Newbie Aquarist
Reefing is my middle name
Thank you for the update. I have that regulator and as you said, it is the best. It will be your tanks best friend. Congrats.
My 500 + gallon system. Last 13 years to now. Build, Aquascaping & more. Lots of pics
- Thread starter slief
- Start date
slief
RC Sponsor
My Ca reactor is setup and setteling in. The pH is dropping in it and is now at 6.9 on it's way down to about 6.5. I'm running at about 1 bubble of Co2 per second and about 45ml/min on the effluent. I may need to increase the Co2 rate depending on whether I reach my target reactor pH. Obviously the flow and Co2 rates are just a starting point as it's going to take weeks to get the reactors effluent rate dialed in to my tanks calcium consumption. I have some time to worry about that but the pH is continuing to drop so I will let it do it's thing and re assess later tonight to determine if I need to increase my Co2 rate to drop my pH assuming the current Co2 rate won't lower my pH enough based on my effluent rate. .
I ran some tests this morning to establish my baseline parameter. As I expected, my numbers were low and needed to be increased so I can set the reactor up to maintain desired levels.
I tested my Ca, Alk & Mg with my Salifert tests. My levels are as follows:
Ca 360
Alk 7.36dkh
Mg 1360
From my reading, I should be targeting about 420 Ca and about 9dkh. I'm also shooting for 1350 Mg. Obviously I need to raise my levels and it's be many years since I even bothered to worry about those numbers.
I have BRS Calcium Chloride and BRS High Purity Soda Ash. Based on my water volume of 600-650 gallons. I err'd on the low side (600g), the calculators suggest I need Approx 100 tsp (6.25 cups) of Calcium Chloride dissolved in RODI and 15 tsp (just under 1 cup) of Soda Ash dissolved in RODI water to increase my Ca and Alk levels to my intial target numbers.
I opted to break the increase in both Ca and Alk up over the course of today and tomorrow so I mixed up half those amounts into seperate containers of RODI and have a drip going of each solution into different high flow areas at opposite ends of my sump. I will dose half of each today and half tomorrow.
I used my Kent TechM to increase my Mg. Using the remaining half or so gallon was enough to get me to approximately 1330 based on my calculations. I will test for Ca, Alk and Mg later today when the first round of dosing is done. I'm also monitoring my pH as the Soda Ash will likely increase my pH levels. My pH was about 8.1 when I started. I will udpate later once the dosing is done and I test again.
I ran some tests this morning to establish my baseline parameter. As I expected, my numbers were low and needed to be increased so I can set the reactor up to maintain desired levels.
I tested my Ca, Alk & Mg with my Salifert tests. My levels are as follows:
Ca 360
Alk 7.36dkh
Mg 1360
From my reading, I should be targeting about 420 Ca and about 9dkh. I'm also shooting for 1350 Mg. Obviously I need to raise my levels and it's be many years since I even bothered to worry about those numbers.
I have BRS Calcium Chloride and BRS High Purity Soda Ash. Based on my water volume of 600-650 gallons. I err'd on the low side (600g), the calculators suggest I need Approx 100 tsp (6.25 cups) of Calcium Chloride dissolved in RODI and 15 tsp (just under 1 cup) of Soda Ash dissolved in RODI water to increase my Ca and Alk levels to my intial target numbers.
I opted to break the increase in both Ca and Alk up over the course of today and tomorrow so I mixed up half those amounts into seperate containers of RODI and have a drip going of each solution into different high flow areas at opposite ends of my sump. I will dose half of each today and half tomorrow.
I used my Kent TechM to increase my Mg. Using the remaining half or so gallon was enough to get me to approximately 1330 based on my calculations. I will test for Ca, Alk and Mg later today when the first round of dosing is done. I'm also monitoring my pH as the Soda Ash will likely increase my pH levels. My pH was about 8.1 when I started. I will udpate later once the dosing is done and I test again.
Last edited:
slief
RC Sponsor
From all my reading, I should be safe given that I am only increasing half the target calcium and half the taget alk a day which is below the max recommended daily increase. I've brought my Mg levels up as much as 100 points a day without issue so I know I'm OK there. I am however taking it very slow using the drip method and watching my tank closely as well. Will keep the thread updated.
slief
RC Sponsor
Interesting you mention the video monolog. Jim was over and we recorded the initial setup for a future LA Fishguys episode. He will back in the next handfull of days to cover the boost in Ca and Alk and the tuning of the CaRx.
