Alkalinity and Calcium Supplementation Methods Poll

[srobertb]

Did well with kalkwasser in smaller tanks (sub 60 gallon) that were mixed. Have been successful (but not financially I guess) using Red Sea a/b/c.

We are upgrading to a 200g shortly with 400-500 TWV and a sump in an unfinished basement. I’m interested (and afraid) of how this will affect consumption and may need to switch to a reactor.


Back on the subject of Kalk- I imagine it would be more difficult here in Texas where for whatever reasons evaporation swings greatly from summer to winter (despite keeping our home well heated cooled

 

[srobertb]

BRS 2 part in my 220. About ~100ml of both a day for a newer mixed reef. Target 9.5 Alk and 420 Cal. Mag stays around 1420.
I was just going to ask if anyone that uses BRS 2 part, how they like it or go with something else. I have good color and growth I think but have just been trying Corals for a couple years. Just did fish only for many years.

I use the Red Sea A/B/C and I’ve been happy with it. I did try mixing my own but felt like it was a PITA and I didn’t feel as confident that it was right.

I just replace a 5L jug every 1-2 months of Alk and less than that for Calc and Mag and it’s easy (but pricey).

I am upgrading to a 200g shortly and have concerns that I’m going to go broke using the Red Sea. I have large acropora colonies, use Tropic Marin Pro Reef, and dose(d) around 65ml a day in my 120g

 

[Garf]

How’s about kalk what the heck vinegar. The bacterial film on the glass appears to inhibit algal growth. Bit like running an algae scrubber.

 

[Gtinnel]

I use Randy’s recipe diy 2 part. I currently do get my calcium chloride from BRS though. I’m am on the fence about switching to Peladow ice melt.

 

[Wildblue4]

I use the BRS 2 part and it mixes very easy. I use the same scale, measuring cup and marked the level on my jugs so I can get the same mix. About the part C. Balling??
I use RedSea AB+, and A B C D trace elements weekly. Should I still look into part C from Tropical Marin?

 

[Cichlid Dad]

My tank is new, and just the last month I had to start adding alk and mag. Once I figured out how to keep everything balanced my tank took off. All of the sps are in high gear, Coralline algae is starting everywhere. Now I'm trying to figure out the best way to supplement . Should I try All for 1 or a 2part with mag. I want to be able to keep my big 3 at the same level day to day.

 

[DanyL]

Did well with kalkwasser in smaller tanks (sub 60 gallon) that were mixed. Have been successful (but not financially I guess) using Red Sea a/b/c.

We are upgrading to a 200g shortly with 400-500 TWV and a sump in an unfinished basement. I’m interested (and afraid) of how this will affect consumption and may need to switch to a reactor.


Back on the subject of Kalk- I imagine it would be more difficult here in Texas where for whatever reasons evaporation swings greatly from summer to winter (despite keeping our home well heated cooled

Honestly, it depends on the amount and type of corals you plan to grow.
Consumption rate vastly changes between systems, no matter their size.

For comparison, my current tank is 206g, fully packed SPS dominated mixed reef and the regular consumption rate is around 45 grams of Sodium Bicarbonate per day (550ml of fully saturated Sodium Carbonate), This equals to a new 5L jug every ~9 days of my highly concentrated DIY solution, or 6 and half days with Red Sea's concentration.

Consumption rate for the other parts is comparable, although thanks to their higher solubility the concentrations we use are a lot more potent and in turn last longer.

That being said, whenever we restart multiple, high demanding large colonies our consumption rate drops quite a bit, on our last restart few weeks ago of a couple of really large colonies, and massive pruning of other colonies the consumption decreased by ~100ml less per day and is only now starting to slowly build up again.

But I also know many with systems the same size which are much less intensive with the amount and size of corals they keep, and dose somewhere between 50ml to 100ml per day, that is, at Red Sea's concentration.

As for the economics, I've been using a DIY 3-part for 15 years, purchasing the simplest, cheapest baking soda I could find in the supermarket and the other salts from a local chemical supply chain which last me around half a year at the cost of 1 month of a commercial solution. So it does add up, and definitely makes it a bit more tolerable.

