kalk questions
- Thread starter ffsteve
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Steve Wright2
New member
ffsteve
+1 on above with proviso
some tanks can be maintained using Kalkwasser alone
but there are tanks, with very high demand, in which even super saturated Kalkwasser would not be able to keep up with demand as the corals grew in terms of size, and in terms of your stocking capacity
if it is a predominately soft coral aquarium, that you are just building up the stock in, then water changes alone with a salt mix, that has the levels you need is often enough
if its a developing aquarium with some SPS, or clams etc but still mainly soft corals, you may be fine with a weaker than full strenght Kalkwasser solution to maintain those 2 parameters
with Kalkwasser another limitation is your evaporation rate, if you live in a climate where evaporation is limited, then you may not be able to sustain the needs due to inability to get enough Kalk into your set up on daily basis
in situation like that 2 part dosing of Ca and Alk solutions may be an additional requirement simply as they do present a stonger solution ( more delivery for less volume of fluids utilised)
Steve
+1 on above with proviso
some tanks can be maintained using Kalkwasser alone
but there are tanks, with very high demand, in which even super saturated Kalkwasser would not be able to keep up with demand as the corals grew in terms of size, and in terms of your stocking capacity
if it is a predominately soft coral aquarium, that you are just building up the stock in, then water changes alone with a salt mix, that has the levels you need is often enough
if its a developing aquarium with some SPS, or clams etc but still mainly soft corals, you may be fine with a weaker than full strenght Kalkwasser solution to maintain those 2 parameters
with Kalkwasser another limitation is your evaporation rate, if you live in a climate where evaporation is limited, then you may not be able to sustain the needs due to inability to get enough Kalk into your set up on daily basis
in situation like that 2 part dosing of Ca and Alk solutions may be an additional requirement simply as they do present a stonger solution ( more delivery for less volume of fluids utilised)
Steve
Just so we're on the same page here... By kalk you mean Kalkwasser (limewater), a solution made by dissolving Calcium Hydroxide in f/w.
Kalk will maintain both your alk & calcium. The trick is figuring out how much to dose (and how often) to meet your tank's specific needs. You can only accomplish this by dosing and testing. Then dosing and testing some more. Once your alk & calcium remain constant, you'll know you've got it figured out.
For example, I've figured out that dosing 1 tsp of kalk in 1/2 gal of f/w every night keeps my alk/cal right where it needs to be in my 150 gal mixed reef.
Kalk will maintain both your alk & calcium. The trick is figuring out how much to dose (and how often) to meet your tank's specific needs. You can only accomplish this by dosing and testing. Then dosing and testing some more. Once your alk & calcium remain constant, you'll know you've got it figured out.
For example, I've figured out that dosing 1 tsp of kalk in 1/2 gal of f/w every night keeps my alk/cal right where it needs to be in my 150 gal mixed reef.
Steve Wright2
New member
simple answer
is your levels go above and beyond generally suggested parameters
if your replacing that much water- then as Bob does above you just adjust your solution using less Kalk in the water until you find the sweet spot
its trial and error, rather than an exact science
is your levels go above and beyond generally suggested parameters
if your replacing that much water- then as Bob does above you just adjust your solution using less Kalk in the water until you find the sweet spot
its trial and error, rather than an exact science
some say use kalk solution as a top off, i have a high rate of evaporation so would it work as a top off?
what happens if you use to much kalk?
Even with high evaporation you can control how much kalk
( clacium hydroxide/ limewater )you dose . The most you can add to top of water is 2tsps per gallon but there is no minimum. So, by adding less than 2tsps per gallon of top off water, you can dose more liquid and less or teh same amount of calcium hydroxide.
Also, it's important to be attentive to how much you dose in a given hour and limit that to 1/4tsp of powderd kalk per 50 gallons of tank water volume. In other words 16 ounces(1/8th of a gallon ) of 2 tsps per gallon kalkwasser per hour per 50 gallons of tank water as a maximum. Spreading it out as long as possible with whatever dosing system is in use is best 24/7 is optimal.
Monitoring ph levels when starting out is helpful.If it spikes to more than 8.5 or so, because of an overdose, calcium carbonate will fall out of the water like a snowstorm and be useless and a little messy.
what happens if you use to much kalk?
Even with high evaporation you can control how much kalk
( clacium hydroxide/ limewater )you dose . The most you can add to top of water is 2tsps per gallon but there is no minimum. So, by adding less than 2tsps per gallon of top off water, you can dose more liquid and less or teh same amount of calcium hydroxide.
Also, it's important to be attentive to how much you dose in a given hour and limit that to 1/4tsp of powderd kalk per 50 gallons of tank water volume. In other words 16 ounces(1/8th of a gallon ) of 2 tsps per gallon kalkwasser per hour per 50 gallons of tank water as a maximum. Spreading it out as long as possible with whatever dosing system is in use is best 24/7 is optimal.
Monitoring ph levels when starting out is helpful.If it spikes to more than 8.5 or so, because of an overdose, calcium carbonate will fall out of the water like a snowstorm and be useless and a little messy.
