Best Way to Dose 2-Part Solution?

FishDad2

FishDad2

Member
My current alkalinity and calcium supplementation scheme has started to fall short of the mark as the bioload has exceeded the ability of my calcium and kalk reactors to keep pace. However, rather than increase the size of my calcium reactor, which is a substantial financial expense, I'm thinking I may start using Randy's 2-part solution. Perhaps in conjunction with my current reactors or simply to replace them...I'm undecided.

In any event, what I could use help with is understanding how best to dose the 2-part solution...equipment to buy, how best to configure it, etc.

In particular, I'd like to be able to mix several gallons of the solutions and ensure that both parts are dosed equally. This way I don't have to refill the containers frequently and I ensure the proper ratio is dosed.

I'm also hoping that I won't have to worry about lines clogging like I did in the old days when dripping kalk....and still do to some extent with the kalk reactor.

Recommendations are appreciated. And if you have links to web sites where I can acquire the needed items, even better.

Thanks,
Chris
 
A two-channel peristaltic pump can be used to dose the two-part automatically, if that's desired. I have some used Master-Flex pumps that work well that way. The lines might be less likely to clog than a limewater line, and they should be easier to clean. Lots of people get by dosing manually, though. That's what I do, these days.
 
Manual dosing (i.e. gravity fed drip) is certainly the easiest. But as I said, my past experiences with dripping was problematic and a major aggravation. It's also why I invested in calcium and kalk reactors when I built my current tank...greater consistency and low maintenance. Of course, I hadn't discovered RC back when I was building the setup and I undersized the calcium reactor.

If only I'd had the RC community for guidance....

Well, I'll have to ponder the alternatives, as I don't want to spend too much money given the current economic situation. Perhaps I'll try a gravity fed system as a supplement to the reactors and see how it goes...slowly move away from the use of the reactors if all goes well with dripping.

Thanks
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14558747#post14558747 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FishDad2
Manual dosing (i.e. gravity fed drip) is certainly the easiest. But as I said, my past experiences with dripping was problematic and a major aggravation. It's also why I invested in calcium and kalk reactors when I built my current tank...greater consistency and low maintenance. Of course, I hadn't discovered RC back when I was building the setup and I undersized the calcium reactor.

If only I'd had the RC community for guidance....

Well, I'll have to ponder the alternatives, as I don't want to spend too much money given the current economic situation. Perhaps I'll try a gravity fed system as a supplement to the reactors and see how it goes...slowly move away from the use of the reactors if all goes well with dripping.

Thanks
Click to expand...


Using 2 part with dosing pumps is very consistent and very low maintenance IMO.I mix up 5 gal jugs at a time and they are good for a long time. Plus it is easy to adjust as the tank demands change. Not to mention when using homemade 2 part it is very cheap.
 
jpa0741 (or anyone else), do you have recommendations regarding the best dosing pumps to use?

If I go that route, I want to buy good quality pumps that work consistently and last a long time...not cheap ones just to save $ on the initial purchase, as that always proves to be more expensive in the long run.

I may not want to spend the $ right now and will likely start with a drip fed system just to see how it all works, but it will be useful to have pump recommenations so I'm ready to go if/when I decide to take the plunge.

Thanks
 
I have been using Drew's dosing pumps from bulkreefsupply for about a year now with excellent results. Compared to many other peristaltic pumps I've seen they have a very slow dosing rate (~1.8 mL/min) which makes fine tuning the amount you dose very easy since you can adjust how long they run in minutes rather than seconds. I have each pump hooked up to 2.5 gallon jugs which last me about 10 weeks between refills. They come on at night to help keep my pH constant - they're switched on/off by my tank controller. They're one of the better investments I've made.
 
Sounds interesting.

I like that they have a slow dosing rate so I don't have to worry too much about clamping down the flow and creating unwanted back-pressure.

I suppose if I were to pull the kalk reactor out of the equation, I could substitute the 2 part at night like you do...allow my controller to run it using the timer with pH limits and the float switch as safety devices. I'll have to contemplate between running only at night or if I want to run it all through the day in an effort to avoid spikes.

For the moment I'm going to go with a gravity drip just to get the ball rolling. But this is very good information to have...thank you.
 
No problem! Your plan sounds great. For me, dosing at night works really well - it keeps my Ca and Alk levels spot on and helps keep the pH above 8.0 at night. My pumps do 5 minutes on then 25 minutes off and repeat all night. Without the nightly 2-part dosing my pH would drop as low as 7.8 some nights.

