Reef nutrition

Kalk containers

JVU said:
As Randy Holmes Farley has shown, if you don’t mess with the thin surface crust it forms, it doesn’t continue to react with the air. So a larger amount is more stable, not less.
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I hadn't seen or read about that yet. So thanks for sharing that insight.
 
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I do the exact same as Jonmedina. Versa pumps draw from ATO reservoir and drip in mostly at night. By viewing the PH trend of the DT i can see when the potency of the Kalk in the stirrer has decreased and i simply add more Kalk (~2 heaping spoonfulls) ; on average about every 2 weeks. I also have another standalone PH meter that i can install into the Kalk stirrer to measure the PH of the solution.
You don't have to have the stirrer on 24/7, but i do. You could have a controller turn it on every so often on an interval, this may help increase the time at which the solution is at max potency.
I dose about 600ml/night.
 
Glass carboys work great but are heavy. A two-gallon jug could be a good upgrade, and a magnetic stirrer might help if it can handle the weight. Consider a kalk reactor if you want something more hands-off.
 
@Patio & @jonmedina -every couple weeks you just put in whatever amount of powder and let it go or do you dump whatever is in there, refill water and kalk and then resume operation.

Going for it after consideration of time, ease, and not playing Tetris again with everything stuffed in my cabinet as is.
 
divewsharks said:
I do the exact same as Jonmedina. Versa pumps draw from ATO reservoir and drip in mostly at night. By viewing the PH trend of the DT i can see when the potency of the Kalk in the stirrer has decreased and i simply add more Kalk (~2 heaping spoonfulls) ; on average about every 2 weeks. I also have another standalone PH meter that i can install into the Kalk stirrer to measure the PH of the solution.
You don't have to have the stirrer on 24/7, but i do. You could have a controller turn it on every so often on an interval, this may help increase the time at which the solution is at max potency.
I dose about 600ml/night.
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Thanks. Avast’s recommendation is to run it 24/7 to avoid clumps in the kalk powder that over time can impact motor and that is what I will probably do.
 
L/B Block said:
Thanks. Avast’s recommendation is to run it 24/7 to avoid clumps in the kalk powder that over time can impact motor and that is what I will probably do.
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I think part of that response from Avast, is because there are different qualities of kalk powder. I have used Brightwells and Captiv8.

When i add more kalk every couple of weeks, i don't dump whats in the stirrer. That is a separate task which i do every 6-8weeks or so. With the reactor reservoir and the stirrer plate/motor having no hard attachment to one another, its a super simple task, probably takes longer to scrape the glass for algae.
 
divewsharks said:
I think part of that response from Avast, is because there are different qualities of kalk powder. I have used Brightwells and Captiv8.

When i add more kalk every couple of weeks, i don't dump whats in the stirrer. That is a separate task which i do every 6-8weeks or so. With the reactor reservoir and the stirrer plate/motor having no hard attachment to one another, its a super simple task, probably takes longer to scrape the glass for algae.
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divewsharks said:
I think part of that response from Avast, is because there are different qualities of kalk powder. I have used Brightwells and Captiv8.

When i add more kalk every couple of weeks, i don't dump whats in the stirrer. That is a separate task which i do every 6-8weeks or so. With the reactor reservoir and the stirrer plate/motor having no hard attachment to one another, its a super simple task, probably takes longer to scrape the glass for algae.
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Duly noted. Thanks for the tip. Right now going though a bag of captiv8. Should last awhile.
 
I have used two brands of kalk in the reactor. Avast (rebranded Mississippi lime if i remember correctly) and BRS. The stir bar seems to like the Avast brand more, it spins more freely it seems.

I do the same kinda style as @divewsharks . Add more every other week and do a dump and full clean at least 4 times a year (I should probably do a little more frequently).

Avast has a nice chart to help you get started figuring out how much kalk to put in the reactor and how frequently. Here is a link to it: https://www.avastmarine.com/pages/kalkulator
 
Fwiw I dose from a 10 gallon static reservoir (basically just a 10 gallon aquarium with a lid). My process:

* Wait untill it's getting low
* Dump 60g of Kalk in (using 6g per gallon, but it's actually a higher ratio because I don't completely empty the water)
* Dump water in from high, so it mixes up

I've been doing this for over 6 months. I've never cleared out the old Kalk. I never rigorously measure. I never mix otherwise.

I've had tons of success with that setup. My gut is that if you have a doser that can repeatedly dose overnight, if you have room for a reservoir that can last over a week, it's very easy to do the static route.

I looked into the avast and mixers generally, and it seemed like a lot of money and work relative to the static setup, so I gave up on the idea. No complaints.
 
richiev said:
Fwiw I dose from a 10 gallon static reservoir (basically just a 10 gallon aquarium with a lid). My process:

* Wait untill it's getting low
* Dump 60g of Kalk in (using 6g per gallon, but it's actually a higher ratio because I don't completely empty the water)
* Dump water in from high, so it mixes up

I've been doing this for over 6 months. I've never cleared out the old Kalk. I never rigorously measure. I never mix otherwise.

I've had tons of success with that setup. My gut is that if you have a doser that can repeatedly dose overnight, if you have room for a reservoir that can last over a week, it's very easy to do the static route.

I looked into the avast and mixers generally, and it seemed like a lot of money and work relative to the static setup, so I gave up on the idea. No complaints.
Click to expand...
richiev said:
Fwiw I dose from a 10 gallon static reservoir (basically just a 10 gallon aquarium with a lid). My process:

* Wait untill it's getting low
* Dump 60g of Kalk in (using 6g per gallon, but it's actually a higher ratio because I don't completely empty the water)
* Dump water in from high, so it mixes up

I've been doing this for over 6 months. I've never cleared out the old Kalk. I never rigorously measure. I never mix otherwise.

I've had tons of success with that setup. My gut is that if you have a doser that can repeatedly dose overnight, if you have room for a reservoir that can last over a week, it's very easy to do the static route.

I looked into the avast and mixers generally, and it seemed like a lot of money and work relative to the static setup, so I gave up on the idea. No complaints.
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If it works it works! I don’t dispute the static method - I have a doser -issue is space so I need to swap out every 5 days in the jug I have.

The avast will fit perfectly without playing jenga with everything else in my cabinet and it seems simple enough. Put 1/8 cup powder in every two weeks. Every 3 months dump out and refill. Seems easy enough. Watched enough videos and read reviews to decide to go for it.
 
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