Kalkwasser, does anyone use this?

[logans_daddy]

I want to start supplementing calcium in my FOWLR. Ive been reading up on tons of methods but i want CHEAP and STABLE method to dose calcium. I do not have corals so my primary motivation is coraline algae. I am not ready to invest in a Calc Reactor so i was thinking about using a gravity drip doser with kalkwasser. Does anyone use this method or have any advise about using it? Thanks.

Shawn:bum:

 

[REEFUR]

i use missisippi lime solution (mis powder and ro water,let it settle and use the clear liquid. add some a epsom salt to help the coraline growth) and epsom salt. i don't get too tech!!! keep it simple(should say keep it cheap)

 

[mbbuna]

for a FO tank i wouldnt go through the trobble of Kalk. a 2 part would be alot easier.

read this

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php

and use this to tell you how much to use

http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/chem_calc3.html

 

[logans_daddy]

Chris

I read over the information and i also remember you and kaptken speaking about this at the last meeting. you say dont go through all the trouble of kalk but i thought it was easy as adding 1-2tsps per gallon of rodi, let settle, add to drip unit. is there more to it than this? maybe i am severly oversimplifing it. if theres not much more to it, it seems to me to be a lot less involved than the 2 part. i think i also read that you may have to supplement the kalk with another form of calcium, is this true?

 

[mbbuna]

Kalk is great for maintaining Ca/Alk, but if your levels are low then it takes a ton to raise them(using Kalk). if you have a low Ca demand (no corals , clams) the least expensive way to raise your levels is with a 2-part like i posted.with a 2- part you can adjust up to the level you want in 1 day, Kalk may take a week or 2.

go to the calculator site i posted and play with the #'s. it can take many gal. of kalk over many days to add the Ca/Alk that you need, as compared to one day with a 2- part. also if you are just trying to keep Coraline you wont have to worry about adding it (kalk)every day, just adjust once every week or 2 with 2- part

 

[bloopbloop]

I use Kalk, but I use the "Upside Down Bottle Drip,Drip,Drip" method.

 

[logans_daddy]

nice! do you have any problems with stability at all? once you have your calc. levels where you want them does this method keep them consistent! ive done a lot of reading regarding the method mmbuna refers to, the only thing it seems to leave out is how to maintain levels.

 

[bloopbloop]

Apparently no problems. My fish shrimp and fish are smiling; nothing is dying; and my coraline is growing like a chicken hawk in a hen house.

~knocks on wood~

 

[SeadooGTI]

Calcium for FOWLR tank

Calcium for FOWLR tank

It's important that you said you are doing this primarily for calcerous algae growth in FOWLR tank. This recommendation applies to you, but not stony coral growers.

Use Calcium Glutonate if you have good nutrient export systems in your tank. This is the liquid calcium additive that can add excess nutrients (because it is "sugar based), but is no problem if you have a good skimmer and keep your tank pretty clean in general. It's very easy to administer and is not very expensive. Several trusted authors have wrote about the benefits of Calciun Glutonate for growing calcerous algae, and I have seen it with my own eyes and in my tank. Even with a calcium level of around 450 maintained by a Calcium RX, my calcerous algae growth slows when I cut out the Calcium Glutonate. Like any other additive, don't overdose.

For more info see "Book of Coral Propagation, vol 1" by Calfo, page 186.

 

[logans_daddy]

coraline grown is my priority right now....but i am also looking for a cheap and reliable way to maintain calcium levels in prepration for maybe adding corals in the future.

shawn:bum:

 

[SeadooGTI]

Calcium level maintenance

Calcium level maintenance

I too, have read a lot of material on establishing and maintaing calcium/alkalinity levels. The most thorough and easy to understand information I have seen on this topic is Chapter 5 of "The Reef Aquarium, Vol III" by Delbeek and Sprung. The chapter is called, Calcium, Alkalinity and pH Maintenance and it is 46 pages on just this subject. If you don't have this book, I highly recommend it. I can copy the chapter for you for the next meeting if you like, but I can't sum it up in email it's too long...

 

[logans_daddy]

I really appreciate that SeadooGTI. i will definitely pick up the book. basically, what im trying to avoid at this point is

1. buying a $400 calc reactor
2. having several 50lb bags of chemicals laying around my apartment

i think, for the short-tem, dripping kalk is my best bet....do you know much electronic dosers? they sell refurbed medical IV units on ebay really cheap. seems like it will allow me to fine tune the dosing a lot easier.

shawn:bum:

 

[MadTownMax]

I use a mini cole-parmer peristaltic pump - brand new they're $300-$400, but you can find them used for $150 - another option is to get a peristaltic pump and pump head from e-bay - they key is finding a peristaltic pump that is adjustable so that you can fine-tune it to your exact evaporation rate.

The refurbed medical ones work well, but are not designed well for head-pressure, and should only be used in an IV-type set-up, where they control the amount being dosed by gravity, not pushing up.

Of course you're more than welcome to come check out my set-up if you like.

If you're looking for corraline, check your Mg levels, and then dose accordingly using epsom salts (a lot less $$ than reef-additives) to bring it up to 1250-1500ppm.

 

[logans_daddy]

i didnt realize that Mg was a factor....i guess thats another test kit im going to have to buy. does the epsom salts affect anything other than Mg levels?

shawn:bum:

 

[MadTownMax]

it's magnesium sulfate hexahydrate (six water molecules) - but sulfates are on the order of thousands ppm, so the sulfur it adds doesn't make much of a difference - you wouldn't want to dose epsom salts regularly, but for a one-time fix (or to bring water-change salt up to correct levels) it's ok to use. If you're intersted in dosing, you'll need Mg supplements from the LFS which are MgCl - or if you run a Ca reactor you can add aragonite to your reactor media.

 

[kaptken]

hmmm, chemistry class? yup it seems coraline needs a good mix of several elements like calcium, magnesium and strontium and a trace of iodine to grow. the calcium poly-gluconate mentioned above is no doubt seachems liquid reef calcium or the dry reef advantage calcium. the liquid is simply the calcium gluconate solution. where as the dry reef advantage calcium is a balanced mix of calcium salts, potasium, magnesium and strontium. ive used the seachem stuff for most of the past 7 years. the calcium powder used with their reef builder carbonate/alk powder keep things in balance.

magnesium levels seem to determine calcium and alk levels that can be maintained. when magnesium is low, ca and alk drop rapidly. bad solution balance. i think randy holmes goes into that in depth in his articles. but if you only have one tank to feed and you dont want bags of bulk supplies around. the seachem system seems to work just fine.

when coraline takes up calcium, it takes up a ratio of magnesium and strontium too. so if you only make up calcium and carbonate with kalk, you wind up running down your mg and sr levels. which in turn makes it hard to keep Ca levels up. were as a reactor with aragonite disolves all the major elements. ca, mg and sr in balance. so if you only use kallwasser, you should also add magnesium and strontium from time to time.

the advantage of the seachem stuff over kalk is it will not blow out your PH, and maintains a good balance. just one of my personal favorites.

 

[MadTownMax]

well said Kaptn'

 

[bloopbloop]

Hypothetical question...

Is is scary for a reefer to hear adult Peanut's voices when people talk chemistry of systems?

Again, PURELY hypothetical.

 

[kaptken]

You mean you hear them too? good analogy, facinating....