Calcium Reactor Media

[JJ70]

Just purchased a GEO reactor and wanted to get some media ideas. Thinking about going with ARM since I will have a PH controller but have heard of the mush stories.

Any help would be appreciated.

[redox]

schuran or pacific coast imports have what I think to be the best media .The media is actually coral , custom aquatic has both

[Maximus]

I used to use ARM but it would turn to mush on me. I switched over to Schuran and like it a lot.

[nwrogers]

I use ARM with a PH controller and it has been working really well so far...

[jay24k]

If your reactor is an upflow, I don't see it turning to mush. I use arm and haven't ever had that issue. Schuran is nice but does require a lower ph I've heard.

[BreadmanMike]

Why not use some crushed coral substrate,oyster shells, and some dolomite to add a bit of magnesium?

[TCU Reefer]

I use ARM in my Geo and it works great.

[jan_dman]

ARM as well and never had any problems

[JJ70]

Thanks for the input. I'll probably try ARM.

[Leopardshark]

I´ve used ARM and Coralith and both turn mush after a while.
So I just take it out, rinse it in fresh water and reuse the remaining media along with new media.
Marco

[ScallopKing]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7668260#post7668260 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nwrogers
I use ARM with a PH controller and it has been working really well so far...

Same here. No problems unless your PH drops too low like 6.4 or less I think. I think the controller is key with ARM media. My buddy uses the same ca reactor and media and his mushed a bit too...but no controller.

[Chaotic Reefer4u]

ive used arm and its turned to mush on me also, clogged up my lines and had to tear it down and rinse it out and replace it...

[jt_redmist]

I too am using ARM running at 6.57 ph on a controller. Running over 6 months. No mush here :D

JT

[Zoom]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7668283#post7668283 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jay24k
If your reactor is an upflow, I don't see it turning to mush. I use arm and haven't ever had that issue. Schuran is nice but does require a lower ph I've heard.
Yes I agreed with Jay24k.

[kozmo02]

I use the bag of geo-marine i think its called that is the same size as ARM, it is much cheaper, comes in a 30 lb. bag if I remember right, and gives me the same results I had with ARM.

[acropora nut]

I run ARM and the controller is set at 6.1 . No mush here.

[Leopardshark]

BTW, I usually set the ph at 6.5-6.
This works good to me and I set my aquacontroller to turn off the CO2 if the tank´s ph falls below 7.9
Marco

[jay24k]

I've read and heard of ARM breaking into mush at 6.5 and that might be the reason people have that issue. I set mine to 6.8 and I believe currently I have it set to 60 to 70ml per minute drip. For me it is a steady stream.

[Leopardshark]

I too set it up to deliver a steady mini stream.
Mark

[zapata41]

i run schuran media, ph is 6.2 and no mush :D

IMO i wouldnt get the ARM since if you mess up and drop the ph too much you will need to buy new media

Tim

[Leopardshark]

Yeah, but usually you wont set the ph that low. Probably 6.5 would be the least, but ARM will dissolve at 7

[wrassie86]

Geo Marine florida crushed coral here also.been using it for a few years with out a problem.gotta like the 15# bag for $10 bucks or so.

[kozmo02]

yea, thats what i use too wrassie, and for reference my pH out of the second chamber is 6.9

[blstravler]

I run ARM and I used to run my ph at 6.8. It would turn to mush all of the time...

So I read the outside of the container based on the advice of a friend who told me ARM says to run it at 7.5. So I did and the side of the ARM container does say to run it 7.5.

I didn't go up to 7.5 but I went up to 7.2, so far no mush but it has only been a week, I'll wait to see what happens in 2 months from now.

I will say I'll go through a lot less CO2 running that high.



Keith

[blstravler]

jay24k

At that rate how do you keep your tank PH up and how do you supplement to keep it up?

Sorry for being so nosey.

Keith

[kozmo02]

I have no issues with pH, I don't even have my kalk reactor setup, tank pH is pretty constant at 8.2 range, it is a pretty large water volume so it doesn't have as much of an effect as it would on a smaller tank, it is a 180 + 100g fuge and then probably 15-20 gallons in the sump too.

ARM I have heard of running it around 7.0, generally most people have mush issues with top flow reactors because it forces the media downward and as the media is forced down it begins to compact and water cannot flow through it anymore so it turns to mush, generally this problem is avoided with reverse flow reactors.

I can say that with the Geo Marine I use, I have no mush issues at all and it is usually 6.8-6.9 out of my second chamber which if I remember right means its about 6.6-6.7 in the first chamber, I think it's like a .2-.3 difference from first chamber to second chamber.

