Calcium reactor extra coarse ARM media

[lReef lKeeper]

To those of you running calcium reactors with ARM EC media ...
What do you run your ph controller at ?? The specs for the media says "The highest solubility of any reactor media (metastable at 8.2)". Am I wrong to assume this means that anything below 8.2 ph will dissolve the media ?? Somewhat new to reactors and this is my first purchase of new media, so please bare with me ...

 

[jda]

That is not really right... gonna need to be in the 6s to get any kind of appreciable dissolving. It might "buffer" a bit at 8.0 like live rock or live sand, but not really melt.

I don't use a pH controller or probe in my reactor - quit about 10 years ago and just test effluent dKh now. Back then, 6.4 would melt ARM quite well. 6.1 would turn it to mush and 6.7 would not do much at all.

 

[lReef lKeeper]

That is not really right... gonna need to be in the 6s to get any kind of appreciable dissolving. It might "buffer" a bit at 8.0 like live rock or live sand, but not really melt.

I don't use a pH controller or probe in my reactor - quit about 10 years ago and just test effluent dKh now. Back then, 6.4 would melt ARM quite well. 6.1 would turn it to mush and 6.7 would not do much at all.

So you're saying that I need to drop it down to 6.5 ish ??

 

[jda]

...somewhere in there, but just because a hobby grade pH probe and controller says that you are at 6.5, this does not mean that you actually are. Don't trust this any more than you have to - they wander, fail and otherwise are fragile beasts. If you set it there, wait a day and then test the effluent for dKh. If you are at 20-25 dKh, then you are good... if not, then it could need lowered.

Let us know how it tests out tomorrow.

Once you get the dKh to 20-25, then you measure effluent in MLs and county bubbles. This is your magic ratio for your setup. Then, you raise and lower both in that same magic ratio until the tank dKh stays stable. This will be easier if you let the reactor run 24/7 uninterrupted and not use the pH controller. You can use the pH controller to shut the co2 off if it gets to like 6.2, or something, but I would not use it to control the co2 for everyday use.