SPS checklist? (from your own experience and stories)

[Reefer Rob]

Clubreef, are you baking the baking soda, or have you found an easier way to dissolve the baking soda. To me baking seems like a PTA. Ive been using 450ml of the "light" recipe a day.

[ClubReef]

Reefer_rob,

I bake the baking soda for about 1 hr at 350F. I do this in mass quantities and then store it in zip lock bags. I bake it to drive off carbon dioxide which otherwise will lower your pH, not because it will dissolve easier in water.

Baking soda is such a hassle and I to have problems with over saturation...not the easiest stuff to dissolve ugh!

[kwirky]

Originally Posted by ClubReef

Baking soda is such a hassle and I to have problems with over saturation...not the easiest stuff to dissolve ugh!

I've found that if I boil enough RO/DI water in the kettle to mix the baking soda solution with about 30% boiling water, it mixes quite easily. Doesn't precipitate back to a solid either in the bottle even months later (which happens for some stuff if you dissolve it in heated water, forget the scientific term). The calcium does, but the baking soda solution doesn't. I think the calcium solution precipitates back to a solid over time because of air exposure, as the bottle gets emptied. Allows more air to react inside the bottle as it's emptied. Thought about using an accordian like bottle for the solution next time, like one used for developer solution in a photography dark room.

the recipe I use is this one: http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php

along with this calculator: http://reef.diesyst.com/

I read SOMEWHERE that running very high calcium levels (like 450+) actually slows down coral growth. Anybody experienced this themselves?