Kalkwasser questions

[chujai]

I have a few questions about Kalkwasser.

1. does it matter what brand i would buy or generally are they all the same?

2. another question is does it matter if the Kalkwasser has been sitting around for long time or does time have no effect on the dried product? ive read the effects of the lime water, but im talking about powdered stuff

3. ive been reading on here for a while now and generally it seems like people agree that if i was running a mixed reef with SPS/LPS/Clams i would not be able to get all the calcium i need for this type of setup?

4. how diluted was the Kalkwasser supposed to be again? or does it not matter so much because the water can only dilute so much before the rest just sits at the bottom?

Thanks.

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

1. If they are suitably pure, then they are mostly all the same (some may be calcium oxide, where you use a bit less). I discuss purity of different grades in this article:

What Your Grandmother Never Told You About Lime
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/index.htm

2. If closed up, the powder is good for quite a while, but will eventually degrade as CO2 enters it. I'm using calcium oxide that I've had in a salt bucket for many years. :)

3. Limewater is limited in its ability to deliver calcium and alkalinity, but often works fine for mixed reefs, depending on exactly what is in the tank and what you evaporation rate is. You can always use a bit of two part along with it if it is not enough.

4. 2 level teaspoons per gallon of fresh water, or less. I use less because I do not need full strength.

All of these things are also covered in the article, or links from it. :)

[chujai]

awesome. thanks randy.

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

:thumbsup:

Happy Reefing. :)