One thing is for sure. My pH is at an all time high at 8.42. I realize that will go down soon after the dosing is complete. My ORP has also taken a plunge down to about 290 from an earlier level of 330. Also temporary I am sure. I nearly done with my dosing. Once it's done, I will wait a few hours and test my Ca, Alk and Mg. I will also be monitoring my pH and ORP to see how they change after the dosing is done.
The blue line is pH and the red line is ORP.. You can clearly see when I started the dosing.
Why did the pH go so high... With the CaRx I thought it would have decreased.
Are you dosing limewater also?
Found it. You are getting to a baseline first. NVM... Thanks.
YES I want to see the video. I used to watch him all the time. IDK why I have not lately.
Are you dosing limewater also?
Found it. You are getting to a baseline first. NVM... Thanks.
YES I want to see the video. I used to watch him all the time. IDK why I have not lately.
slief
RC Sponsor
pH peaked at 8.52 and is on it's way back down. pH is at 8.31 now. My ORP also dropped during the dose from 330 down to 280 but that's on it's way back up. I ran Ca and Alk tests a couple hours after my dose was complete and both came out high. Given my elevated pH and lower ORP I was kind of expecting my results to be skewed. I was leaning towards waiting until the AM for the pH to settle back down but decided to test anyway.. Ca was 460 and Alk 10.2 I'm going to test my Ca, Alk and Mg in the morning at which point I would expect my Ca and Alk to be lower or at least hope they would be. I expect my Mg to be around 1350.
Newbie Aquarist
Reefing is my middle name
Nice update slief. almost having similar systems it took about a month before mine kicked in. Patience is the key which I know you know.
slief
RC Sponsor
Thanks Wayne! Patience has never been my strong suit but I try to exercise it as much as possible when it comes to my tank. :beers:
Thank you very much!
pH is back to normal and ORP is just about normal as well. I just ran another round of tests. I may have over estimated my water volume or the amount of Calcium and Soda Ash I measured was off. Either way, my results are fine although Ca is higher than I was expecting.. My lights will be on shortly so I haven't seen my corals yet but I expect everything to be fine and happy.
pH 8.09
Alk: 8.7 dkh
Cal is high at 500
Mg 1290
Obviously, I won't be doing the other half dose today. I may slow the effluent down on my Ca reactor. I don't think the CaRx would be impacting my results as it was just setup and only hit it's internal pH target temp early this morning. As such, I don't think it's influencing my test results. Especially with it's 40ml/min effluent rate. I will test my CaRx effluent later today just to see what the Ca and Alk looks like coming out of it.
slief
RC Sponsor
Everything in my tank looks fine after yesterdays dosing. No adverse effects whatsoever.I just made a minor adjustment using soda ash.. According to the calculators, I needed about 2.8 tbs of Soda Ash to get me from 8.7 to 9. I used 3 tsp in a gallon of water and just dumped it into my overflow. That should get me to just over 9 dkh. I didn't figure there was any point in dripping such a small amount and given my sump size and water flow, I wouldn't anticipate any negative repercussions. I will test Ca and Alk again in a few hours and post the results. It will be interesting to see if the slight bump in Alk lowers my Ca levels at all.
On a side note regarding the Ca Reactor, the combination of the Cole Parmer and the Aquarium Plants regulator is amazing. I'm able to hold 6.65 pH in the reactor without any Apex intervention with the regulator. It's so easy to balance effluent rate with the Cole Palmers variable speed pump while making minute adjustments to the bubble count via the AP regulator. Having ran a CaRx before and spent a countless amount of time futzing with settings, this combination can't be beat. The fun will come in when I need to determine how much effluent I need from the CaRx to maintain my Ca and Alk levels. Even then, the adjustments will be very easy. Push a button on the Cole Parmer and adjust the RPM at up to 1/10th RPM and turn the knob slightly on the AP regulator to adjust the bubble interval up or down.
On a side note regarding the Ca Reactor, the combination of the Cole Parmer and the Aquarium Plants regulator is amazing. I'm able to hold 6.65 pH in the reactor without any Apex intervention with the regulator. It's so easy to balance effluent rate with the Cole Palmers variable speed pump while making minute adjustments to the bubble count via the AP regulator. Having ran a CaRx before and spent a countless amount of time futzing with settings, this combination can't be beat. The fun will come in when I need to determine how much effluent I need from the CaRx to maintain my Ca and Alk levels. Even then, the adjustments will be very easy. Push a button on the Cole Parmer and adjust the RPM at up to 1/10th RPM and turn the knob slightly on the AP regulator to adjust the bubble interval up or down.
