Dosing vs. Calcium Reactor vs. WHAT DO YOU DO?!

[PhreeByrd]

I have done both, and with a large enough system, a calcium reactor is definitely my preference. Once dialed in, it's just automatic. It's also pretty easily controlled. I used it on 150g and 180g mixed reefs. On a 75g, it was more trouble than it was worth, just because it takes up quite a bit of space, is harder to dial in with smaller water volumes, and dosing 2-part or 3-part with a dosing pump is cheap and easy.

Maybe @Randy Holmes-Farley can chime in here, but I question whether a calcium reactor, even though it is dissolving coral skeletons, is able to equally or proportionally dissolve all of the minor trace elements in the media. It will definitely take care of the big concerns, though -- I think that's been well-demonstrated.

 

[Potatohead]

The reactor trace element thing is kind of a moot point nowadays, unless you are using basic two part I guess. There are quite a few affordable dosing options that contain the trace elements within them. I think most of these discussions typically end up with a reactor being preferred for larger systems or very heavy demand systems, nobody wants to be dosing 200+ ml per day. However on smaller systems being able to dose each separately is nice when you need to, and mixing solution every month or two is no big deal.

 

[ca1ore]

I question whether a calcium reactor, even though it is dissolving coral skeletons, is able to equally or proportionally dissolve all of the minor trace elements in the media. It will definitely take care of the big concerns, though -- I think that's been well-demonstrated.

Chemically I don't know. Even though I do run a CaRx, I do still supplement certain trace elements like iodine and iron - though a lot less than before the reactor (though that was 20 years ago). Perhaps coral skeletons don't contain either in appreciable quantities since they are used by molting inverts and macros mainly.

 

[Zack33]

This has been awesome guys! Glad you could all start this discussion!
So from what I'm gathering, let me know what you would think of this idea.

Use a calcium reactor as the bulk of the maintenance. I could use it and run it a little bit below the required amount (potentially), and then just use bulk element dosing to finish it, once water chem results are done and I see what is going on.
I currently do an ICP test once every 2-3 months, but use Salifert test kits weekly (sometimes twice a week) to check Calcium, Magnesium, Alkalinity and Phosphate. I then also use more Salifert kits once a month to test copper, iron, potassium, and something else I'm forgetting. Can anyone think of anything important that testing for more regularly than the ICP would be worth it?

I'm curious to learn more about the benefits of breaking down old coral skeletons vs. just dosing.

 

[AlexG]

I am using a calcium reactor on my system which is ~1600 gallons. I dose minor elements by hand as needed. I find the calcium reactor is pretty care free with a some minor maintenance once a week to check the drip rate.

 

[Tajaba]

Maybe it depends on where you live as well. But this was a question I've been asking myself for the past 2 years. After holding off for a year I decided to buy a CaRx (the AC4 by pacific sun). My Tank is still relatively young, but a 4000L tank does consume alot of elements and It became very boring to have to top them off every 2 weeks. This is in conjunction with dosing kalk. My tank doses 800ml of Kh, around 700 Ca and 250ml Mg. Finally had enough and decided to try out CaRx. Will see how it goes, but Reactor media is cheap here in Asia (its local afterall)

 

[Ridgeway]

Roughly 750g of mixed reef here that has been on Balling Lite since day one and for almost 2yrs with a KHG to fine tune the Alk. I dose around 1000ml of SB p/day which is split over 2 dosing channels, then the dynamic balance via the KHG. Personally i like the fine tuning that Balling lite offers and as i already had all the equipment it seemed reasonable to start that way. For mixing you can get that pretty slick so you don't really spend too much time on that.

If i were to run a Calc RX then it would be either a DaStaCo or one of the newer Deltec Twin Chamber units but the outlay on equipment vs using some 2nd hand old GhL doers out weighed it for me.

 

[Reefahholic]

GHL 2.1 SA. Dropping Alk in early am hours. Can dose up to 150x a day automatically if I wanted or 8x individually. Can dose down to 0.1ml. So easy to get on my phone a press a button from the couch. My tank is 75/G SPS dominated. KHD will be coming soon to tighten it up. Have a Jebao DP4 dosing other desired elements as well. Best $70 doser on the market if you mount it vertical. You can check out my YouTube video on the Vertical Mount if you’re curious. Running Triton and supplementing with ESV. Wink Wink

If I had a 180/G or larger SPS dominated reef...I’d consider running a CaRx. Honestly don’t see that happening unless I get a sponsor. Lol.

-Trace Elements can easily be added these days.
-Dosing is so easy with quality pumps, cloud access, & phone apps.
-Dosing 150x a day or using two heads is very stable and I see no reason to change or drop 2K on other equipment.

 

[ca1ore]

yes, please do !

Never got around to posting a reply to this …. MTC have close their doors. Apparently health issues and dealing with hobbyists for almost 30 years was more than enough.

 

[McPuff]

I dosed for a few years and switched to calcium reactor just about 3 years ago. First was a DIY and ended up being quite cheap. Worked really well but wasn't cutting it when I upgraded my tank (120 -> 300). Noticed a difference in growth and color of my corals after switching to calcium reactor. While dosing was easy enough, I find the reactor to be much easier. Something to keep in mind regarding trace elements is that not all of them would be used by the skeletons. Some elements are required by the actual flesh of the corals and may be not deposited in the skeleton in appreciable amounts. That said, I don't really worry about it. I dose lugols sometimes and the rest I assume is kept at adequate levels with small water changes.