Coral Bones or Pure Calcium Carbonate?

[X-37B]

Not much out there on Pure calcium carbonate useage in a calcium reactor. I just hooked up my reactor and am running the Tunze media.
About all I have read in the US is it needs a very low ph to disolve and most people do not run it. Would like to hear from anyone running it or did run it in the past. Positive or negative results are ok as most I have read have been negative in the US.
Here is my system thats just getting started with early results.
Tank 120 6 months old.
40 breeder sump.
Tunze 3171 reactor running Tunze media.
ADA 2 stage regulator with
Clippard EV Mouse solenoid.
Swagelok S series metering valve.
Currently running 10psi
55 bpm
28 ml pm
Dkh effluent 14.5
Effluent ph 6.8
Tank dkh 8.3
Tank ph 8.0 night 8.2 day

Effluent dkh ph 6.8 but media is disolving. Most say, even Tunze, it need to be 6.5 or even less. I have 3 different ph meters and all read the same.
I do not run a 2nd chamber or a so called degasser.
I do not use a controller and have the solenoid only to shut down if I lose power.
I do run kalk in the ato but only 1/4 teasppon per 10 gallons as it help keep ph above 8 even before the addition of the reactor.
I dose strontium weekly and trace daily.
Anyone thats running pure calcium carbonate I would love to hear from.

 

[reef lover]

Bump!

 

[Malifry97]

Interested

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Following! Anyone in the @ReefSquad have any thoughts?

 

[nereefpat]

@jda Is a Ca Rx guy

 

[Gareth elliott]

How are you testing ph? I noticed You said no controller Are you using a meter of some kind or a test kit?
i like two little fishes reborn so I do not have to dose magnesium or trace simply because it’s in the coral skeleton Already. But I have never used pure calcium carbonate to qualify that statement.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I’m not sure what you mean by pure calcium carbonate. Some folks use limestone and it works fine. Greg Hiller discusses it here:

Aquarium Frontiers Library Library

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

How are you testing ph? I noticed You said no controller Are you using a meter of some kind or a test kit?
i like two little fishes reborn so I do not have to dose magnesium or trace simply because it’s in the coral skeleton Already. But I have never used pure calcium carbonate to qualify that statement.

Just to clarify the trace element issue, using any type of media only adds back what was deposited into coral skeletons, not what is taken up into tissue if corals, algae, etc.

Thus, you may still benefit from supplements such as iron, manganese, silicate, etc.

 

[X-37B]

I’m not sure what you mean by pure calcium carbonate. Some folks use limestone and it works fine. Greg Hiller discusses it here:

Aquarium Frontiers Library Library

Its tunze media, pure was probably the wrong word. It just replaces alk and ca.

 

[X-37B]

Just to clarify the trace element issue, using any type of media only adds back what was deposited into coral skeletons, not what is taken up into tissue if corals, algae, etc.

Thus, you may still benefit from supplements such as iron, manganese, silicate, etc.

I add trace elements and test only for strontium and iodine but the trace adds other too. DSR trace elements.

 

[X-37B]

How are you testing ph? I noticed You said no controller Are you using a meter of some kind or a test kit?
i like two little fishes reborn so I do not have to dose magnesium or trace simply because it’s in the coral skeleton Already. But I have never used pure calcium carbonate to qualify that statement.

I dont really test ph. Although I have several meters and the effluent is 6.8.
I just check bubbles and effluent concentration.
Currently effluent is 21.8 dkh. Bubbles 64pm and effluent flow 20 ml pm.
Tank stays at dkh of 8.0.
I was curious what others run ph in the reactor/effluent as many have said a ph of below 6.5 is needed to dissolve Tunze media which is man made. I know jda tried something similar and did not like it.
Tank ph runs 7.9 at night and 8.1 daytime
So far im happy with the Tunze media.

