anyone dose Kalk?

[geaux xman]

what method are you using? what kind of dose?

 

i have a 17g that is almost 2 weeks into the cycle. looks like i'm getting a very low pH of 7.4 in the DT(cycling) and my 29g mix-water tank. i'm still waiting for a new pH meter and alk test kit to come in next week.

 

sp grav 1.024

Ca 520

Mg 1474

Phos 0

Ammonia now 0, was 5+

Nitrite = Positive

 

not even sure how i'm getting those Ca/Mg level using Instant Ocean salt, buit thats the level I got using a lab analyzer from work.

[Dasani]

Your talking about kalwasser? We dose that every now and then...but mostly I use the bulk reef supply 2 part kit. It was like $45. Recipe 1 raises pH. Or you could just use a buffer. But I would wait until your tank is done cycling before trying anything.

 

Calcium is a lil high. I like to keep mine at 440.

Should come down over time when you get snails and crabs. Their shells will absorb it to grow.

Mag seems ok

Your ammonia is 5?!?! or .5?

Nitrite...positive as in none is there and you good? Or your getting a positive reading of some nitrites?

 

I use Reef crystals and it works great for me. My cousin uses instant ocean and it's fine for him.

 

Instead of the lab kits, I would get API kits and/or Salifert to be more acurate, because those are made for saltwater aquariums specificly. MOst people like to use salifert for calcium, mag, and alk. And API for everything else.

[geaux xman]

i am Cycling. my Ammonia was 5+ and now its 0. Now i'm waiting for my nitrite to go away..

 

i work at 2 different hospital labs. those numbers are from equipment worth 100K+ that is used to test blood/urine. I still dont know how i'm getting Ca 500+ and Mg 1400+ using Instant Ocean Salt at 1.024.

My Ca level with IO should be closer to 400.

 

i'm waiting for a new pH meter that should arrive next week along with an API test kit for Nitrates and Alk.

 

this is with an MP10 and AquaClear50 running in the 17g DT.

 

my SW in the QT(empty also) is consistently low at 7.4 too. So i'm pretty sure my low pH problem will probably persist even after my cycling period is over.

 

keeping the windows open isnt really an option since its 95+ outside.

[bird]

I have been dosing kalk (1-2 tsp per gl of top-off/Mrs Wages brand) though a dosing pump for over a year now and I love it.

It keeps my calcium at about 450 average, ph I don't check as it is not important as long as calcium, alk and mag levels are maintained and what I really love about it is that my alk stays dead on at 9dkh without adding anything else.

Oh, I do dose magnesium, but that is all besides the kalk/top-off water.

I am trying to get a local friend to use kalk as he keeps having problems with ph and alk.

Right now he uses like 3 different things to maintain alk, mag and calcium and still has problems maintaining levels.

I test about once a month my mag, alk and calcium and have been really happy with the results. Made no changes in the time I have used it.

a recent pic to show that it has been working great

[geaux xman]

bird, what brand salt do you use?

[bird]

bird, what brand salt do you use?

I was using Crystal Bio, then RC and now Tropic Marin. I know it is not good to keep switching and really wasn't having any problems with any of the others, but you know how reef keepers are.

Working pretty well. The sps have been growing much faster since the salt change.

[nibor]

I still dont know how i'm getting Ca 500+ and Mg 1400+ using Instant Ocean Salt at 1.024.

My Ca level with IO should be closer to 400.

 

My guess: you are not using RODI water to make up salt water and your fresh water has a high calcium content.

 

pH buffers lead to alkalinity problems. Manage alk and pH will be OK. If you still have low pH in a cycled tank with good alkalinity, the problem is excessive CO₂. I've used kalkwasser and it's great provided you know the correct amount to add and don't add it too quickly. Adding kalk to a tank with CA at 500+ is not an option.

 

Low pH Causes and Cures.

 

Further reading.

[lakshwadeep]

If you're cycling, then you shouldn't be dosing anything or even worrying about pH, which is unstable during a cycle. Also, what exactly is in each of your tanks now (live rock, sand, etc.)?

 

What is the brand/model of the lab analyzer you're using? Saltwater can be difficult to measure with an unfamiliar device since it contains many different things.

