High Tide Aquatics

Cheap way to get Alk, MG and CA supplement

Alexx

Alexx

Supporting Member
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Do you guys know any way that I can create my lower cost version of these aditives?
For Alkalinity
I currently discovered that I can go and buy:
"I buy food grade baking soda and "cook" your own. I buy a large 10 pound bag of Arm and Hammer at Walmart for $12. I now use Dr Randy Holmes recipe, of baking soda on a cookie sheet and bake for one hour at 350F." I basically put all 10 pounds in 2 different trays. And I plan to mix 2 1/4 cups of Soda Ash (This is the product resulting from backing backing soda)

But I was wondering if there is something for CA and MG.

I know for MG you can do:
I don't think using only Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom Salt) would be sufficient? Or I have to do the 2 part?

For CA I just buy the BRS not sure if there is a better option.

What do you guys think?
 
Alexx said:
Do you guys know any way that I can create my lower cost version of these aditives?
For Alkalinity
I currently discovered that I can go and buy:
"I buy food grade baking soda and "cook" your own. I buy a large 10 pound bag of Arm and Hammer at Walmart for $12. I now use Dr Randy Holmes recipe, of baking soda on a cookie sheet and bake for one hour at 350F." I basically put all 10 pounds in 2 different trays. And I plan to mix 2 1/4 cups of Soda Ash (This is the product resulting from backing backing soda)

But I was wondering if there is something for CA and MG.

I know for MG you can do:
I don't think using only Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom Salt) would be sufficient? Or I have to do the 2 part?

For CA I just buy the BRS not sure if there is a better option.

What do you guys think?
Click to expand...
Everything old is new again lol.

If you bake the baking soda, make sure you have it in a well sealed container so it doesn't have CO2 come back in or you'll lose the pH benefits. It basically turns back from sodium carbonate into sodium bicarbonate as it absorbs atmospheric CO2.

For the Mg you need magnesium chloride to balance out the magnesium sulfate (Epsom salts) or you'll potentially end up with an ionic imbalance in your tank (especially if you don't do heavy water changes). I used to buy a 50lb bag of mag flake used for deicing roads, but over time people found out the impurities were a little rough (Ca is the biggest but there's a bunch of other traces we don't want).

But 5:3 is the ratio you want: Post in thread 'Biocube 32' https://www.bareefers.org/forum/threads/biocube-32.35295/post-511026
 
Ok, so I backed 10 pounds of soda ash on 2 different trays in the oven for 1 hour at 350 degrees. I took it out after 30 min in and I mixed the Backing Soda then I placed it back for the remaining 30 minutes.
Now I tried to mix 1 gallon of water with 2 cups and 1/4 of the backed backing soda but is not dissolving. Not sure why... I was keep mixing it with a spoon but not dissolving.
Did I do something wrong? Or I have to mix it with a wavemaker over a long period of time?
 
Pickling lime used to be used instead of kalkwasser..... Mrs Wages I think was a popular brand. Not sure anyone still uses that.
 
Water changes will not help my fishtank. I currently add like 150 ml of Alk/day, and CA. I mean it helps but the corals will drain the elements faster than the change.
 
2 part brs seems decent price, I'm thinking might eventually switch to this , but don't know if it's same amount from fusion 1&2 to brs .

www.bulkreefsupply.com

2-Part Pharma Calcium & Alkalinity Total Package Pre-Portioned

Easily maintain calcium, alkalinity, & magnesium in your reef! The 2-Part Calcium & Alkalinity Total Package comes with pre-portioned containers of calcium, alkalinity, and magnesium to make your own 2-part liquid dosing solutions, even the gallon mixing jugs and dispensing pumps are included...
www.bulkreefsupply.com www.bulkreefsupply.com
 
If someone wanted to talk to one of our awesome lfs partners I bet we could organize a group buy for 3 part. We did it once like 2010 ish if I remember.
Possibly @Bruce Spiegelman could ask BRS or some other larger retailer to help sponsor us with a group buy as well if it doesn’t make sense for any of our lfs partners.
 
Coral reefer said:
If someone wanted to talk to one of our awesome lfs partners I bet we could organize a group buy for 3 part. We did it once like 2010 ish if I remember.
Possibly @Bruce Spiegelman could ask BRS or some other larger retailer to help sponsor us with a group buy as well if it doesn’t make sense for any of our lfs partners.
Click to expand...
Happy to talk to them if there's enough interest. I'm sure this could be arranged with them or Coralvue.
 
I used to buy everything from BRS. I will probably end up buying from there today, But they removed the BRS 7 ponds bag so that was a bit frustrating. They have only 1 gallon soda ash packages.
Here is what their reply was when I asked them:
"Unfortunately, at this time, we are no longer carrying the seven pound bag of soda ash. We are not certain why the availability options have changed. We appreciate your understanding."
I guess they make more money from the individual products.
 
Alexx said:
I used to buy everything from BRS. I will probably end up buying from there today, But they removed the BRS 7 ponds bag so that was a bit frustrating. They have only 1 gallon soda ash packages.
Here is what their reply was when I asked them:
"Unfortunately, at this time, we are no longer carrying the seven pound bag of soda ash. We are not certain why the availability options have changed. We appreciate your understanding."
I guess they make more money from the individual products.
Click to expand...
That could be it, or they could want you to order more often, or they could have supply issues, or maybe the big bag doesn’t sell well enough.
 
Get the 5 gallon bucket of soda ash, and calcium chloride. Then see if you can only get the 7 lb bag of magnesium sulfate and magnesium chloride because I used those so much slower. I promise it is easier and net cheaper to let someone else bake the baking soda down.
 
Leslie's Pool supply "Hardness Plus" for calcium is about as cheap as you're going to get probably, although mixing up a 5 gallon bucket a few times you will notice some residual "brown stuff" at the bottom, and if you listen to what those BRS guys say about contaminants then "its bad". May or may not be true, but I think they also say Arm & Hammer baking soda is bad too, but hey their "pharma grade" stuff mixes perfectly clear without any gunk. YMMV of course.

I never bothered baking A&H though.

Although I'd say the cheapest way is to find someone, like me, with 5 gallon buckets of everything he's happy to just give away, who decided spending a bit more for "pharma grade" stuff really wasn't that much more expense.
 
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