 

[ReefGeezer]

I'm setting up a calcium reactor for two reasons: 1) Keeping up with demand more easily; and 2) getting that unquantified/unidentified boost of "stuff" contained in the dead coral skeletons. Can't speak to the science, but I can see. I see a lot of truly remarkable tanks that are running calcium reactors with dead coral skeletons. I chose "Reborn" media for that same reason. I'm not so sure "Pure" calcium carbonate, some man made media, or limestone would have the same "stuff" in it.

 

[X-37B]

I’m not sure what you mean by pure calcium carbonate. Some folks use limestone and it works fine. Greg Hiller discusses it here:

Aquarium Frontiers Library Library

Interesting article. Thanks

 

[X-37B]

I'm setting up a calcium reactor for two reasons: 1) Keeping up with demand more easily; and 2) getting that unquantified/unidentified boost of "stuff" contained in the dead coral skeletons. Can't speak to the science, but I can see. I see a lot of truly remarkable tanks that are running calcium reactors with dead coral skeletons. I chose "Reborn" media for that same reason. I'm not so sure "Pure" calcium carbonate, some man made media, or limestone would have the same "stuff" in it.

The article Randy posted was interesting. I only wanted to add ca and alk. Although there are other elements in there. I just chose to test for big 3 and strontium and iodine. My trace supplies a few others too
I will send in a tank sample foe testing after running the reactor for a few months.
Mant ways to run a reef tank thats for sure. Just looking for feedback on non coral bone media.

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

Calcium carbonate will start to dissolve in acidic water. Ph 6.8 or under.
Question is how much you want it to dissolve, depends on the consumption of your tank.
If you drop ph too much the media will turn mushy.

 

[C. Eymann]

I have used Bright well aquatics Coral Lazarus- pure CaCO³ in my own as well as a few clients reactors many years ago when we were all super paranoid about adding PO4 to the tank through coral bones. I didn't really notice a big difference in tuning/dissovability. Its expensive though!

I also usually run a little dolomite in my reactors for magnesium too.
I switched because Reborn was hard to come by at the time and ARM switched from coral bones to some chunky mined limestone product for their course size media.

I used reborn for 4 refills on my old tank and was very happy with it, I will be running it again on my new reef as well.

Agree with Randy, many think that by using coral bones you are adding all your trace, which is incorrect, mostly just calcium and carbonates but maybe a bit of strontium, magnesium, etc , but no trace utilized and stored in soft tissue will be replenished.
That being said, the only traces I really ever dosed very seldomly was iodine and potassium.

 

[X-37B]

I’m not sure what you mean by pure calcium carbonate. Some folks use limestone and it works fine. Greg Hiller discusses it here:

Aquarium Frontiers Library Library

Just an update from Tunze as to thier analysis of the 880.950 media. They say its man made and comes from the steel manufacturing industry. Here is the analysis. Seems to work well for me.
99.10% CaCO3, 0.40% MgCO3, 0.25% SiO2, 0.15% Al2O3, 0.04%. Fe2O3.

 

[minus9]

@90's reefer sorry, I had to dust off this old thread, but I'm thinking about using the Tunze media in my reactor and wanted to get your long term review if you're still using it? I dose trace elements individually, so I only want to add Ca/Kh via my reactor.
I didn't like the ARM media and Reborn which I like, adds too much PO4 into my system.

 

[X-37B]

@90's reefer sorry, I had to dust off this old thread, but I'm thinking about using the Tunze media in my reactor and wanted to get your long term review if you're still using it? I dose trace elements individually, so I only want to add Ca/Kh via my reactor.
I didn't like the ARM media and Reborn which I like, adds too much PO4 into my system.

I am using coral bones now only because I got 100lbs awhile ago cheap.
The effluent only adds 0.03 po4 to my system so no worries.

I had no issues running Tunze manmade media and would use it again if needed.

 

[minus9]

I am using coral bones now only because I got 100lbs awhile ago cheap.
The effluent only adds 0.03 po4 to my system so no worries.

I had no issues running Tunze manmade media and would use it again if needed.

Thanks! I'm going to try the Tunze media, just need to find a place that's not shipping from the east coast.