reactors

[tgoeujon]

ok here is another dumb question. if i was to take an old media reactor (i have an extra tlf reactor at the moment) and add calcium media to it instead of carbon or phosban would it have any effect , good or bad? im kinda doubting it but curiosity makes me ask.

I don't think you will get much benefit without dropping the ph. Aragonite media will be pretty stagnant in water that has normal tank ph.

[mark]

Need to drop the pH to dissolve the media but finding a reactor can be rather simple.

I picked up a second chamber to a DIY reactor, that I was going use for the tubing to make another Ca reactor. While trying to decide uni-seals or threaded fittings for the recir pump, I just hooked up my CO2 system.

As is, basically just a capped cylinder with feed water and CO2 tee'd together then fed to the bottom flowing up through the media then out the top back to the tank, easily keeps Ca and Alk up in a moderately stocked SPS 145g reef.

[BlueAbyss]

Am I to assume that you are already running a calcium reactor? If so, I would run the effluent from that through your media in the second reactor, just to grab the last little bit of carbonic acid from the water. Short of that, simply running your tank water through any calcium media will add 'some' buffering capacity against low pH... but not much, and you run the risk of it becoming a biological filter.

I once assumed that doing something like this would help maintain pH... after all, the ocean stays relatively constant and it's full of aragonite. Unfortunately, chemical mechanics in a tank are a little different than the ocean

[BCOrchidGuy]

If you aren't already using a ca reactor you could you the "reactor" you have with your calcium media you could run your top off water through it. To lower the pH of the top off water try using a bit of white vinegar in it. If you do a search of kalk reactors you'll find the directions to add the vinegar with the proper amount. The vinegar being acidic will lower the pH of the water and you should get more calcium media reacting with the top off water.

Douglas

[tgoeujon]

hmmmmm, maybe just buying a ready made calcium reactor would be the way to go.