liveclown Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 I want to dose Alk. with an Ato. What products with accomplish this. I have B-ionic but have to dose every night. I want to just dose the ato so that it keep my Alk at the right measurement at a steady and stable more slowly rather than a sudden change in alk. Example 10-11 ddk or whatever that measurement was for Alk.lol Link to comment
Kirin1 Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 You can't really dose 2-part via ATO, since the 2 parts cannot be mixed beforehand. You can automate 2-part dosing using a litermeter or similar 2-chanel dosing pump. The other option is a Kalk Reactor, you'll still need to keep an eye on and adjust your alkalinity, but it should no longer be a daily chore. Link to comment
xenon Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 You wont need to dose 2-part if you add kalk to your ATO. It will maintain the calcium and alkalinity and also buffer ph! When your corals/coraline exceed the amount of calcium and alkalinity the kalk is able to add then it will be time to start 2part again. Don't forget about magnesium. Link to comment
liveclown Posted October 10, 2008 Author Share Posted October 10, 2008 My apologies, I should have mentioned that this tank is my fowler 25 gallon. I only dose the alk of the 2-part of b-ionic on this one. I dont have any coral. I have a starfish, urchin,and skunk cleaner as far as inverts go. Soooo....now that we have that now known, whta product should I do to dose Alk? I dont worry about cal. and the sort. Just Alk and nitrates is what test for. I have almost had the tank going srong for a year!!!! =] Link to comment
xenon Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 My apologies, I should have mentioned that this tank is my fowler 25 gallon. I only dose the alk of the 2-part of b-ionic on this one. I dont have any coral. I have a starfish, urchin,and skunk cleaner as far as inverts go. Soooo....now that we have that now known, whta product should I do to dose Alk? I dont worry about cal. and the sort. Just Alk and nitrates is what test for. I have almost had the tank going srong for a year!!!! =] Do you not care about coraline growth? The urchin would be real happy about that! If all you want to dose is alk then just add a single dosing pump. Link to comment
reefdan Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 use unbaked baking soda to increase your ALK. it's dirt cheap. you can add it to your ATO water but you'll have to monitor the ALK because if your evap is huge, you're going to get a larger ALK increase. Link to comment
xenon Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 Start small and test,test,test!!! Link to comment
xbwolfx Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 why are you dosing at all for a fowlr tank? Link to comment
xenon Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 why are you dosing at all for a fowlr tank? I would imagine that he is trying to buffer ph. Link to comment
xbwolfx Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 I would imagine that he is trying to buffer ph. lol. i had a fowlr for like 4 years. never once dosed anything. water changes maybe once a month. Link to comment
liveclown Posted October 10, 2008 Author Share Posted October 10, 2008 Correct....The owner of my lfs said I only need to keep my alk in range and my ph would be fine. It changes with light cycle anyway. If I don't dose anything to the tank the water quality would go beyond poor and kill my fish. Water changes would not be enough buddy... My Evaporation is very little. that may pose a prob. the right??? What if I do a drip solution of alk?? I just make sure it drips 5 ml of B-ionic through a 24 hour period?? Diy ato priniple...just with all b-ionic part 1(alk) only with a srew on lid and test it by making it drip into the measure beaker and time it for 24 hour to see if It doses the amount i have to dose daily. I ight of solved my own prob. Huh., I wonder if it would actually work?? I am actually writing my thoughts as I think...so let me know if you can understand this and if you think it might work,lol lol. i had a fowlr for like 4 years. never once dosed anything. water changes maybe once a month. OMG...was it stocked a lot?? How big and how many fish?? That is risky... Your nitrates would prob. be horrible. Link to comment
Kirin1 Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 Correct....The owner of my lfs said I only need to keep my alk in range and my ph would be fine. It changes with light cycle anyway. If I don't dose anything to the tank the water quality would go beyond poor and kill my fish. Water changes would not be enough buddy... WOAH. Stop what you're doing, step away from the 'A' Bottle of the two part, and go read a book. Calcium and Alkalinity go hand in hand when maintaining ph (that's why you get BOTH bottles at once). Link to comment
