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View Full Version : Some Coral and Kalkwasser questions


huseman808
03/26/2013, 08:25 PM
Hey guys,

Last Monday, eight days, ago I put some new frags in my tank I got from a local reefer. The corals are a Blue Monti Digitada, and two pieces of Monti-Cap, one red, one green.

Before I start, I will provide pictures, and parameters tomorrow afternoon, as i dont have any test solution left. Ill have to pick up a new kit.

My tank info:

26 Gallon Bowfront
MP10 set on ReefCrest and a Hydor Koralia
20k 150w MH with 2x 14w Actinics
14 Gallon sump
CPR BakPakII skimmer
Refug with Chaeto and Caulerpa


Inquiry #1
Now, the Blue Monti Digitata had very nice polyp extension in the original tank. Since being in my tank, it doesn't even come close to having the polyp extension it did have. Im not too worried that it is dying or bleaching as I can see the pores, and I can see the blue polyps in said pores, but you have to look really close at it. From afar, the coral looks to be a tanish-brown. The tips are a little lighter, which I have read could mean it is growing? The coral is approximately in the middle of my tank. I didnt want to put it up too high because I have more lighting than the tank it came out of, which was just some eBay LEDs. Do these just take awhile to quit being so shy and open up?

Inquiry #2
The Montipora-Cap frags, from what I can tell, are doing very well. They are not sliming up, and they have full color. I just stuck them into some grooves on my liverock without any epoxy etc. From what I can tell, it is not attaching itself to the rock. Again from what I've read, if it is happy it should attach "fairly quickly." Does the 8 days that ive had it, count as fairly quicky?

Inquiry #3
Kalkwasser... Ive always heard of people using it, but never really read into what it was. Well, the same day I got these corals, I went to the store and bought some Mrs. Wages Pickling Lime, which i seen is recommended as a cheap but effective alternative. I have been adding 1tsp per gallon to my ATO. Now, I admit that I never tested my Calcium or Alk levels before making this switch, which was probably a no-no. My system uses approximate 5 gallons of topoff water once a week. I guess I am just looking for some advice on Kalkwasser to be sure I am doing it right, and that it will be benificial to my tank.

As I said, parameters and pictures to come. Thanks in advance for any insight!

Thunder3
03/26/2013, 08:40 PM
I have a 75 gallon with a 30 gallon sump. I add 1/2 teaspoon kalk to my 1 gallon RODI water. I manually add 1/2 gallon in the morning and then again at night. I lose about 7 gallons of water a week. I think your using too much kalk. If you are dripping it with your ATO then you can adjust the amount till you get it correct.

dml931
03/26/2013, 09:34 PM
Thunder3, i have the exact same setup you have, although my kalk additions differ a little. first, i monitored the cal, alk, and mag to find out what my tanks daily consumption was. i did tests daily at the same time of day for about a week without adding any additives. only RODI as topoff. i discovered that my tanks consumption was about 10ppm cal and .6alk per day. was pretty consistant in these readings too. then i went here :http://www.hamzasreef.com/Contents/Calculators/KalkContribution.php to determine how much kalk i needed to mix with my topoff to replenish the consumed nutrients. my top off is on a timer dosing 4 times a day at the 6's and 12's of the day.

i also go through about 1.2 gallons of evap a day as well.

huseman - i would stop using kalk until you know how much to dose. test everyday until you know how much cal and alk is consumed at a daily rate. thats important info right there. if your dosing too much, your calcium could get above 500ppm easily (not a horible thing, but not that much is needed), but you alk could get high as well, and that could be a bad thing. dose too little and the depleted nutrients arent being kept within the optimal ranges. aim for the 8-11dKh range and you should be fine.

Reefmedic79
03/26/2013, 09:56 PM
It could take a couple weeks for the corals to look better, but you need to take inoto account that your lighting may ultimately make them look different then the way they looked in your friends tank.

As for the caps it would be better to glue them down, put a big ball of superglue gel on the bottom end of the frag and wedge them ito the desired crock in your rock work. Mnually hold them in place until the glue cures enough to hold itself. With the current in the tank it' is likely that the frag may be rocking in place albeit may be visually unnoticable. Although 8 days is likely too soon for it to attach securing it in place will speed up the process.

As others have mentioned you need to know the baseline of you Calc. Mag. and Alk before you should start dosing anything.
Also from the sounds of it you putting the lime directly into your top off reservoir. Once you start getting things going you will want to mix your lime water in a separate container. Then you allow the mix to settle and only use the water after it's settled, there will likely be left over lime on the bottom of the container, just add fresh water and mix again and repeat the process adding more lime to the mising container as needed.