Alk Additive question.

[bakbay]

Well, if you're looking for a "cheaper" alternative (albeit LONG term, ROI in 12-18 months?), go with a calcium reactor. At 110g full of acros and growing (and likely a lot of coralline), you might be consuming 0.75 - 1dKH/day? At 58mls/day, I'm guestimating that you're currently paying ~$45/mo in Alk alone? You're supposed to dose Ca in equal amount so $90/mo total? Switching to BRS (or other DIY solutions) may bring you down to $60/mo - $720/year? Again, guessing on my part.

Understand that the upfront cost can be daunting but one can put together a decent CaRx system for less than $500 in the used market. The media might cost you ~$30/year going forward. Additionally, it's less work mixing jugs and all. I just change my media once / year -- just set it and forget it!

My 2c

 

[A_Blind_Reefer]

Well, if you're looking for a "cheaper" alternative (albeit LONG term, ROI in 12-18 months?), go with a calcium reactor. At 110g full of acros and growing (and likely a lot of coralline), you might be consuming 0.75 - 1dKH/day? At 58mls/day, I'm guestimating that you're currently paying ~$45/mo in Alk alone? You're supposed to dose Ca in equal amount so $90/mo total? Switching to BRS (or other DIY solutions) may bring you down to $60/mo - $720/year? Again, guessing on my part.

Understand that the upfront cost can be daunting but one can put together a decent CaRx system for less than $500 in the used market. The media might cost you ~$30/year going forward. Additionally, it's less work mixing jugs and all. I just change my media once / year -- just set it and forget it!

My 2c

Especially as two part additive pricing has been going up so much over the last few years. I’ve been running a carx for less than a year now and I’m almost at the break even point where it would have paid for itself. I was paying a bit more for two part though as I switched to the pre measured one gallon packs when I was no longer able to weigh/measure/mix with my limitations. Fifteen bucks every three months for co2 (would be cheaper with a larger cylinder), twenty five ish for media my first six months. Dialing it in took some effort and lead to an additional purchase of a carbon doser but I have extremely limited vision and if I can do it….. anyone can

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Well, if you're looking for a "cheaper" alternative (albeit LONG term, ROI in 12-18 months?), go with a calcium reactor. At 110g full of acros and growing (and likely a lot of coralline), you might be consuming 0.75 - 1dKH/day? At 58mls/day, I'm guestimating that you're currently paying ~$45/mo in Alk alone?

Where did those numbers come from?

If you use baking soda, its far lower than you estimate.

A pound is less than 2 dollars and can raise 110 gallons by 1 dKH every day for more than a month.

 

[bakbay]

Where did those numbers come from?

If you use baking soda, its far lower than you estimate.

A pound is less than 2 dollars and can raise 110 gallons by 1 dKH every day for more than a month.

I was looking at his current Red Sea 1000mls bottles as a sample - that's expensive at $29/1000mls = 17 days so he'll need 2 bottles a month = $60 + Ca (which he's not dosing in equal parts) -- that's how I got an estimated $90/mo.

Red Sea Cal & Alk

Bulk Reef Supply - Saltwater Aquarium Supplies for Reef Tanks

www.bulkreefsupply.com

With the BRS 2-part, you'll get a gallon of Alk and Ca for $47 + shipping. That's 3785mls / 58mls per day = 65 days (~2months), that's ~$23/month. I made a mistake here and added another one for Ca. So it will take ~24mos to break even on a CaRx.

2-Part Pharma Calcium & Alkalinity Starter Package

Start Replenishing Calcium and Alkalinity in your Reef Tank! Keep your corals growing with the BRS 2-Part Calcium & Alkalinity Starter Package. The kit includes everything to make one gallon of calcium, alkalinity, and magnesium and to start daily dosing, it even includes mixing jugs, dispensing...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

Thanks for the correction. I should not have referenced "the DIY solutions", which means baking soda and it is a lot cheaper.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I was looking at his current Red Sea 1000mls bottles as a sample - that's expensive at $29/1000mls = 17 days so he'll need 2 bottles a month = $60 + Ca (which he's not dosing in equal parts) -- that's how I got an estimated $90/mo.

Red Sea Cal & Alk

Bulk Reef Supply - Saltwater Aquarium Supplies for Reef Tanks

www.bulkreefsupply.com

With the BRS 2-part, you'll get a gallon of Alk and Ca for $47 + shipping. That's 3785mls / 58mls per day = 65 days (~2months), that's ~$23/month. I made a mistake here and added another one for Ca. So it will take ~24mos to break even on a CaRx.

2-Part Pharma Calcium & Alkalinity Starter Package

Start Replenishing Calcium and Alkalinity in your Reef Tank! Keep your corals growing with the BRS 2-Part Calcium & Alkalinity Starter Package. The kit includes everything to make one gallon of calcium, alkalinity, and magnesium and to start daily dosing, it even includes mixing jugs, dispensing...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

Thanks for the correction. I should not have referenced "the DIY solutions", which means baking soda and it is a lot cheaper.

Thanks.

 

[billyocean]

Anyone know how many meq/l the 297 gram bicarbonate 1 gallon solution adds per ml per 25 gallons?

 

[gbroadbridge]

Anyone know how many meq/l the 297 gram bicarbonate 1 gallon solution adds per ml per 25 gallons?

As a quick calculation approximately 0.00000264172 meq/l

edit: But someone else better check

 

[billyocean]

As a quick calculation approximately 0.00000264172 meq/l

Thanks..just trying to get a close starting point to what I'm dosing now as it's 1ml=.036 meq/l (25 gallons)

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Anyone know how many meq/l the 297 gram bicarbonate 1 gallon solution adds per ml per 25 gallons?

Use this calculator and Randy’s Recipe #2.

Reef Chemistry Calculator