do...
I've been listening to my top off tonight, and it seems to kick on just about once every hour for about 30 seconds or so.
It's an aqualifter pump, so it isn't moving much, and I believe my daily evap rate is around 1 or 2 gallons a day.
Do you think this will be too frequent to be adding kalk?
I've been listening to my top off tonight, and it seems to kick on just about once every hour for about 30 seconds or so.
It's an aqualifter pump, so it isn't moving much, and I believe my daily evap rate is around 1 or 2 gallons a day.
Do you think this will be too frequent to be adding kalk?
Will last a 50 g tank about half a year.
SHould be fine. Remember only the filmy water goes in: if you see white water jetting in, your pump is in the wrong area of the reservoir. If you SHOULD totally overdose, remember ph is the big concern (well, and the amount of non-salt water that just came in)---and keep a bottle of bar soda handy to correct it (by the teaspoon, not the cupful). Remember the tank adjusts that ph rapidly and extremey downward, so don't overcorrect.
Good luck. It's actually one of the safest dosing methods available, hard to hurt anything. I've turned my whole reef white twice, and hurt nothing but my pride.
SHould be fine. Remember only the filmy water goes in: if you see white water jetting in, your pump is in the wrong area of the reservoir. If you SHOULD totally overdose, remember ph is the big concern (well, and the amount of non-salt water that just came in)---and keep a bottle of bar soda handy to correct it (by the teaspoon, not the cupful). Remember the tank adjusts that ph rapidly and extremey downward, so don't overcorrect.
Good luck. It's actually one of the safest dosing methods available, hard to hurt anything. I've turned my whole reef white twice, and hurt nothing but my pride.
itZme
New member
I had a kalk incident once and had my PH all the way up to 9.8! I found an article by Randy Holmes Farley and used vinegar to lower it quickly and had virtually no losses. He even has a formula to lower PH with vinegar with so much per gallon of system volume.
Here ya go
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-03/rhf/index.php
and this is all you could ever want to know about kalk dosing:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/index.php
Here ya go
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-03/rhf/index.php
and this is all you could ever want to know about kalk dosing:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/index.php
Tswifty
New member
Thanks... that's the only thing I'm nervous about... my water parameters have been extremely stable for the past few months. I really want to get away from dosing every night, but don't want to throw a wrench in the chemistry.
I just tested and hooked it up. The levels didn't move, except my pH was a little lower which makes sense, and I guess is actually a good thing going into this.
I just tested and hooked it up. The levels didn't move, except my pH was a little lower which makes sense, and I guess is actually a good thing going into this.
SCIFI_3D_zoo
New member
You have a 90 gal now? I thought your new one was 180 or something?
Why would your pH go down dosing Kalk? And why would that be good, especially at 7.7, during the day too?
You just started putting this new tank together so I guess your Ca demand will go up. You might be able to get away with just dosing Kalk and an occassional 2-Part dose. Certainly not everyday. Depends on what the size of your tank is and what you got in it. But you might want to save up for a Ca reator OR a dosing pump or two. I just bought 3 from BRS. I do NOT plan on dosing something everyday myself either. That's crazy. I got other things to do.
I have been using B-IONIC also and I have not added any ALK in weeks. It stays right at 8.8. My pH is my real problem. After airing my house out during the hurrican it actually went down even more... 7.5 - 7.6... from 7.7 - 7.8. I have a 1tsp/g KALK 5gal test bucket hooked up to my JBJ ATO now and it just dosed a very small amount and my pH went up 0.1-0.2. I mean a small amount, like 0.25 gallons, with 1 tsp/g soln. So I think it's a good idea to start with the small conc. and see how it goes. My Mg stays stable. Probably don't need to dose that rarely. Ca... been doing like 15ml/day of that. But a dosing pump will take care of that. I should have everything going soon to take care of itself for 7-10 days till I have to fill up the ATO.
Why would your pH go down dosing Kalk? And why would that be good, especially at 7.7, during the day too?
You just started putting this new tank together so I guess your Ca demand will go up. You might be able to get away with just dosing Kalk and an occassional 2-Part dose. Certainly not everyday. Depends on what the size of your tank is and what you got in it. But you might want to save up for a Ca reator OR a dosing pump or two. I just bought 3 from BRS. I do NOT plan on dosing something everyday myself either. That's crazy. I got other things to do.
I have been using B-IONIC also and I have not added any ALK in weeks. It stays right at 8.8. My pH is my real problem. After airing my house out during the hurrican it actually went down even more... 7.5 - 7.6... from 7.7 - 7.8. I have a 1tsp/g KALK 5gal test bucket hooked up to my JBJ ATO now and it just dosed a very small amount and my pH went up 0.1-0.2. I mean a small amount, like 0.25 gallons, with 1 tsp/g soln. So I think it's a good idea to start with the small conc. and see how it goes. My Mg stays stable. Probably don't need to dose that rarely. Ca... been doing like 15ml/day of that. But a dosing pump will take care of that. I should have everything going soon to take care of itself for 7-10 days till I have to fill up the ATO.
Tswifty
New member
Nope... only the 90g
pH didn't go down after I began dosing kalk. I tested the night before, and right before I hooked up the kalk to my ATO.
The pH dropped from the night before... which makes sense, because my lights don't come on until around 11am, so the pH was on the rebound from the nightly drop.
Tswifty
New member
I have to dose 2-part daily or my Alk & Ca levels drop below where I want them.
I like to keep my Ca around 440, and my dKH between 10-11
Mag is always stable at 1350.
I honestly don't worry about my pH really at all as long as the test shows me between the 7.7 and 8.0 mark... nothing tells me too. Been running that way for 6 months with SPS, LPS, Nems, Softies... the whole 9 yards, and everything has done great.
I really don't overthink it. As long as the livestock is doing well, I'm content
Esquare
Active member
HAHAHA! Yeah, a controller provides a lot of flexibility and “neat stuffâ€Â. I went with a RK at first but returned it and got an AC3. Now I wish I had gotten the AC Pro but the price is just ridiculous (of course if I had gotten it the price would have been very reasonable 
).
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