Calcium Reactor vs 2-Part in a 200g+ SPS tank
- Thread starter gcarroll
- Start date
ryshark
Active member
If I'm going to test my pwc water I test it after its been mixing for awhile close to when I am about to use it for a water change.
vegaskid11
vegasreefers.com
Changes of less than 25 percent with comparable water should have little effect as ph, major and trace elements will quickly disperse.
I have a 300 gallon slatwater holding tank and I changes out about a half gallon of water per hour so there is no need to have the water exact.
The larger your water changes get (30% and up) it starts to get more critical to match parameters.
I have a 300 gallon slatwater holding tank and I changes out about a half gallon of water per hour so there is no need to have the water exact.
The larger your water changes get (30% and up) it starts to get more critical to match parameters.
MicroSofty
New member
beside the idea that you have to buy the doser.
I am assuming that this just cost more. considering some people dose 400ml a day. This has to be hurting the pocket. I am pretty sure that dosing is the best way to go, but to be cost efficient wouldnt this really burn a hole in our pockets.
1 gallon = 3785 ml this solution should we dose roughly 400 ml a day would only last 10 days
According to marine depot 2 part for esv b-ionic is 30 bucks for 1 gallon of each
so roughly for a month it would cost nearly 90 bucks.
every year it would cost ~1000 bucks.
there is also the option of making your own solution which would save much more but wouldnt it add up?
I dont know if my numbers are right and i could be wrong, but IMO it just seems more economical to use a caRx
I am assuming that this just cost more. considering some people dose 400ml a day. This has to be hurting the pocket. I am pretty sure that dosing is the best way to go, but to be cost efficient wouldnt this really burn a hole in our pockets.
1 gallon = 3785 ml this solution should we dose roughly 400 ml a day would only last 10 days
According to marine depot 2 part for esv b-ionic is 30 bucks for 1 gallon of each
so roughly for a month it would cost nearly 90 bucks.
every year it would cost ~1000 bucks.
there is also the option of making your own solution which would save much more but wouldnt it add up?
I dont know if my numbers are right and i could be wrong, but IMO it just seems more economical to use a caRx
Stanley-Reefer
New member
I agree with the buffer stayin in suspension. I like Kent's tech a/b and there is no way I could use a dose unless I had a "stirrer" in the container. It's strong and has to be shook vigorously before use, but I 've always had consistant results from it in both tanks year in and year out.
Together I'm dosing 230 net gal/day between my 2 tanks.
90
30ml tech a/b in the am (labels says to dose in the am to avoid ph overshoot in the evening)
15ml of tech M in the am
10 drops of iodine in the am
Tues/Thurs 10ml of Kent Str/Moly
Fri 10ml of Kent essential elements and coral vite
175
Basically triple these amounts since it's 3 times the water volume. (same tank basics just bigger)
It's alot and I could probably cut back on alot, but it's growing corals like mad and everything looks happy.
I change about 5-10% of water every 4-5 days too with Seachem Reef.
Together I'm dosing 230 net gal/day between my 2 tanks.
90
30ml tech a/b in the am (labels says to dose in the am to avoid ph overshoot in the evening)
15ml of tech M in the am
10 drops of iodine in the am
Tues/Thurs 10ml of Kent Str/Moly
Fri 10ml of Kent essential elements and coral vite
175
Basically triple these amounts since it's 3 times the water volume. (same tank basics just bigger)
It's alot and I could probably cut back on alot, but it's growing corals like mad and everything looks happy.
I change about 5-10% of water every 4-5 days too with Seachem Reef.
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Kinetic
Active member
It's solid. Not too fancy, easy to control and setup as there's not that many options. I've been running it for about 3 weeks now, dosing part 1. I only dose 15mL a day of Alk though, but even in small quantities it does a good job.
The pump itself is kind of loud, but doesn't vibrate like crazy like my Spectrapure LM3 pumps do. Since it only goes on every so often, it doesn't bother me at all.
There's no calibration, so I feel like it's kind of a crapshoot of how much it's actually dosing. They claim a 5mL deviation so maybe they take into consideration pump wear.
It's a much cheaper solution than LM3 though, and has all the pumps built in. It even comes with a slick acrylic "shelf" that you can place the bubble-magus on.
My instructions came in complete Chinese, btw, (contemporary short hand, not traditional) so have a chinese dude/gal handy. Luckily I'm Chinese and have family close by to help translate.
LED screen is a nice blue though, not the ugly green kind you get with some simple screens these days.
I'll go measure my Alk in a bit and see how it's doing
Kinetic
Active member
Oh yeah that's right! I almost forgot!
If you are dosing large amounts, like above 100ml+ a day, one really needs to look into getting large batches to mix them at home. Bulk Reef Supply has 5 gallon buckets of soda ash and calcium chloride that would last a year for you and cost you about $100.
I am dosing about 800ml a day now on my 400+gal, and they will last me 6 - 7 months....
You can use Hardness Plus like the calcium and Soda Ash at Lesliespool supply? it's a lot cheaper.
http://www.lesliespool.com/browse/H...us-45-lbs/D/30100/P/1:100:1000:100030/I/14428
http://www.lesliespool.com/browse/H...sh-50-lbs/D/30100/P/1:100:1000:100030/I/14738
http://www.lesliespool.com/browse/H...us-45-lbs/D/30100/P/1:100:1000:100030/I/14428
http://www.lesliespool.com/browse/H...sh-50-lbs/D/30100/P/1:100:1000:100030/I/14738
Logzor
New member
I have been using the hardness plus from Leslie for some time now, I have had no issues with it. I use Arm and Hammer for the other part, though.
I believe there is a sticky on the RC forum regarding the issues with Bromide in the new DOW flake (pretty much any commercial calcium is from DOW). This new formula from DOW is the main reason people have switch to more pure products from BRS and other vendors.
I am using the BRS in a 50G with a 10G prop tank (SPS dominant), no room for any more corals (really, I am putting them in the sand bed), and this is what I have:
Ca - 2 cups per gallon, 2ml/hr in 1 gallon of water
Alk - 2 cups per gallon with 10 mg of baking soda, 4ml/hr in 1 gallon of water.
Ca - 2 cups per gallon, 2ml/hr in 1 gallon of water
Alk - 2 cups per gallon with 10 mg of baking soda, 4ml/hr in 1 gallon of water.
What would be the best dosing scheme for say a hypothetical 48 ml (using a RKE):
a.) spreading out the dosing over a 24 hour period (ie., 2 ml per hour; dose alk on the hour, calc on the half-hour)
b.) dosing when lights are off, spread out over a 12 hour period (ie., 4 ml per hour)
c.) other (please elaborate/explain)?
a.) spreading out the dosing over a 24 hour period (ie., 2 ml per hour; dose alk on the hour, calc on the half-hour)
b.) dosing when lights are off, spread out over a 12 hour period (ie., 4 ml per hour)
c.) other (please elaborate/explain)?
MeuserReef
Welcome to the next level
I dose 2-Part using two Drew's Doser pumps. I have both pumps controlled by my RKE unit. The Calcium dosing pump is assigned to a timer that doses 5 min, 6 times daily (every 2 hrs over a 24 hr span) and doses at the top of the hour. The Alkalinity is also assigned to a timer that doses 5 min, 6 times daily but does so at the bottom of the hour. This helps to keep the pH stable, even minimizing the drop in pH that I usually see at night (no fuge on my tank)
Hope this helps.
I know what the "top of the hour" means, but not sure what you mean by the "bottom of the hour." Would this look like:
12:00-12:05--Calcium
12:55-1:00--Alk
2:00-2:05--Calcium
...and so on? Thanks!
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