Last edited:
slief
RC Sponsor
It's been a few days since doing my dosing to increase my Alk, Ca and Mg levels. Things have settle down a bit. I overshot my Ca and Alk a bit but nothing big.
Current parameters are:
Alk 9.9 dkh
Ca 500
Mg 1425
All acceptable numbers. I've slowed my Ca Reactor down to allow the Ca levels to drop a bit.
Current parameters are:
Alk 9.9 dkh
Ca 500
Mg 1425
All acceptable numbers. I've slowed my Ca Reactor down to allow the Ca levels to drop a bit.
slief
RC Sponsor
It's been a little while since I have done any updates.. The tank is doing well so there hasn't been much to report.
A week or so ago I picked up a few Stenner peristaltic pumps locally for a price I couldn't pass up. I've been wanting to replace my ATO pump which was an Aquamedic dosing pump. The Aquamedic pumps have worked great for me and never once failed me but I've wanted something more robust for a while. While they are not quiet, these Stenner's are deigned for chemical transfer applications and damn near bulletproof. The ones I got are adjustable to up to 50 gallons per day at 25psi. You could literally fill a bicycle tire with these things or push water around the block. I will likely end up selling one of them since I don't really need more than one or two (if I want to keep a spare). Since I have been eyeballing these things for a while, I couldn't pass up the opportunity for the upgrade.
Anyhow, I finally got around to installing the new pump today so I figured I would post an update.
A week or so ago I picked up a few Stenner peristaltic pumps locally for a price I couldn't pass up. I've been wanting to replace my ATO pump which was an Aquamedic dosing pump. The Aquamedic pumps have worked great for me and never once failed me but I've wanted something more robust for a while. While they are not quiet, these Stenner's are deigned for chemical transfer applications and damn near bulletproof. The ones I got are adjustable to up to 50 gallons per day at 25psi. You could literally fill a bicycle tire with these things or push water around the block. I will likely end up selling one of them since I don't really need more than one or two (if I want to keep a spare). Since I have been eyeballing these things for a while, I couldn't pass up the opportunity for the upgrade.
Anyhow, I finally got around to installing the new pump today so I figured I would post an update.
Last edited:
AirForceAquariu
Member
Love following along with all the professionalism you put in to your tank! Great stuff!
slief
RC Sponsor
Thank you very much!
Thank you very much! There is more to come from LA Fish Guys. Jim is editing a video covering the display refugium upgrade. There is also a new video that will cover the scratch removal and an additional video covering the calcium reactor install and setup.. The scratch removal and CaRx ones will be part of a new series called LA Fish Guys Tech Talk which I will be directly involved with. It will cover more technical related stuff as opposed to Jims typical service related videos. We will also be doing a Tech Talk Video on GFO regeneration. I've studied up on the subject extensively and built a reactor to regenerate my GFO. It will allow me to swap my GFO reactor cartridges directly to the regeneration reactor where I will run the reactor with a solution of RODI water and pure lye. There is a bit more to the process but in a nutshell, that's how it will work.
Anyhow, I haven't done an update on my tank levels and the Ca Reactor and figured it would be as good a time as any. First I have to say that the comination of a good regulator coupled with the Cole Parmer pump makes setting up and maintaining a CaRx a dream. I've run Ca Reactors before use used a traditional feed pump and a needle valve which was a nightmare. The effluent lines would clog regularly and the pH would be all over the map as a result. With the Cole Parmer and my AP regulator, my Apex hasn't had to shut the solenoid off once. The pH in the reactor is a close to flatline as it could possibly be. The graph below covers 2 days and as you can see, the pH in the reactor only drifted by .02 pH. That is insanely stable and it shows what consistant flow coupled with consistant Co2 output can do for a reactors stability.
As it sits now, I am at about 42ml/min flow and about 1 Co2 bubble every 3 seconds to maintain a 6.72'ish pH in my Geo 818 CaRx. It took me a couple weeks to get my Alk and Ca levels stable in my tank and find a relative sweet spot for the reactors pH. My Alk in my tank is 9 dkh, my Ca is 450 and Mg 1320 as of yesterdays tests which is right about where I was targeting. Initially I was running a lower pH in my reactor and higher flow through it but it raised my Alk and Ca levels too much so I had to shut the Co2 off to the reactor for a week to allow the levels to drop down again. At that point, I increased the pH level from 6.6 to 6.72 and reduced the flow though it and now it seems to be perfect.
Here is the reactors pH graph.. I can't imagine pH being any more stable than that.
Last edited:
I've seen those things go through cinder block(s), a house, back yard, and neighbors house...
