Kalkwasser Locally?

[mav3rick478]

Is it me just being blind or does none of the LFS in our area not carry Kalk? I haven't checked Caesar's recently but Fish Pros and Petco don't carry it. Last time I had a tank which was a good 10 years ago I could've sworn I got my Kalk at Petco or maybe it was the store that used to be in Petaluma shopping center, I used to really like that store and was sad when they closed. TIA

 

[swk]

You can use pickling lime from Walmart I think

 

[mav3rick478]

I looked for that too and the RP location didn't have any.

 

[swk]

If you're in a pinch I may have an extra container from brs. You're more than welcome to buy it off me if you like. Whatever it is on brs is good

 

[Reef Bass]

I may have an unused container as well.

 

[mav3rick478]

Not in a pinch and appreciate the offer. Guess I'm gonna decide if I want to buy the BRS DIY Kalk Dripper Kit or a full on ATO. Long are the days that we could just drive to the LFS and buy what we needed. Do people not drip Kalk anymore? I've found it to be one of the best things for tanks in my experiences.

 

[ThreeMoneyJ]

Ceasars doesn't carry it. Also there is no pickling lime anywhere in windsor (i've looked). Your best bet is to order it online. Or find somebody with extra.

 

[Reef Bass]

Guess I'm gonna decide if I want to buy the BRS DIY Kalk Dripper Kit or a full on ATO.

In my opinion, those are different things. AT0 adds ro/di water for keeping water level consistent. Kalk assists with calcium and pH.

And when keeping more than a couple stony corals, calcium demand often outstrips what is convenient for Kalk to provide. Hence 2 part dosing or calcium reactors. I (or rather, my automated dosing pumps) dose mag as well, so 3 part for my mixed SPS / LPS reef.

 

[Dragonvale]

In my opinion, those are different things. AT0 adds ro/di water for keeping water level consistent. Kalk assists with calcium and pH.

And when keeping more than a couple stony corals, calcium demand often outstrips what is convenient for Kalk to provide. Hence 2 part dosing or calcium reactors. I (or rather, my automated dosing pumps) dose mag as well, so 3 part for my mixed SPS / LPS reef.

+1 what Ken said. Also if your using kalk in your ATO dosing will always be different based on evaporation rate. Unless I guess your in central heating/cooling and keep it at the same temp year round? Good luck

 

[mav3rick478]

Thanks for the heads up ThreeMoneyJ.

Reef and Dragon, If I got the ATO I was going to use it to top off with Kalk and only run it at night. Figure kill 2 birds with one stone for my nano tank especially since evaporation isn't so high and our place is central air/heat. Thanks for the insight and education much appreciated. I've only kept zoa/polyps, mushrooms, and anemones before so Kalk was good enough along with iodine. This time around going to try zoa/polyps, frogspawn, leather, favia and maybe a BTP anemone. Do you think I would have to invest in dosing pumps or could get away with kalk either in a drip setup or ATO setup and bottled elements?

 

[Reef Bass]

I don't have much experience with nano tanks (my water volume has been 100-160g), so Dragon could probably give you a more definitive answer. Key elements will deplete more quickly in a smaller water volume.

With the corals you list, I'd be inclined to believe you wouldn't need dosing pumps. The frogspawn and favia are the skeleton producers and kalk and water changes could probably keep up with their demand, at least until they outgrow a nano. That said, some sort of automation is super convenient. Having to measure and dose one or more solutions manually every day gets old quickly. Plus with automation, one can dose small amounts several times a day, versus all at once every day for more even levels.

 

[1kwksvt]

I have always bought pickling lime and run in my top off it seems to work for me I always see it at both walmarts

 

[Dragonvale]

Thanks for the heads up ThreeMoneyJ.

Reef and Dragon, If I got the ATO I was going to use it to top off with Kalk and only run it at night. Figure kill 2 birds with one stone for my nano tank especially since evaporation isn't so high and our place is central air/heat. Thanks for the insight and education much appreciated. I've only kept zoa/polyps, mushrooms, and anemones before so Kalk was good enough along with iodine. This time around going to try zoa/polyps, frogspawn, leather, favia and maybe a BTP anemone. Do you think I would have to invest in dosing pumps or could get away with kalk either in a drip setup or ATO setup and bottled elements?

IMO if your going that direction I'd go with a dosing pump. Slowly ramp up (day by day) testing PH, CA and ALK. Once you figure the dosing your set. As corals grow needing more supplementation all you have to do is increase your dosing and test. You still have to do a ATO but I just feel its more safe.

Drip setup is another option but your stuck always filling it up to the right amount needed. So this is another option but your just stuck doing he labor.

I tried it once back 10 plus years ago but it never stuck with me. Robert 1kwksvt can you tell us how you dose and drip for your setup? I think Robert would be the person to answer this questions since he has experience.

 

[1kwksvt]

I just add 2 tsp for my 2 gallon top off container I also add in 2 glugs of vinegar so the pickling lime desolves all the way instant clear kalk solution you don't have to wait for it to settle out. My test show 430 cal and 7.5 alk my tank is still recovering from my move 10 months ago lost a lot of coral then I had a full siphon issue about 8 months ago which turned my tank into milk. But I am slowly getting it back to before my move

 

[swk]

I used kalk in my topoff for about 6 months. It worked fine for me, but I test alk daily, so I can catch things quickly if something is off

 

[mav3rick478]

I just add 2 tsp for my 2 gallon top off container I also add in 2 glugs of vinegar so the pickling lime desolves all the way instant clear kalk solution you don't have to wait for it to settle out. My test show 430 cal and 7.5 alk my tank is still recovering from my move 10 months ago lost a lot of coral then I had a full siphon issue about 8 months ago which turned my tank into milk. But I am slowly getting it back to before my move

I saw the video about this mixing method on YouTube, so using this method there is none of the excess solution at the bottom of your container and you can have your ATO pump on the bottom of your container?

 

[swk]

I used to use both but still had some powder left in the container. I would still suspend the pump if at all possible

 

[mav3rick478]

I used to use both but still had some powder left in the container. I would still suspend the pump if at all possible

Thank you sir, good to know.

 

[mav3rick478]

So second part of using an ATO to dose Kalk, how do you guys suspend your pump and in what type of container? I've tried running ideas through my head thinking about the containers available and how to suspend the pump but haven't come up with any thing good. Plus I'd want to keep the container behind the tank/stand so my wife doesn't complain about how it looks, which means that the container can't be deeper than 8" because that is the space to the wall.

 

[swk]

Try a restaurant supply or the container store in corte madera. The easiest way to suspend is to just keep the hose tight and use that to suspend the pump.