Korallin Calcium Reactor

[Chicago]

i drop mine into the skimmer intake also. the second chamber of my calcium reactor is passive. meaning it does not recirculate. onely the first recirculates. its amazing how much of the seachem i have to add to get the calcium up to par. after that i plan on just letting the calcium reactor do its thing.

 

[jdieck]

i drop mine into the skimmer intake also. the second chamber of my calcium reactor is passive. meaning it does not recirculate. onely the first recirculates. its amazing how much of the seachem i have to add to get the calcium up to par. after that i plan on just letting the calcium reactor do its thing.

I do not know why but I have noticed that say.. taking Calcium from 425 to 450 takes a lot more than from 400 to 425. I assume it might be due to partial precipitation at higher levels. I really try keeping it above 400 and it usually stays at 420 by itself.

 

[Jas0863]

I've experienced the same. My Alk. then stablizes around 9.6 dkh

 

[toddlaco]

I sent smoke15 pm( concerning contact for more info on unit)

x

 

[Jas0863]

Baking Soda & Cal. Reactor

Baking Soda & Cal. Reactor

Baking soda was mentioned as being used to raise Alk. What brand of baking soda is recommended? Arm N Hammer etc. Thank you.

 

[jdieck]

Re: Baking Soda & Cal. Reactor

Re: Baking Soda & Cal. Reactor

Baking soda was mentioned as being used to raise Alk. What brand of baking soda is recommended? Arm N Hammer etc. Thank you.

Yes food grade Arm& Hammer (The one for cooking) is OK.
For Calcium adjustments I use a commercial Calcium Chloride Anhydrous manufactured by Dow Chemical for Ice melting called Pealdow. If it is not available I use Calcium Chloride from Kent Marine sold under the name of Turbo Calcium. For Magnessium I use Epsom salts but if the adjustment is somehow large I use Kent's Tech-M

 

[gregr]

i don't know if anyone else has experienced this but i found that the manufacturer did a sloppy job teflon taping the brass fitting that the CO2 line plugs into. it had a slow leak and that explains why i couldn't get the bubble count to stay consistent
found the leak last night and the bubbles are right where i set it 10 hours later.

 

[jdieck]

i don't know if anyone else has experienced this but i found that the manufacturer did a sloppy job teflon taping the brass fitting that the CO2 line plugs into. it had a slow leak and that explains why i couldn't get the bubble count to stay consistent
found the leak last night and the bubbles are right where i set it 10 hours later.

Good you discovered it. A CO2 leak besides wasting CO2 can be dangerous if the release is in a confined space. CO2 will displace air and may cause asphixia so be careful.

 

[gregr]

since i re-applied teflon tape to those fittings the bubble count has stayed consistent. yay.

 

[collins]

I just want to thank dragon slayer and jdieck for making my 1502 setup go as smoothly as it did. I'm sure I'll need to tweak things a bit, but things appear to be working out nicely.

 

[thrlride]

I second that collins. It made it much easier for me as well.

The 1502 model claims it can handle a 400 gallon aquarium I think. Is that true if said tank is full of stonies? I want to go from a 90 to a 180 and want to make sure I won't need to replace it...

 

[dragon_slayer]

the 1502 can handle a heavily stocked 180g system with no problems, it can take care of a 300+ gallon system with a high demand but it takes a good understanding of overdriving the reactor to get it to do so. with that in mind the 4002 would be my preference for anything of 200+ gallon with a very high demand. IMO the $$$ difference between the 4002 and the 3002 make the lesser an unpopular choice for me. the 3002 as far as i'm concerned is only a good choice if it fits your allowable space restrictions.


kc

 

[jdieck]

I just want to thank dragon slayer and jdieck for making my 1502 setup go as smoothly as it did. I'm sure I'll need to tweak things a bit, but things appear to be working out nicely.

Glad to be of service. Y'r Welcome :thumbsup:

 

[gregr]

would it be within the realm of possibility to get an effluent dkh of only 8 with a bubble per minute count of 9 and drip of 75? the effluent pH at that rate is roughly 6.6.
it sounds off to me and i'm thinking i need a new test kit.
reactor has been running consistently for 5 days now.

 

[dragon_slayer]

yes that sounds like faulty testing to me.

kc

 

[gregr]

thanks. i was pretty shocked when i got that readout...
here i thought i had the thing working perfectly finally (took me a while to figure out there was a leak) and things are looking great in the tank.
prior to getting the 1502 i had very high alkalinity and low pH. i'm hoping they stabilize soon- at more healthy levels.
Greg

 

[jdieck]

would it be within the realm of possibility to get an effluent dkh of only 8 with a bubble per minute count of 9 and drip of 75? the effluent pH at that rate is roughly 6.6.
it sounds off to me and i'm thinking i need a new test kit.
reactor has been running consistently for 5 days now.

Agree with Dragon. the Alk or the PH testing shall be off most probably the PH as the Effluent flow and Bubble rate are more consistent with the Alkalinity reading you have. If you are using a test kit for the PH it is most probably it, as they do not have the required accuracy. If you can get your hands to a PH monitor that will be ideal.

 

[clkwrk]

28 pages latter ........wow this has got to be one of the best CR threads I have come across and will aid greatly i the setup of my 2 1502's.

:thumbsup:

 

[clkwrk]

How much Arm media can I fit in my 1502 ? It is supposed to have 6.6lbs but I doubt it can hold that . I have an 8lb ARM container and it has only tank half to get 2inches below pump input.

 

[jdieck]

How much Arm media can I fit in my 1502 ? It is supposed to have 6.6lbs but I doubt it can hold that . I have an 8lb ARM container and it has only tank half to get 2inches below pump input.

Many times the total amount depends on the grain size of the media. I can imagine that using Koralith small grain will fit more than Arm which is rather large. In any case I prefer the grain size on the larger side for improved water recirculation. As the media consumes, the grain gets smaller and smaller so it will also last longer before turning muddy.