 

[Katherine Corals]

Excellent Poll! I love seeing how others are maintaining important elements of the reef. I use a Kalkwasser stir bar reactor with supplemented Sodium Hydroxide.

 

[srobertb]

Honestly, it depends on the amount and type of corals you plan to grow.
Consumption rate vastly changes between systems, no matter their size.

For comparison, my current tank is 206g, fully packed SPS dominated mixed reef and the regular consumption rate is around 45 grams of Sodium Bicarbonate per day (550ml of fully saturated Sodium Carbonate), This equals to a new 5L jug every ~9 days of my highly concentrated DIY solution, or 6 and half days with Red Sea's concentration.

Consumption rate for the other parts is comparable, although thanks to their higher solubility the concentrations we use are a lot more potent and in turn last longer.

That being said, whenever we restart multiple, high demanding large colonies our consumption rate drops quite a bit, on our last restart few weeks ago of a couple of really large colonies, and massive pruning of other colonies the consumption decreased by ~100ml less per day and is only now starting to slowly build up again.

But I also know many with systems the same size which are much less intensive with the amount and size of corals they keep, and dose somewhere between 50ml to 100ml per day, that is, at Red Sea's concentration.

As for the economics, I've been using a DIY 3-part for 15 years, purchasing the simplest, cheapest baking soda I could find in the supermarket and the other salts from a local chemical supply chain which last me around half a year at the cost of 1 month of a commercial solution. So it does add up, and definitely makes it a bit more tolerable.

To the “restart” statement, I have been able to use Alk consumption to determine when SPS colonies are doing well and poorly. Consumptions drops and Alk spikes (auto DOS and trident) when things look off.

Our tank sprang a leak and we put everything in holding tanks then back in a temporary tank. We were Ill prepared and lost some corals and fish. My consumption is still down by approximately 30% a month later.

 

[Kmst80]

I use Coral Essentials Calcium, Carbonate and Magnesium from Sustainable Reefs. Local Producer. And they add Trace Elements in it too.

 

[Reefer Matt Verified Media Partner]

I hope the technology has improved for kalk additions, as I remember many crashed tanks from 20 years ago.

 

[South Carolina reef]

Are or should levels be calculated differently for LPS vs SPS dominant systems?

 

[World Citizen]

Tropic Marin 3 part.

The third part is a nice bonus, but in essence I use Balling.

To make the picture complete.
- 2 weekly waterchange for now (Tropic Marin Pro Reef)
- Tropic Marin A- and K+ supliments.

Build : https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/free-reef-world-citizen.929934/page-2#post-10966806

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Are or should levels be calculated differently for LPS vs SPS dominant systems?

While it is often claimed as such by some salt mix makers, I see no particular reason to do so.

 

[DanyL]

To the “restart” statement, I have been able to use Alk consumption to determine when SPS colonies are doing well and poorly. Consumptions drops and Alk spikes (auto DOS and trident) when things look off.

Our tank sprang a leak and we put everything in holding tanks then back in a temporary tank. We were Ill prepared and lost some corals and fish. My consumption is still down by approximately 30% a month later.

Oh Alk spikes are definitely a good indicator for potentially ongoing issues with the system, usually you can spot it even before you see any visual signs on corals.

I'm sorry to hear about the leak, that's unfortunate

While it is often claimed as such by some salt mix makers, I see no particular reason to do so.

Well, I somewhat disagree with you on this.
While corals can, and will adapt to a wide range of parameters and will grow just fine, some corals do benefit from keeping them under certain levels.

For example, keeping acros with elevated Kh/Ca and nutrients will make them grow faster than usual, however it'll often come at the cost of darker colors and brittle skeletons.

Another example would be Ricordea Florida, that will thrive with much higher levels of nutrients and iodine than it'd be safe to keep other corals at.

And there are a lot of other tid bits that one could tailor when growing a certain type of coral to make it happier than in a mixed reef, where you're basically obliged to meet everybody's needs.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Any other folks what to vote?

 

[BTimms]

Excellent Poll! I love seeing how others are maintaining important elements of the reef. I use a Kalkwasser stir bar reactor with supplemented Sodium Hydroxide.

What kalk stirrer do you use?