New RANDY's 2 part

Lecher- Do you currently use this? I have heard that there are only two or three main calcium chloride producers, Dow and Tetra for sure, and possibly a third. I was told this by Tetra (they were not sure of a third but made it sound like it's possible). If this is true it's possible that this tech grade of Calcium Chloride comes from Dow (most do)and may no longer be safe. Just a thought.
Greg
 
I have some but have only used a small amount of it. My kalk reactor and water changes maintain my alk and ca levels for the time being. The directions state that it is for use in recirculating aquaculture systems, so I would think that it is safe and have seen no ill effects when I did use it. I was planning to use it when my alk and ca demands increase to more than my kalk can provide. If CaCl is going to be difficult to obtain I may buy a Ca reactor.
 
huh...i have been using my dow flakes for a good 6 onths no with from what i cant tell no ill effects...

is there a way to test for bromide, bromine levels in our tanks?

i would be curious..
 
Nano- It's very likely that your Dowflake is the 2006 batch or earlier. If this is the case there is need to worry.
Greg
 
STICKY!

STICKY!

Agreed, I would be curious too. This thread needs to to be a sticky. A lot of people are using Randy's 2-part and they need to be warned!
 
I am using the stuff from twopartsolutions and am also curious if there is a test for the bromide. This hobby is expensive enough. I dont think I can take another hit in my pocket book
 
I am not aware of a suitable kit for bromide in reef tanks.

FWIW, I wish we knew more about bromide depletion rates in reef tanks. It might be fine to use the new Dowflake, especially in tanks with macroalgae that likely use a lot of bromide, but I just cannot recommend it without seeing some real data.
 
What are the effects of bromide in a reef tank? What are some things we should be looking out for? I Just bought a beginners kit from two part solution and have been using it for about 2 weeks. Someone posted that two part solution is aware of the problem and that they said that their Dowflake is OK and they have a new product Lined up after it runs out. Is this true? Should I stop using my 2 part or keep on keeping on?
 
thanks randy,after reading the article by bingman,i am not sure the bromide will do harm,and it may be a plus for some.or will it acumalate to a harmful level in time and become a problem.does dow say how high the level will be in there product and do you feel that it will be harmful to corals.it may just make algae grow a bit quicker.
 
The level is seemingly high for routine use as a supplement, but it has not been proven too high. It is not too high for a once in a while boost to calcium. :)

A 100 ppm boost to calcium will boost bromide by about 1 ppm (about 2%). If that depletes as fast as the 100 ppm of calcium, then there is no problem. If not, then it may accumulate. I do not know how high it would need to accumulate to be a concern.
 
I am so releived. I just ordered several 50 lb bags that came in just a couple of weeks ago. After reading this, I was scared that they may be the new lots. I just checked ande they are the old lots. It may have to do with the fact that I am in the south and we haven't used any yet this year. I guess I should go ahead and order some more while I can. FWIW, if you have a friend in the south that has a relationship with a chemicall supplier, you may want them to try to go ahead and order a bag for you.
 
How did you determine that? By a lot number on the bag followed by the code described in the Dow press release?

I figured they'd all be new by now, but I'd be glad to be wrong. :)
 
I got a bag back in august of this year. does bromine not show up in their chemical content breakdown? I'm in the north east, so i'd be pretty sure that all the dow that was shipped up here since the beginning of 2006 would be new stuff and all the old stuff would be depleted no? the lot number on the bag is so hard to read, but i do not see the letters mentioned.

now i'm wondering if i should continue usage or not :(
 
Specs on reagent grade CaCl2

Specs on reagent grade CaCl2

Does this look safe to use?

http://http://www.spectrumchemical.com/retail/product.asp?catalog_name=Chemicals&product_id=5561538#

Of course they don't list bromine, but there isn't much room left for it if the stuff is 105% CaCl2 :confused:

Assay (as CaCl2•2H2O) 99.0-105.0%
pH of a 5% Solution @ 25°C 4.5-8.5
Insoluble Matter 0.01%
Oxidizing Substances (as NO3) 0.003%
Sulfate (SO4) 0.01%
Ammonium (NH4) 0.005%
Barium (Ba) 0.005%
Heavy Metals (as Pb) 5 ppm
Iron (Fe) 0.001%
Magnesium (Mg) 0.005%
Potassium (K) 0.01%
Sodium (Na) 0.02%
Strontium (Sr) 0.1%

I know, it is way expensive unless you go for 50kg...
 
Per the link above, Dow promises that the Food Grade products will have the historical bromide levels. (Item 3)

For the Technical Grade (Dowflake and other deicers), they say the bromide will usually be at historical levels but may be as high as the new level. (Item 2)

That probably means that they will be doing some test runs of their processing with the bromine extraction process turned off. So you'll probably get 65 ppm but you might get 8000 ppm. That doesn't make me feel all warm and fuzzy.
 
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