Does your alk solution turn milky when added to the tank?

[Chin_Lee]

I dripped some 2 part alk clear solution into my tank today and it is turning milky right away as soon as it hits the tank water and dissipates.
Does yours do the same thing?
Am I doing something wrong?

When I put the calcium solution in, its clear and stays clear.

[xtreme]

My DIY alk mix does the same thing. It looks milky in my sump for a couple seconds until it mixes in.

[Joe Reefer]

It does for me too, I think it is normal.

[Skimmerking]

ya Chin don't sweat it fella its ok its normal I wish that i can be normal someday

[kien]

Yup perfectly normal, I get the same thing. I was curious as to why though :-)

[Chin_Lee]

thanks for the peace of mind guys

[Reefer Rob]

If your dosing calcium carbonate or baked baking soda you'll get the milky substance where it drips in. This is calcium carbonate precipitating out, likely due to the high PH of the solution. With straight baking soda this shouldn't happen and your calcium consumption will be less.

[ScubaSteve]

Rob's got it spot on. The high pH of the additive causes a precipitate which then dissolves as the solution mixes with the lower pH tank water. No need to worry. Buffer solutions will do the same thing.

[Reefer Rob]

So I got curious and found this article by Randy. In it he theorizes that it's mostly Magnesium Hydroxide that precipitates out.

Still, my Calcium Chloride consumption goes up relative to the amount of Sodium Carbonate I've used in my mix, so there must be some Calcium Carbonate. When I tried straight high density Sodium Carbonate it wasn't pretty! It coated the entire inside of my sump and return lines with Calcium Carbonate.

[trilinearmipmap]

I used to just drip it in slowly right in front of a powerhead so it would mix quickly with the tank water an little if any would precipitate out.