[geaux xman]

nibor, my water is filtered thru a stage 5plus BRS ro/di and the output has a TDS of zero.

 

like i said, even in the the QT tank(empty 10g) and the 29g tank(empty) that i'm using to mix the ro/di saltwater, the CA consistently reads 500+ and pH 7.4ish. when i was mixing it and testing the water, i had the mp10 in there to mix the salt for a couple of days.

 

the 17g DT tank that is cycling has ~15lbs LR, and 20lbs of "live sand".

 

i'm using the Beckman DXC 600 at one work place.

 

at another work place, the Advia 1800 by Siemens

 

these machines run urine too which has a sp gravity of anywhere from 1.000 to 1.030+, so running some SW should not be an an issue.

 

i'm waiting for a HM Digital pH meter to arrive in the mail. Those pH readings were off a Pinnacle Benchtop pH meter at my work.

accuracy +/- 0.001 price $2000.

http://www.coleparmer.com/catalog/product_...890720&pfx=

 

sp gravity done on 2 different refractomers that is checked against standard solutions to ensure accuracy.

[geaux xman]

If you're cycling, then you shouldn't be dosing anything or even worrying about pH, which is unstable during a cycle. Also, what exactly is in each of your tanks now (live rock, sand, etc.)?

 

i will wait to get my ALK levels, then perhaps change salt brands.

 

if my pH levels still persist after cycling, then i will dose. i'm just thinking about what dosing options i will have.

whats concerning is my SW mix pH is 7.4ish, which is most likely due to the CO2 content in that bedroom.

[franklypre]

Ph can be variable depending on light cycle and as far as testing I would quit until you are through with the cycle and do a 50% WC or more.

[M1A1]

Where in your house/apt/etc is the tank located?

 

I see a constant 0.4-unit pH depression with my display tank in our basement when our AC or furnace are running. I added a fresh air line to the skimmer intake but apparently the surface agitation is more significant and there was no change. Can't wait for the Fall when the windows will be open, I might see the 8.0+ pH range for the first time in four months.

 

 

Marty

[lakshwadeep]

Mixing RO/DI water, which often has a low pH before any salt is added due to no buffering capacity, and reading its pH is not a good indication of what will happen in the tank, where photosynthesis and calcification (using up carbonate/bicarbonate) are going to interact with external carbon dioxide levels.

 

Also, using kalkwasser (calcium hydroxide), which will increase both alkalinity and calcium simultaneously, would not be a good idea if your calcium remains a 520 ppm. You might want to double check your tests (not really the pH, but Ca, Mg, etc.) with a SW-specific test.

 

This is a good four part guide to reef water chemistry that more fully answers some of your questions.

Part 1: The Saltwater Itself

Part 2: What Chemicals Must be Supplemented

Part 3: pH

Part 4: What Chemicals May Detrimentally Accumulate

[nibor]

nibor, my water is filtered thru a stage 5plus BRS ro/di and the output has a TDS of zero......I had the mp10 in there to mix the salt for a couple of days.

 

Concerning the calcium then it's one of three possibilities.

 

1. It's a bad batch of salt.

2. The salt has not been adequately mixed or has settled out during transport.

3. There's a problem for some reason with the testing accuracy.

 

As your obviously scientifically minded, if you haven't already, check out the second link I posted before. The canreef library has a lot of URLs for articles about salt water chemistry and more.

[bird]

If you are using API test kit then that may be reason for getting high reading. Mine, each of the last 3 kits I have used, all read high. They do stay consistent with each other so I have base-lined them against a Tropic Marin and Salifert. What reads 500 is really about 420 according to my tests.

Whoops, sorry, I forgot you are using electronic equipment. But to those using the API, expect the reading to be high when it is not really as such.

[Z Rex]

As was stated earlier, probably too much CO2. Try opening windows in the tank room and see if that helps. CO2 can easily build up inside to levels much higher than regular, especially in new energy efficient homes that are tightly sealed. As CO2 dissolved in the water creates carbonic acid, which will lower the pH of the water. If this is the problem, you should see your pH rise to normal levels once the excess co2 has diffused out of the water.