What's your alk/ca consumption rate?

[driftin]

I'm having difficulty keeping my alkalinity and calcium up in what I would consider a moderately loaded system... curious what people's consumption is daily, for comparison.

If you're using 2-part or kalk could you list your consumption rates, system size and stocking levels?

 

[broke1]

ALK 100ml daily
Ca 80ml
250g system
lightly stocked(frags)about 60

 

[Rockpile]

65g with 30g sump. Many large SPS colonies. I go through 5 gallons of Kalk per week (12 teaspoons in 5 gallon jug dripped continuously). 40cc each of Alk and calcium every morning (using BRS recipe 1). Ca stays around 390-400 and dkh 8-9. pH is around 8.05 in the morning and 8.3 at the end of the day when the lights go out. Also use Brightwell salt.

 

[saltywet]

What's your alk/ca consumption rate?

My alk/cal consumption is two tums a day to keep my ulcer away.

Sorry, couldn't help not to post it.

 

[luther1200]

I have a moderately stocked 65g. Mostly small frags at this point but a few colonies, a large clam, and a small clam. I use about 5 gallons a week of kalk through a GSA kalk reactor, and 20ml each part of original B-Ionic daily.

 

[MikeTR]

14g and I add 7.5ml/day of B-Ionic. 3 decent sized colonies and several smaller 2-3" frags.

 

[sjfishguy]

I use randy's recipe 1: 58g oceanic tank fully stocked with largeish mature SPS colonies. ~110mL of each per day.

I am glad you started this thread because I was thinking of starting the same thread.

 

[maestro]

I use randys recipe aswell. its a 3 month old 300l tank and sps are just beginning to get growing nicely, currently using 40ml of each a day

 

[Jfishdr]

180 gal moderately stocked SPS, few large LPS (hammer x3 frogspawn x2, huge duncan) and burn 5 gal of Kalk per week (2 teaspoons per gal in ATO) and add BRS 200 mls each nightly. pH 8.3-8.45, Ca 440, Alk 4-4.5 meq/L, Mg 1450. Frags really started to encrust once I switched to 2 part consistently

 

[Shadowramy]

On a 120 mine was alk at 200ml and Ca at 50 daily.

 

[silentscream]

55 gal mixed reef, sps dominant

125ml of Randy's Recipe #2 & topping off with saturated kalkwater

 

[Stanley-Reefer]

Any 2 parters using Kent tech a/b I can help if you give me your net gal based on my sps heavy mixed reefs...

90 with 60net gal--gets 30ml of each in the am

175 with 170 net gal gets 60 ml of each in teh am

 

[platax88]

Just curious as to why some of you are dosing at different rates for cal and alk... I thought the consumption rate was balanced? Am i missing something?

 

[stanlalee]

Just curious as to why some of you are dosing at different rates for cal and alk... I thought the consumption rate was balanced? Am i missing something?

well the ratio is based on the composition of calcium carbonate but other variables come into play (salt mix, water changes, calcium and carbonate uptake used for other than the make up of calcium carbonate).
I think the main thing is for every dKH used only 7ppm is used. Calcium test kit resolution isn't going to show calcium uptake that accurately while carbonate uptake will be alot more obvious. you could drop 3dKH but a typical calcium test kit not showing any difference between the 421ppm to 400ppm drop thats suppose to take place. Besides alot of us arent using balanced products (2 parts).

I dose 15ml of reef carbonate (4000meq/L concentration) and 5ml of reef complete(160,000mg/L) daily with a double dose of calcium here and there as needed. 30g/10g sump medium stocked sps/lps/zoanthid in that order of prevelence.

 

[menthol]

290ml each of both alk and cal per day. 135gal system, sps dominated. 2-part Randy's recipe #2

Alk before dosing is 8dkh, after dosing is 9-10dkh
Ca consumption per day is 20ppm.

 

[Stanley-Reefer]

Randy--I see alot of reefers using your mix use ALOT in comparison to me using Kent's tech a/b......how close is your mix to the concentration of theirs.

Both are proven, just noticing the big diff in amounts used/day.

Thanks.

 

[sjfishguy]

Keep in mind there are two recipes for Randy's, Recipe 1 and Recipe 2. Recipe 1 is twice as concentrated as recipe 2.

That is why I think I am using A LOT of two part for my size tank. I use recipe 1 at 110mL a day in a 58. If I was using recipe 2 like most people on this thread seem to say they are using, I would be using 220mL per day in a 58g! My understanding is the concentration of recipe 1 is close to kent a/b

 

[coralfarm123]

~125 gallons system daily usage 300ml Alk and 300ml Calcium of Randys Recipe #2

40 gallon - 75 ml of Alk, Calcium -- Recipe #2

Both mixed reefs about half SPS.

 

[sjfishguy]

Driftin: Which product are you using? How much are you adding? Have you checked your Mg level recently?

 

[luther1200]

Randy--I see alot of reefers using your mix use ALOT in comparison to me using Kent's tech a/b......how close is your mix to the concentration of theirs.

Both are proven, just noticing the big diff in amounts used/day.

Thanks.

The reef chemistry calculator shows the difference in many diffrent 2 parts. I think the original B-Ionic is the most potent. The kent is pretty potent also, I think.