DIY Kalk Reactor Help

NY_Sea · Apr 24, 2020

Before you read all of this , scroll down to see pictures below, i know all reefers like pictures!!

so i am considering to use Kalk to supplement my tank and have a few questions that i could use some help with. i will also be using 2 part if needed.

i would like to replace all my evaporated water with lime water. but i know this can be dangerous due to potential overdose and high ph levels.

I decided to make a diy kalk reactor that will be fed via my Tunze 3155 ATO. see pic below and let me know what you think. tried to duplicate the $ 100 tunze dispenser lol

my plan is to connect the reactor to a 10 gallon reservoir. when reservoir is empty i will refill and add new kalk to the reactor at 1/2 tsp per gallon. i expect this to become a once a week chore.

I Did not want to add the kalk directly to my top off bucket so came up with this idea but i have some concerns.

So any help is much appreciated

1- if ATO is triggered during day when lights are on should i worry about raising my ph too high? should i instead set to dose auto top off at night only on a timer via apex?
or should i just let it run 24/7
i will limit the internal timer in the Tunzes osmolator to refill at a lower speed for shorter time to hopefully avoid large ph swings throughout the day

2- since evaporation rates vary should i be concerned about this. would it be better to just add via a doser so i know tank is receiving the same exact amount everyday.

3- any issue with dosing the top off lime water directly into main display in a high flow area . that is how i haven my auto line set up now.

4- I KNOW LIMEWATER IS SUPPOSED TO MAINTAIN LEVELS. ANY CONCERN THIS WILL RAISE LEVELS IF DOSED IN VARYING EVAPORATION AMOUNTS?

any recommendations or safety precautions in general you guys suggest. i really don't want to nuke my tank

years ago i gravity dripped kalk at night only and saw Ph improvements and also an explosion of corralling algae. i know reefers have used limewater for years but i want to make sure i am implementing the best methods for safety. as i said hooked to the tunze ato 24/7 makes me a little nervous ..

am i over thinking this?

THANKS!

ajjw0828 · Apr 24, 2020

Good thread and I'm looking forward to peoples responses. I just recently started trying to do things to hit that 8.3-8.4 mark and just set up a 5 gallon nucket with Kalk hooked up to a DOS. I did this for the same reason you stated have about being nervous with it hooked to an ATO. Recently I ran my CO2 scrubber intake line into the top of my skimmer as well. Happy I kept the Kalk separate because last night, still not sure why, my skimmer went nuts and filled my 5 gallon skimmer bucket, then proceeded to go all over my basement floor. My 20 gallon ATO proceeded to keep filling the tank till empty which if it had dosed 20 gallons of Kalk I'm pretty sure all my acros would be dead. Luckily I haven't seen any losses as of this morning. Now you could argue maybe there would have been a large pH increase which would have alerted me but even now I think I will keep them separate. I instead have installed a float switch on my skimmer collection bucket to shut the skimmer off. If you do decide to go the ATO route, I wouldn't be too worried about evap change, just test Alk regularly at first, and keep an eye on how fast your ATO depletes. I also wouldn't be worried about dosing to the main display. Anyways good luck! Your tank looks great!

R.Weller · Apr 24, 2020

We are using a gravity kalk drip from a 20gal Brute directly into the return chamber of the sump. The topoff container is elevated above the sump. As the evaporation rate rarely changes, the system adds 2 drops per second keeping all levels near constant.

I drilled a hole in the bottom of the Brute & connected with a gate valve. There is nothing mechanical to fail as is the case with an ATO. We've been very successful with this method for a few years; however, the gate must be adjusted daily as the down-pressure on the pipe changes as water drips from the Brute.

It's also worth noting that calcium will build-up over time inside the gate, so it will need to be flushed with vinegar. I tend to do this every 6 months.