The nice thing about this setup is that it is super easy to keep it adjusted as your system grows. You could use it as a supplement to your current Ca and Alk additives, or if you decide to scrap the Ca and Kalk reactors, just increase the volume you dose and you're set.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14564193#post14564193 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Aimforever
I have been using Drew's dosing pumps from bulkreefsupply for about a year now with excellent results. Compared to many other peristaltic pumps I've seen they have a very slow dosing rate (~1.8 mL/min) which makes fine tuning the amount you dose very easy since you can adjust how long they run in minutes rather than seconds. I have each pump hooked up to 2.5 gallon jugs which last me about 10 weeks between refills. They come on at night to help keep my pH constant - they're switched on/off by my tank controller. They're one of the better investments I've made.
Click to expand...

Iv been considering these. How do you control 1 minute incredments with standard timers??

Currently I just dose my 2 part into the sump, early in the AM, before sunrise. one part at a time with approx 5 moinutes inbetween
 
Drew dosing pump

Drew dosing pump

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14564193#post14564193 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Aimforever
I have been using Drew's dosing pumps from bulkreefsupply for about a year now with excellent results. Compared to many other peristaltic pumps I've seen they have a very slow dosing rate (~1.8 mL/min) which makes fine tuning the amount you dose very easy since you can adjust how long they run in minutes rather than seconds. I have each pump hooked up to 2.5 gallon jugs which last me about 10 weeks between refills. They come on at night to help keep my pH constant - they're switched on/off by my tank controller. They're one of the better investments I've made.
Click to expand...

Sorry for asking naive question. I am just looking into two parts system. When you use two parts, do you dose one part at the time or simultaneously? How do you control 5 minute on and 25 minutes off (by timer or Drew pump has built-in capability)?
 
You'd normally dose the at slightly different times, but if you had to dose them simultaneously, it would be preferable to dose them into different parts of the system so they do not interact strongly before mixing in well.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14582701#post14582701 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AquamanE
Iv been considering these. How do you control 1 minute incredments with standard timers??

Currently I just dose my 2 part into the sump, early in the AM, before sunrise. one part at a time with approx 5 moinutes inbetween
Click to expand...

Almost any digital timer will work. Just make sure you are able to program it with enough on/off cycles to suit your needs. You can buy standalone digital timers just about anywhere (walmart, target, hardware store... etc.) Try searching for "Hamilton 24hr Digital Timer" on Amazon and you'll see what I mean.

In my case I use the timer function on my reef controller (RK Elite from digitalaquatics) to turn them on/off. Hope this helps :)
 
Re: Drew dosing pump

Re: Drew dosing pump

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14584098#post14584098 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wnaing
Sorry for asking naive question. I am just looking into two parts system. When you use two parts, do you dose one part at the time or simultaneously? How do you control 5 minute on and 25 minutes off (by timer or Drew pump has built-in capability)?
Click to expand...

Randy is right - seperate is ideal. I dose both simultaneously to keep the programming simple, but I have the outputs from the pumps in separate high flow areas of my sump. Since there is only 1 drop of each solution going in every 2 seconds, they mix in and dissipate very quickly.

It would be pretty easy to dose them at seperate intervals just by using two timers or two channels on your controller if you wanted to. In my experience, as long as the outputs have some distance and high flow between them, it is fine to dose them together using these pumps since the drip rate is so slow. Just to clarify, the dosing pumps don't have any timer built in. You must supply your own digital timer - be it standalone or part of your controller. HTH :)
 
Last edited:
That's probably the plan I will go with in the long run...dose both parts simultaneously but into different areas of the sump as it will be easiest to program with my AquaController and the large volume wit hhigh flow should disperse the different parts well.

For the moment though, I'm only dosing the ALK part, as CA is holding ~420 using my current reactor and drip scheme.

But in the long run, I will need to settle on a real solution with metered doasges...trying to use the ALK part as a supplement to my current system and having to constantly tweek the drip is already getting on my nerves!!
 
I use two Drew's dosers on my main display, they dose all day long alternating every two hours (alk & ca). They have been running for about 3 years now without a single hiccup. I control them with my Apex controller, very easy to config.
On my prop/frag tank, I use a Bubble Magus doser. It has 3 pumps in case I wanted to dose Mag as well; it also has built in timers, so it will dose both alk and ca at regular intervals each day, also very easy to config.
 
divewsharks said:
I use two Drew's dosers on my main display, they dose all day long alternating every two hours (alk & ca). They have been running for about 3 years now without a single hiccup. I control them with my Apex controller, very easy to config.
On my prop/frag tank, I use a Bubble Magus doser. It has 3 pumps in case I wanted to dose Mag as well; it also has built in timers, so it will dose both alk and ca at regular intervals each day, also very easy to config.
Click to expand...

I'm now using a similar scheme with Drew's dosers...dosing ALK on odd hours and CAL on evens throughout the day, with a third pump dosing MG in between. It has served me well and allowed me to eliminate the calcium reactor which wasn't keeping up with demand.
 
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