How do you measure alkalinity of ca reactor effluent?

[RyanH]

I just hooked up my calcium reactor and i want to know the alkalinity of the effulent. Can I use a Salifert alkalinity test kit? it only goes up to 16 dKH. Do i use 4 times the amount of water recommended then multiply the results by 4? or do i even need to worry about this?

 

[Znut Reefer]

I would not worry about it, just be sure the ph of the effluent is around 6.5 to 6.7. And check you aquarium for the dhk. I keep mine at 8-9 NSW levels. You can adjust the CO2 as needed that way. It's alot more simple to do this way. Hope this helps.

 

[RyanH]

Thanks for the input. I have a new Deltec PF501 and it has a place for a pH probe in the reactor. I am keeping the reactor pH between 6.3 - 6.4, so I guess I will just monitor the alkalinity of the tank and use a timer to run the reactor as long as i need to maintain my levels. I'm planning on running it when the lights are on and then dripping limewater at night. Hopefully this will keep the pH and the ca/alk balance stable.

 

[Znut Reefer]

Sounds good. I don't use Kalk so mine runs 24/7. Ph drops to 8.0-8.1 and goes to 8.2.8.3. And all my sps are growing like crazy.