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11/17/2015, 04:10 PM | #1 |
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kalk in ato evaporation question
Trying kalk instead of 2 part. Should help because ph is usually low in my tank. My tank is 180g w 40 gal sump. I have a clam and a bunch of frags mostly sps. The tank evaporates about 1.7 gallons a day.
Is that too much evap for kalk? Do I do 1tsp for every gallon of ro/di I add to the reservoir? Thanks for any help. Heres the tank |
11/17/2015, 04:23 PM | #2 |
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How much alkalinity drop do you have per day? That's where you'll get how much kalk you need per day. From that and your evaporation rate you can get how much kalk per gallon.
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David Current Tank: Undergoing reconstruction... |
11/18/2015, 11:47 AM | #3 |
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I do 3 tsp per gallon for my 75g. The limit is supposed to be 2 tsp, but Randy Holmes did an article about how dosing vinegar through the ATO (which I also do) raises the capacity for how much Kalk can be dissolved into the water.
I think you're totally fine. If anything, you may find you can quite meet your tanks needs with Kalk. I'm in the Super dry Denver area, and I evaporate about a gallon a day for my 75g... Kalk can barely keep up. |
11/18/2015, 05:52 PM | #4 |
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*may find you can't
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11/19/2015, 05:09 PM | #5 |
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Dialed it back a bit and I'm gonna try 1/4tsp/gal and check alk and see how it stands.
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11/19/2015, 05:59 PM | #6 |
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Yeah give it a shot!
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11/19/2015, 06:01 PM | #7 |
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My tank doesn't have that many more corals than you, and 3 tsp barely covers it, so keep an eye on it.
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11/19/2015, 06:02 PM | #8 |
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Also, I think I'm about to upgrade to a 180. How long have you had yours?
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11/20/2015, 03:08 PM | #9 |
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Probably around 6 months.
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11/20/2015, 06:31 PM | #10 |
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I use a calcium reactor and kalk because my demands are so high, and like you it helps PH
kalk by itself is not often used long term as a solution. You might get away with it for a little bit longer, but once growth starts NO way |
11/21/2015, 08:21 AM | #11 |
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Kalk in ato worked for me for a while during the winter; however, when the summer came and evaporation slowed down I couldn't keep up with my alk and calc needs and started 2 part. Two part is ok besides having to keep an eye on tank salinity, I have to remove about a gallon a week of water and allow the ato to kick in and bring my salinity back to 35.
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Back to halides and loving it! Current Tank Info: 180g sps dom, 40b sump, Reeflo Dart, Apex, Aquamaxx co2, Reefbrite mh/led pendants w/14k twinarcs, Kore 5th doser, Tunze ATO, Ranco controlling 800 watt Finnex tube, 2 Maxpect Gyre 150XF with Ice Cap Controllers and battery backup, Bean Animal drain |
11/21/2015, 02:29 PM | #12 | |
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Quote:
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11/21/2015, 05:50 PM | #13 |
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Yes....
A Quote from Bertoni regarding the chemical reaction that turns the alk and calc solution into table salt: "They are mostly calcium chloride and sodium carbonate (or bicarbonate), so when the corals deposit calcium carbonate, NaCl (table salt) gets left behind." http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=1940206
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Back to halides and loving it! Current Tank Info: 180g sps dom, 40b sump, Reeflo Dart, Apex, Aquamaxx co2, Reefbrite mh/led pendants w/14k twinarcs, Kore 5th doser, Tunze ATO, Ranco controlling 800 watt Finnex tube, 2 Maxpect Gyre 150XF with Ice Cap Controllers and battery backup, Bean Animal drain |
11/21/2015, 11:20 PM | #14 |
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Ye, the two-parts leave behind table salt.
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11/22/2015, 11:16 AM | #15 |
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You might get away with it for a little bit longer, but once growth starts NO way.
YES, way. There are many tanks with lots of growing sps and other calcifying organisms including mine that meet the need for alk and calcium with kalk alone .
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Tom Current Tank Info: Tank of the Month , November 2011 : 600gal integrated system: 3 display tanks (120 g, 90g, 89g),several frag/grow out tanks, macroalgae refugia, cryptic zones. 40+ fish, seahorses, sps,lps,leathers, zoanthidae and non photosynthetic corals. |
11/22/2015, 02:48 PM | #16 | |
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Quote:
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Back to halides and loving it! Current Tank Info: 180g sps dom, 40b sump, Reeflo Dart, Apex, Aquamaxx co2, Reefbrite mh/led pendants w/14k twinarcs, Kore 5th doser, Tunze ATO, Ranco controlling 800 watt Finnex tube, 2 Maxpect Gyre 150XF with Ice Cap Controllers and battery backup, Bean Animal drain |
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11/23/2015, 11:21 AM | #17 |
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One way to handle that is to use a fan to increase the evaporation rate. Other people just use both 2-part and Kalk.
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Jonathan Bertoni |
11/23/2015, 12:59 PM | #18 | |
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Quote:
Two part dosing to supplement it hasn't been necessary as a routine but is easy to do manually if a tweak is desired or with dosing pumps on an ongoing basis. Using a calcium reactor along with kalk can also help and the lower pH of the calcium reactor effluent will help mitigate the pH rising effect of the kalk dosing. I have a calcium reactor but haven't needed to use it in over 5 years.
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Tom Current Tank Info: Tank of the Month , November 2011 : 600gal integrated system: 3 display tanks (120 g, 90g, 89g),several frag/grow out tanks, macroalgae refugia, cryptic zones. 40+ fish, seahorses, sps,lps,leathers, zoanthidae and non photosynthetic corals. Last edited by tmz; 11/24/2015 at 11:18 AM. |
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11/23/2015, 01:19 PM | #19 |
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dsovetsky, I used to do it the way that you did, but the tank did not react well to seasonal fluctuations in evaporation rate.
Now I do it hte way that tmz does, a fixed amount of kalk each day (programmed with my Apex with failsaifes for high ph and overfilling) and then use ATO float switch to top off with RO water if the fixed amount of kalk is less than evaporation. The consistency has been great for me. |
11/24/2015, 03:21 PM | #20 |
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5 days later and alk is staying at 8.5. I will keep checking as time goes by.
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11/24/2015, 03:49 PM | #21 | |
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Quote:
edit: didn't see your following post confirming the 1% daily change
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rebuild and recovery log: No more red house, you'll have to click on my name and visit my homepage! You can check out my parameters at reeftronics dot net website and look for my username. Current Tank Info: 180g mixed reef w/ a beananimal overflow to a dolomite RRUGF. | 20g long G. Smithii Mantis Tank |
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