Calcium reactor setup help needed.

[macdaddynick1]

So here is a little background. I have a 55 gallon mixed reef fully stocked.

I am currently dosing 2 part @ 80 ml per day. I run out of the solution in about 45 days. Which isn't all that bad , but I still decided to try a carx. So I went out and picked up GEO 618, setup from one of the members on here.

. I've had a small RO filter laying around so I repurposed it as an effluent filter

. Also I have an apex for the ph control inside of the reactor and this is the regulator that came with the reactor

. I am fully open to the idea of purchasing aquarium plant regulator and the master flex pump in the future, but for now I want to see if the reactor is a good fit for my tank.

My main concern is whether the reactor of this size would drop the PH too much in a 55 gallons of water.

So here are all of my questions.

1) GEO 618 is rated for up to 300 gal, is it possible to run it on a 55 gallon tank? (I can't find the answer to that question anywhere)

2) Should I put finer media, like aragonite inside of the effluent filter?

3) Would it be possible to run the reactor ph around 7 instead of 6.7?

4) my reactor is plumed into my return, with a ball valve before the reactor and the gate valve on the effluent line. Should I just put the gate valve before the reactor and leave the effluent line open?

5) Should I drip the effluent directly into the skimmer intake , near the intake, or into the skimmer exhaust?

6) Is there anything else i can do to increase the ph without adding kalk?

7) Any other possible suggestions from the calcium reactor users will be appreciated.

Thank you again,

Nick

 

[Tigerdragon]

What are you using as a ph controller of the reactor?

 

[d2mini]

Yes you should be able to run it on your smaller tank.
Run you ph and whatever it takes to dissolve your particular media and at the rate you need it dissolved. You'll have to play with it. I have a high demand tank and run mine at 6.5 and use Two Little Fishies Reborn media.
Drip the effluent in anywhere with good water movement.
Not good to feed off your return, not stable enough. Get a small Rio or Maxijet or something until you decide you want to pony up for the master flex.
And fwiw, I find a ph controller is unnecessary.

 

[macdaddynick1]

What are you using as a ph controller of the reactor?

I will be using the apex to control the solenoid when it's up and running.

 

[macdaddynick1]

Yes you should be able to run it on your smaller tank.
Run you ph and whatever it takes to dissolve your particular media and at the rate you need it dissolved. You'll have to play with it. I have a high demand tank and run mine at 6.5 and use Two Little Fishies Reborn media.
Drip the effluent in anywhere with good water movement.
Not good to feed off your return, not stable enough. Get a small Rio or Maxijet or something until you decide you want to pony up for the master flex.
And fwiw, I find a ph controller is unnecessary.

Thank you , the size of the reactor and its effect on the tank's ph was my biggest concern. I am also using the Reborn media. As far as the ph controller goes , I figured that I would use it as an extra security measure, just to be on the safe side.

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

http://reef.diesyst.com/crarticle/crarticle.htm
Give this a read.

 

[gaberosenfield]

1) yes
2) most media is made from aragonite. Are you asking whether you should use sand? I just use the same media in both reactor and effluent chambers.
3) perhaps. You'll have to play with the pH and drip rate.
4) definitely gate valve on input. Reactors aren't designed to hold pressure, so if you let the head pressure of your return enter the reactor and restrictions the flow out, they will probably leak. I feed my reactor and skimmer from a manifold run on a separate pump and control the flow into the reactor but leave the output open.
5) doesn't really matter.
6) refugium on an opposite light cycle to your DT with lots of algae.
7) for comparison, my 175 gallon system with low-medium calcium demand and a much smaller calcium reactor, I have my co2 bubble rate at 10 bubbles per minute and my flow rate at 2 drips per second. Even though it is controlled by a pH controller, at these bubble and drip rates the solenoid is essentially always energized to keep the reactor pH at 6.55. This keeps my calcium at 400 ppm and my alkalinity at 9.9-10.1 dKH.

 

[Bpb]

I'll be the odd man out and suggest you get a stainless steel dual stage regulator. Given the environment it will be in, that would be preferable to your current regulator as it will be a lot longer lasting and more stable in gas output, plus you don't have to risk end of tank dump. A lot of people are high on the aquarium plants regulator. The control box is nifty but the regulator it comes with is pure garbage, and I would personally trust a quality slow flow needle valve and higher end solenoid more. The burkert 6011 is a popular solenoid that is easy to obtain, not overly expensive, and good for 1 billion on/off cycles

 

[macdaddynick1]

http://reef.diesyst.com/crarticle/crarticle.htm
Give this a read.

