calcium reactor problem?

M

mduvall219

Premium Member
i just checked my water again and my calcium is dangerously low AGAIN 250ish

so i check the effluent coming out of calcium reactor. the dkh is only 9(which the whole tank is) and the calcium is only 350.

i guess my question is shouldn't both those numbers be much higher?

i only have about 60 ml per minute of effluent and about 50 bubbles

ph was at 6.5, i just lowered it to 6
thanks for your input

oh yeah i have arm media
 
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IF the reactor was at a pH of 6.5 and you only have a dKH of 9 in the effluent, the media is exhausted and needs replaced, that's more then low enough to disolve any CaCO3 media to a much higher level then you tested. could be bad test kits too.......


FWIW testing Ca in the effluent is a waste of your test kit, it's useless in reactor setup and adjustments.
 
I would dose calcium up with a calcium chloride product, if you're sure of that measurement. The tank is measuring 9 dKH and the calcium is 250 ppm? That's very odd. I'd get a second opinion on those test kits. Has a pH buffer or any similar product been dosed?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10513263#post10513263 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bertoni
I would dose calcium up with a calcium chloride product, if you're sure of that measurement. The tank is measuring 9 dKH and the calcium is 250 ppm? That's very odd. I'd get a second opinion on those test kits. Has a pH buffer or any similar product been dosed?
Click to expand...

yes i have used ph buffer, haven't used it in 3 weeks or so.
and then my calcium was 420ish.
my media is only 3 months old. unless i got a bad batch
could it really be no good?
 
The pH buffer is a high-pH alkalinity supplement, so it's been maintaining the alkalinity level. Low pH problems are seldom solved that way, since they are mostly due to high CO2 levels. This article covers low pH problems:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/index.htm

I would discontinue the pH buffer and get some calcium chloride and fix the calcum problem, raising Ca perhaps 100 ppm per day. Kent Turbo Calcium or Dow Flake would be fine, and there are other products as well. I suspect the calcium reactor just needs to be dialed up.
 
sounds good, i will get the calcium up to par.

also..... i have had a airstone in the water trying to up the ph, but it has done nothing
even did the test in cup of water and nothing.
i don't get it
 
Did you aerate the cup outside? What was the pH at the end of the aeration, and how long was the test run? The problem might be in the pH test device or kit. Such problems seem to be fairly common.
 
i did do it indoors for about 30 minutes. i have a ph probe and it is calibrated. i thought that it would rise at least .1, but nothing. i just added 50 pounds of live rock too hoping that may help. i am not in danger territory but getting close. i rarely see 8.0
it is normally 7.7-7.9
we leave a door open for a couple ours a day too so i don't know, i am going to take a cup outside now and try it that way with a airstone.
 
Okay, sounds like a good experiment. If possible, let the cup aerate for a few hours and we'll see what happens.
 
in a cup outside it shouldn't need aerated more then 5 or 10 min, if you don't see a change that soon then you either don't have a build up of CO2 causing the problem or you live in down town LA and the smog is killing you and your tank.
 
well it was outside for about an hour and the ph did go from 7.9 to 8.1
sooooooooo
time do do some reading unless there are cliff notes on how to rid the co2
 
you can extend a hose from the skimmers air intake to the outside so it draws in fresh air, or increase the air exchange in your home, some HVAC systems have air exchangers as well.
 
Yes, fresher air is the solution. Adding a skimmer line might help, but in some cases, the tank has enough aeration from other sources to prevent a skimmer line from helping. A lime drip can also help.
 
salt creep from an airstone is horrific, you're better off directing a pump upward to get better surface agitation if you don't already have it, that promotes gas exchange better then the airstone.
 
yeah i see the salt creep already after just a week with air stone.
i will try a lime drip and see how that goes
thanks for all the help, i appreciate it
 
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