pickling lime

DMBillies

DMBillies

Active member
I'm going to start using kalk via a kalk reactor and I've heard that pickling lime is the same thing. I was wondering where you guys get your kalk/pickling lime. I'm looking for a decent source at a decent price (local sources would be particularly nice as long as I don't have to sell my first born child to buy it). I searched this forum, but have come up dry.

Thanks
 
Go to walmart, krogers, etc. and look in the canning section. You can buy one pound for $1.50. It probably is not out yet because gardening season is not upon us yet. Also at the end of the season, it sells for $1. Good luck.
 
The wife picked up alot of Mrs. Wages for me at walmart. As said above at the end of gardening season is the easiest time to find it as its used for canning. If you need some to hold you over until then I have some. The wife bought me like 6 containers... this stuff goes a long way.
 
I believe that you can purchase a 50lb bag of food grade lime by Mississippi Lime Company from Brentagg in Nashville:

Brenntag
7145 Centennial Blvd
Nashville, TN, 37209-1020
Office Phone:800-876-0790

Brenntag in Huntsville sells us (North Alabama Reef Club) one bag at a time. Our price is $10.26 per 50 lbs bag (including tax.)

Tomoko
 
Yes, one tablespoon per gallon. That should completely saturate it. Make sure it mixes well. Dose it slow because it spikes your PH.
 
$10.26 for a 50 lbs bag translates to 21 cents per pound. This is a heck of a lot cheaper than Mrs. Wages Pickling Lime which is the very same stuff. You guys can purchase one bag and split it among yourselves like we do at NARC. If we buy more than one bag at a time, we can get it delivered.

A NARC member recently went to a local cement plant and ask them to sell him a 50 lb bag of calcium chloride. They asked him what he needed it for. When he told them that it's for a reef aquarium club, they were amused and gave him one 50-lbs bag of Dowflake for free!

Tomoko
 
OK, after seeing "Tomoko Schum's" post, I just have to do this.

Everyday, I pass a major cement drain pipe manufacturing plant, they make the big stuff used when doing interstate highway upgrades.

I'll stop in there on Thursday (I'm on call tomorrow), and see what they say when I beg for a bag.

If nothing else, I'll bet I can get an unusual shaped piece of pipe (their 4 hole union module comes to mind) we can make into a tank as a club project, looking at their cure field I'm sure it would be no bigger than 2000 gallons or so, and should'nt weigh more than a ton or so (yep this stuff is that big, 18 wheelers usally leave with no more than 2 to 3 pieces) :D

Rick
 
I called brentagg and they gave me the run around. I think we would have to setup a bulk buy, they said they dont sell to individuals.
 
If any of you are a small business owner who has a tax ID number, you can set up an account with them and purchase as little or many as you want for the club. I believe that a valid tax ID number is all they want for reporting retail sales tax or something like that.

Tomoko
 
Thanks for the input and the ideas. Even at $2.?? from Kroger, Mrs. Wages is much cheaper than an LFS. I give plenty of support to them, but I can't justify spending so much when there are readily available replacements for less than half price.

Now that I have the stuff, it looks a lot finer than I thought it would. Has anyone had any problem using this stuff in a reactor? The little tunze pump isn't going to pump all that fast, but it seems like this stuff is fine enough that it could end up stirring the stuff up big time.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9529279#post9529279 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DMBillies
Thanks for the input and the ideas. Even at $2.?? from Kroger, Mrs. Wages is much cheaper than an LFS. I give plenty of support to them, but I can't justify spending so much when there are readily available replacements for less than half price.

Now that I have the stuff, it looks a lot finer than I thought it would. Has anyone had any problem using this stuff in a reactor? The little tunze pump isn't going to pump all that fast, but it seems like this stuff is fine enough that it could end up stirring the stuff up big time.
Click to expand...

It should be fine. Be careful not to breathe in the dust when you load your reactor. I agree on the cost. I don't go through enough kalkwasser for it to be much of a drain at all on my ongoing tank expenses. It may be a different story when my twigs turn into trees, though :)
 
For what it is worth, I stopped at the drain pipe plant this afternoon.
According to their mix-master, their concrete mix can't have straight calcium in it's recipe for structural reasons (and due to the re-bar used in it's construction).
He told me their recipe calls for a (pre-made) combination mix that provides no more than 3% calcium.
But; I was given a tour of their manufacturing plant that was quite interesting to the Engineer in me!
I told them my idea of making one of their 4 way unions into a tank, and they thought that would be fun for their reception area!
I ask about volume and weight, they said their smallest 3 way union was 3000 gallons, and body weight alone was 2500 lbs.
I kept head low as I left :)
Just thought you should know:
Rick
 
Wayne:

Why does your response not surprise me? :D

I can tell you, I never heard so much laughing, as when I left their facility.

Again, it was a fun tour, but a total waste of time as far as the club goes.

At least I tried.

Rick
 
I never can find lime at krogers in Bellevue. Anyone have a specific location that sells it?

On a side not, Brentagg will sell on the lime at 10.26 per 50lbs but the minimum purchase is 200 dolllars. That equals about 1000 lbs of pickling lime. The sad thing is over the past three years I bet I have paid about 100 bucks for less than 20lbs of it.

Perhaps if we could round up 20 people in the club that use kalk, for 10.26 each they could have enough to last quite awile.
 
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