Raising Alk?

[Sheldon337]

Is there a product anyone would recommend?

My alk is at 6, and dosing baking soda doesnt seem to be making any difference at all. I have been adding it for months.

I am looking to avoid recipes etc., and was hoping for a product.

Any ideas?

Lee

 

[jlfnjlf]

What do your other parameters look like (pH and Ca in particular)?

 

[Nu2SW]

How much baking soda are you adding


I use superbuffer-dkh which works, But same thing as baking I think.

LOL

 

[duec22]

What corals are you keeping? You alkalinity demad will depend a lot on this. I've got a very large alkalinity demand in my little 29gal tank...At this point in time I'm adding almost half a cup of baking soda into my tank over the corse of about two weeks..

 

[CaliforniaDreamer]

I use baking soda all of the time to raise the alk. If your ph is on the high side this works well. If your ph is on the low side bake the baking soda in the oven for about an hour at 350 degrees and it drives off the water and carbon dioxide in the baking soda and raises the ph (after baking it is sodium carbonate instead of sodium bi-carbonate). Use randy's calculator HERE to calculate how much you need. Just don't raise it to fast (no more than a dKH or two per day).

As jlfnjlf mentioned you should check your calcium and magnesium also as they will have an effect on the stability of the alkalinity.

IMHO alk should be around 10 dKH, Ca around 430, and Mg around 1300.

-- EDIT --

BTW again only my opinion but I don't think there is a product out there that is better at raising alk than baking or washing soda. Pickling lime is great also but will raise Ca along with alk so isn't good for only raising alk. You can also raise alk by using borates, but NSW levels of borate are only a minor player in maintaining alkalinity and should probably not be raised over normal levels.

 

[duec22]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8474206#post8474206 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by CaliforniaDreamer
your ph is on the low side bake the baking soda in the oven for about an hour at 350 degrees and it drives off the water and carbon dioxide in the baking soda and raises the ph (after baking it is sodium carbonate instead of sodium bi-carbonate).-- EDIT --

Yeah, that is how I make it. It mixes much easier this way also, esspecially if you heat up the DI water that you are going to mix it into also.

 

[Brian Prestwood]

Magnesium is a big factor in alkalinity. I admit I haven't been testing for it. I do 50% per month water changes and have stable alkalinity.

But I have seen it prevent stable alkalinity. I got a bucket of Coral Life salt a few years that had 300 ppm Mg (NSW is 1200). I had to add epsom salt (MgSO4 penta hydradte) to get the alkalinity to stabilize.

FWIW - I tried running with just kalkwasser additives for a about three months. My calcarous (hope I got that right) coral growth came to a screeching halt. My calcium reactor has been back on line for two weeks now. My alkalinity has been stable at 12 dKh. I've got white growth tips everywhere.

 

[dots]

I use Kent Turbo Calcium and any one of the powdered buffers to get my Ca/Alk within the acceptable ranges initaily.
ie: new tank or the params are WAY off, as in your case(borderline)....but a little goes a long way so be careful.


Once within the recommended ranges, I switch to the B-ionic for daily replacement/maintaince and fine tunning to get the numbers I am looking for. It contains the trace elements such as Mg for stability and I do a spot check now and then to double check.

You may want to read Randy Holmes-Farleys articles located in the Chemistry Forum to research and choose a supplementation method that works best for your needs.

I personaly find the B-ionic two-part one of the easiest ways to supplement a tank, and have had great success as well. I am able to hold my alk and ca rock solid especially with the addition of an auto doser.

 

[Sheldon337]

Here are my parameters:
- Nitrate - o
- Phosphate - 0.2
- Dkh - 6
- PH - 8.2
- Ca - 500

I have been adding a tablespoon of baking soda every two weeks. Should I be adding more?

 

[dots]

In a word, yes. Exactly how much depends on the rate of daily uptake and the water volume. Add more and test reqularly until your desired level is reached. Your replacement schedule is not keeping up with the depletion rate.......IMO your should have continous replacement as in a doser or reactor for best results....the next best thing is to do it daily......adding everyother day, weekly or bi-weekly will have a yo-yo effect on your system that will produce less than optimal results and will be more obvious as the daily uptake for alk increases......If you are going to use Baking Soda, I might suggest adding it to your topoff water so that it is at least replaced with the consistency that you top off.

Is this all that you are dosing currently? If so, your tanks Ca demand is most likely low and being replaced by reqular water changes, but eventually will catch up and need to be replaced daily like the Alk.......A supplementation schedule should be considered now before that occurs and you are prepared. Good Luck!!!

 

[Brian Prestwood]

I've always heard that high calcium levels suppress alkalinity. My understanding is that a variety of minerals, like calcium and magnesium, contribute to alkalinity. If you had an alkalinity test kit that just measured alkalinity due to calcium you'd probably be off the charts.

In other words, there is so much calcium in your tank water that there is no room for the other alkaline metals that contribute to alkalinity. Try stopping your calcium additions while continuing the buffer additions.

BTW - this calcium-buffer imbalance occurs with two part mixes. They come in the same ratios the corals use them. Unfortunately, bacterial driven minerization also removes buffer.