xbwolfx Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 OMG...was it stocked a lot?? How big and how many fish?? That is risky... Your nitrates would prob. be horrible. fish, snails, hermits. nitrates were at like 30-40 consistently. it wasn't the purdiest tank, and eventually all of the fish died one by one (we're talking over a period of years though). my point is that i would think that doing weekly water changes should be enough for a fowlr. in fact, weekly water changes alone are enough for most nanos that don't have sps. how much does your ph drop within a week? Link to comment
Kirin1 Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 Here's an article about maintaining ph, I hope it's helpful. http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/june2002/chem.htm Link to comment
xbwolfx Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 Here's an article about maintaining ph, I hope it's helpful. http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/june2002/chem.htm this isn't a reef tank Link to comment
liveclown Posted October 10, 2008 Author Share Posted October 10, 2008 WOAH. Stop what you're doing, step away from the 'A' Bottle of the two part, and go read a book. Calcium and Alkalinity go hand in hand when maintaining ph (that's why you get BOTH bottles at once). Then why have I been alright so far?? My alk is correct!!! So do I then I just drip alk in and ato and cal. in a different. While we are on the sub. what is need to keep ph in range?? Link to comment
xbwolfx Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 i still don't think you need to be dosing anything... and since when is a 25g a pico? Link to comment
rotarymagic Posted October 10, 2008 Share Posted October 10, 2008 Then why have I been alright so far?? My alk is correct!!! So do I then I just drip alk in and ato and cal. in a different. While we are on the sub. what is need to keep ph in range?? light cycle and when to drip alk, calcium.. If your tank has ALOT of evap and depletes alk and calcium I would drip alk at night (If you add alot at once with lights on you may have a huge rise in pH) and calcium during the day to buffer. i still don't think you need to be dosing anything... and since when is a 25g a pico? That's a lowblow, there's no nano subsection only an AIO and pico..wtf. Link to comment
liveclown Posted October 11, 2008 Author Share Posted October 11, 2008 i still don't think you need to be dosing anything... and since when is a 25g a pico? Its not a pico. Whyy?? is this thread in the pico column lol?? Belongs in the water chemsrty,huh. Link to comment
xbwolfx Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Its not a pico. Whyy?? is this thread in the pico column lol?? Belongs in the water chemsrty,huh. yeah. i don't really care, i just noticed which forum it was in and thought it was funny. either way, i'm still waiting for someone to chime in and tell me why you would ever dose ANYTHING in a 25g fowlr tank. Link to comment
xenon Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 i'm still waiting for someone to chime in and tell me why you would ever dose ANYTHING in a 25g fowlr tank. Just because its a FOWLR tank does not mean you should be lazy and not dose anything. I would drip kalk to maintain alk and ph stability. It will also keep calcium in check. Link to comment
xbwolfx Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 Just because its a FOWLR tank does not mean you should be lazy and not dose anything. I would drip kalk to maintain alk and ph stability. It will also keep calcium in check. i don't see how not doing something that is absolutely unnecessary = lazy i am asking why it is needed in such a small fowlr. i mean, i think most people would agree that even a 15g reef with zoas, shrooms, and softies could do fine with just weekly water changes. Link to comment
xenon Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 It depends on his bioload. If nitrates are an issue that will drop alk very quickly and his ph will be low as a result. Link to comment
Kirin1 Posted October 11, 2008 Share Posted October 11, 2008 this isn't a reef tank It doesn't matter, it's still Salt Water, right? Whatever livestock you have in your tank, the chemical principles governing water quality are 100% the same. What changes with stocking is how you replace what your livestock uses. I'm trying to get you to look at WHY you are dosing to boost your alkalinity rather than HOW. Link to comment
skye144 Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 Im sorry if I missed it, but what is the problem with the ph? is it too low or too high? Link to comment
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