Thank you , that's my go to article.

 

[macdaddynick1]

1) yes
2) most media is made from aragonite. Are you asking whether you should use sand? I just use the same media in both reactor and effluent chambers.
3) perhaps. You'll have to play with the pH and drip rate.
4) definitely gate valve on input. Reactors aren't designed to hold pressure, so if you let the head pressure of your return enter the reactor and restrictions the flow out, they will probably leak. I feed my reactor and skimmer from a manifold run on a separate pump and control the flow into the reactor but leave the output open.
5) doesn't really matter.
6) refugium on an opposite light cycle to your DT with lots of algae.
7) for comparison, my 175 gallon system with low-medium calcium demand and a much smaller calcium reactor, I have my co2 bubble rate at 10 bubbles per minute and my flow rate at 2 drips per second. Even though it is controlled by a pH controller, at these bubble and drip rates the solenoid is essentially always energized to keep the reactor pH at 6.55. This keeps my calcium at 400 ppm and my alkalinity at 9.9-10.1 dKH.

Thank you for answering all of my questions

 

[macdaddynick1]

I'll be the odd man out and suggest you get a stainless steel dual stage regulator. Given the environment it will be in, that would be preferable to your current regulator as it will be a lot longer lasting and more stable in gas output, plus you don't have to risk end of tank dump. A lot of people are high on the aquarium plants regulator. The control box is nifty but the regulator it comes with is pure garbage, and I would personally trust a quality slow flow needle valve and higher end solenoid more. The burkert 6011 is a popular solenoid that is easy to obtain, not overly expensive, and good for 1 billion on/off cycles

This is what I'm currently looking for , I see a lot of the dual stage on eBay but I have no idea which one to get and which one would be good for my purpose . Is there any brand of a dual stage regulator you would suggest?

 

[shifty51008]

This is what I'm currently looking for , I see a lot of the dual stage on eBay but I have no idea which one to get and which one would be good for my purpose . Is there any brand of a dual stage regulator you would suggest?

If your gonna get a new regulator just buy the aquarium plants one. More spendy but pretty much bullet proof

 

[jokerguapo]

Hi , any frags for sale ?

 

[Bpb]

This is what I'm currently looking for , I see a lot of the dual stage on eBay but I have no idea which one to get and which one would be good for my purpose . Is there any brand of a dual stage regulator you would suggest?

Takes a bit of searching and learning. I have a Concoa 312 regulator built by forum member Alanle and it's been wonderful. Any stainless steel (or brass for cheaper) dual stage co2 regulator will work though. Bad ones don't really exist. They're all nice. Concoa, Victor, Matheson, Parker, Praxair, Airgas, and Linde are a few brands off the top of my head. The pieces will be regulator body, cga320 nipple and nut, solenoid, needle valve and assorted fittings. Most the ones you find on eBay are from bulk gas suppliers and will have to have various things swapped out but there are some good threads on it here and on plantedtank.net. These aren't aquarium grade items, these are high purity lab grade pieces of equipment. Solenoids rated for over 1 billion cycles, ultra precise needle valves. A quality dual stage regulator can last decades without needing servicing

 

[macdaddynick1]

Calcium reactor setup help needed.

If your gonna get a new regulator just buy the aquarium plants one. More spendy but pretty much bullet proof

I hear a ton of good things about AP, but for some reason I've been leaning more towards the industrial dual stage regulator with a quality solenoid.

 

[macdaddynick1]

Calcium reactor setup help needed.

Takes a bit of searching and learning. I have a Concoa 312 regulator built by forum member Alanle and it's been wonderful. Any stainless steel (or brass for cheaper) dual stage co2 regulator will work though. Bad ones don't really exist. They're all nice. Concoa, Victor, Matheson, Parker, Praxair, Airgas, and Linde are a few brands off the top of my head. The pieces will be regulator body, cga320 nipple and nut, solenoid, needle valve and assorted fittings. Most the ones you find on eBay are from bulk gas suppliers and will have to have various things swapped out but there are some good threads on it here and on plantedtank.net. These aren't aquarium grade items, these are high purity lab grade pieces of equipment. Solenoids rated for over 1 billion cycles, ultra precise needle valves. A quality dual stage regulator can last decades without needing servicing

Awesome, thanks for this info, I had no idea where to start looking. I'm still back and forth between AP and the dual stage , since I have no idea how to build one at this point, but I'm actually talking to a friend of mine who built himself a dual stage regulator and he swears by it, I'll have him help me out. Is getting a used one a bad idea?

 

[Bpb]

Not a bad idea. I'd venture to say most people got theirs used