Kalkwasser dosing advice

whatcaneyedo · #1 04-21-2016, 02:19 AM

I prefer to use it in an inline reactor as part of my ATO system. But what you're planning will work too with a few pros and cons. This article is worth a read and will tell you all that there is to know.

What Your Grandmother Never Told You About Lime
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/index.htm

soapy · #2 04-21-2016, 04:00 AM

If you do decide on something a little more permanent you could always build a DIY Kalk reactor. That first shot is the original iteration from 2010. The second picture is the improved ghettorific Kalk reactor today. You can see the patch from the first version. ABS to PVC transition glue works well on many hard plastics. This container was some kind of pasta storage thing I think and a glued on pipe fitting. The top of the container is glued onto the bottom in the second version and all access is through the pipe fitting. It has a small return pump from a nano aquarium inside. The tall pipe is where the fresh water goes in, it is tall to stop syphoning from happening. The angled pipe spills the kalk into the sump. That little DIY reactor has grown a lot of corals in the last six years. I have actually purchased a pro stirrer but haven't set it up yet. Curious to see how well it does against my cheap, probably a little better... I also went upscale to a calcium reactor.

soapy · #3 04-21-2016, 04:22 AM

And yes Kalk with magnesium additions now and then will grow corals. I think over that time I also did some manual dosing of the big three from time to time but mostly the Kalk did the work. Eventually with lots of stony coral you would outgrow Kalk. To be honest depending on tank size and ambitions dosing is probably the way to go these days. I would say you are on the right path. I went old school on my new rig with a calcium reactor and am trying for a set it and forget setup. It may still incorporate a Kalk stirrer, not sure yet. Eventually I am going to scale up to a big tank. We will see how it does.