New With Kalk

alf1096

Member
I have a 65 gal DT with 20 gal sump and my Osmolator will be here today. I just added a clam, sps and a few lps last week. I also just started testing with these results

5-21-14 Alk 9.1, cal 450, mag 1640
5-27-14 alk 7.0, cal 430

I am due for a water change tomorrow of 5 gal. I have kalk on hand if needed. I need to know if and when will I need to dose kalk. Cal is fine but alk is a little low. Also what is the starting mixture for kalk.

Suggestions
 
You can start now.

How do you intend to dose it?

I use it in a slow ATO, and I think that is a good way, but a slow dosing pump is also a good option. :)
 
Is it not better to dose kalk independently of ATO? If water levels in DT fluctuate for whatever reason (e.g. blockages in plumbing, etc.), ATO will pump more/less water than it should. This will then add more/less kalk than necessary.

Thanks
 
That can be a better plan, but if you use a pump that is set just a bit faster than the daily evaporation demand, then it is not a big concern (IMO). That is what I do. ATO is just so useful, but it can be separate from the limewater addition if you want. :)
 
Assuming your ATO is pumping through a kalk reactor, I use 1 -2 cups in a 6 x 18 reactor. Whatever container you are using, the general idea is to have the kalk and fresh water mixed at regular/frequent intervals so the solution stays mixed at maximum potency. That being said you are supposed to only drip/add the clear part of the solution; so after mixing, there would be time allowed for the unmixed kalk to settle in the container before the clear solution is pumped out of the container by the ATO into your sump/saltwater. The amount of kalk you need and the size of the container are determined by the needs of your corals which is often stated in general terms as the size of your tank. Start with less, test weekly, and shoot for stable parameters of calcium and alkalinity within accepted ranges. Generally, the idea is that if you are under the range, you are not adding enough kalk into the solution at the beginning or the solution is not mixing well enough. If you are above the accepted range, add less kalk to the solution. You can test both your tank parameters and that of the solution if you like, but what the parameters are in the tank is what you are shooting for.

Here's a link to a kalk/limewater article that Randy wrote:

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/
 
I dose kalk through my Litermeter III at a rate of 0.5 gallons a day. The kalk is mixed at 1tbs per gallon. My ATO makes up for the rest of my evap which is only about another 0.25g a day on top of what the LMIII puts in. Works great for me! I'll be doing the same setup on my 300g build that is getting ready to move into the house in a couple of weeks, but only on a larger scale!
 
The amount to mix depends on the demands of the tank and the evaporation rate if used in an ATO. I'd start most tanks at 1 level teaspoon per gallon of fresh water and see what happens to alkalintiy over several days to a week. :)
 
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