Evaporation Question

[raynist]

I know if you dose kalk as your make up water it is better to promote evaporation.

I dose the homemade 2 part solution and my topoff water is just ro/di water.

Do I really need to promote evaporation? I have no heating issues with my tank.

I currently have my light sitting directly on my tank (aquatinics mh/T-5) and the other open areas are covered by egg crate. I am thinking of removing the egg crate and replacing it with something solid like glass or plastic.

If heat is not an issue, what would be the downsides of not much evaporation? I also would like to get rid of the eggcrate as it seems fish 2x's the size of the opening are able to jump through it. I have lost 6 diamond gobies...

Thanks
Ray Nist

 

[Craig Lambert]

You don't need to promote evaporation. What you're doing will work well. Some people want a higher rate of evaporation in order to be able to drip enough kalk to maintain their calcium level. This is especially true in heavily stocked sps tanks which take up calcium at a very high rate.

 

[Craig Lambert]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9323180#post9323180 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Craig Lambert
You don't need to promote evaporation. What you're doing will work well. Some people want a higher rate of evaporation in order to be able to drip enough kalk to maintain their calcium level. This is especially true in heavily stocked sps tanks which take up calcium at a very high rate.

Edit: Forgot to mention that you don't want to place glass tops on the tank because it will inhibit gas exchange as well as increase the tank temp.

 

[paulhines]

I'm convinced dosing kalk does more for your tank than jsut raisig/maintaining Ca and Alk. It's supposed to help control phosphate and make the skimmer work better.

My tanks have "gone into overdrive" as far as growing coral/coraline and inhibibiting algae and cyano... when I'm dripping kalk. All my makeup water now is kalk.