[jay24k]

My ph pretty much does not go above 8.1. Occasionally 8.2 but stability is my thing. I go through alot of calcium but so far it's been holding pretty steady. I also have about 200 gallons total counting sump and subtracting rock volume. I also have my calcium drip going into my macro algae directly. I don't know if that helps with the ph or not but I have yet to have any issues.

[Leopardshark]

My ph goes from 8.1-8.3 depending on day/night.

[Zoom]

With the AC on full time that PH is now 7.9 am- 8.1 PM.
It will get up to 8.3 when i open the widows for seven hours but that almost never acquires i have full climate control system it will switch from ac to heat all along when the weather get cold.

[Beenalongtime79]

So, I'm guessing everybody runs their reactor pH around 6.7?

For those people using schuran like media or the pacific coast imports CRM, how low do you run your reactor media pH?

How low can you go on the coral skeleton media before it melts/mushes?

[jay24k]

I run mine at 6.3

[Zoom]

I can mush any thing at about 6.2 .
I will go no lower than 6.4.

[Beenalongtime79]

Thanks for the info zoom! Luckily my solenoid closes at a pH of 6.4. :)

[aurora]

I have a dual chamber and dump the "mush" from the reactor chamber into the 2nd chamber everytime I add more media. Since my reactor is 24' tall and flow is from top down, I had some problem with a progressive drop in flow through the media as it gets more dissolved/finer when I loaded with 100% ARM. Now, I load the bottom 1/4 of the reactor chamber with schuran and the top 3/4 with ARM. A foam filter pad separates the two layers and keep the ARM from mixing with Schuran. This really helps maintain flow through the reactor and keep the reactor from clogging up. The ARM media definitely dissolves faster than Schuran. I get the best of both world since Schuran cost twice as much as ARM. Since I have a fully stocked 300G SPS system, I really push my reactor to it's pH limit to keep up the tank's alkalinity up.

[Zoom]

You can now get large ARM Media like schuran .

[Beenalongtime79]

Yeah, but I imagine it would be a similar thing with the new ARM media, the larger media (aka. dead coral skeletons) would just take longer to dissolve because of less surface area in general...

Peace,
John

[Beenalongtime79]

Hey Zoom... has your reef tank really been up and running for 14 years?!

[Zoom]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11913982#post11913982 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rufio173
Hey Zoom... has your reef tank really been up and running for 14 years?!
Yes 14 years i never empty the tank yet.
Many things change in 14 years mostly equipment update .
I started the tank with all LPS and then to mix reef in the end all sps .
Now i have mix reef, it is just to many LPS/ Soft corals out there now with very nice colors we never had ten years a go, and much more heartier than the sps , I just don't have the time i had to work on the tank like i use to so now everything is all automated so i have more time to myself.

[Felixc]

Switched to ARM coarse media 4 months ago from ARM regular and what a difference. I can run it at much lower ph and no signs of mush or powder in the reactor. Where as bebore powder would build up at the top of the media and would eventually clog the tubes. I am very happy with the stability of the reactor and the corals color/growth really is apparent. Thumbs up for coarse media, regardless of brand.

[Beenalongtime79]

Wow... that is one long running tank Steve. :) I think you made a pretty good decision for yourself, plus I love the motion of LPS and softies, most lay people find the LPS/softy tanks much more interesting than an SPS tank I think since all they see are a bunch of brightly colored and fixed sticks in the tank. ;-) Hehe

Here's to more time for ourselves!

Peace,
John

[Zoom]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11916306#post11916306 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rufio173
Wow... that is one long running tank Steve. :) I think you made a pretty good decision for yourself, plus I love the motion of LPS and softies, most lay people find the LPS/softy tanks much more interesting than an SPS tank I think since all they see are a bunch of brightly colored and fixed sticks in the tank. ;-) Hehe

Here's to more time for ourselves!

Peace,
John
Here is a pic of the tank as of yesterday the back glass most to have 1/2" thick of corralling on it i never clean it.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/125102-21-08_029__Custom_.jpg

[Beenalongtime79]

I saw some pictures of that in your gallery. It looks very nice and natural! I didn't think it was 1/2" thick though. Haha. Very impressive indeed to have a tank set up for that long even if you've never moved.

[Lee_Bay]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7668303#post7668303 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Aquaticman74
Why not use some crushed coral substrate,oyster shells, and some dolomite to add a bit of magnesium?

My LFS had a bag of cc substrate that he let me have at a great deal because all of the water had leaked out of the bag. That's what I'm using right now and it seems to be fine. A lot cheaper than "reactor media".

[therman]

Crushed coral here too. Way cheap and seems to always work great for me. And I don't test the pH, mostly because of laziness.
-Tim

[TwistedTiger]

Both arm and Gen X make coral skeleton media. You get better flow and no clogging with the larger chunks and it is much more forgiving if your ph drops. It's about the same price as the regular, I can't understand why anyone would use crushed coral instead. JMO