Dosing with my ATO?

[Jon Fishman]

I am not yet to the point of setting up dosing pumps and measuring Mg and Ca etc but I read about people adding Kalkwasser etc to their top-off water to manage how much is dosed.

Here are my questions:

My fresh water reservoir is a 35g tank.
I have my ATO pump in the bottom of the tank (naturally)

If I or can I add my Kalkwasser, Reef Builder, and Reef Buffer solutions directly to the top-off water, and for the Kalkwasser specifically, can I just run a powerhead in the ATO reservoir constantly to keep the solution in suspension?

This is my current plan at least.

Filtration consists of filter socks that don’t get changed often enough (plan to remove). A bubble Magus curve 5 Elite skimmer, an Avast Mutiny V2 Ozone reactor, Carbon Post, and Poseidon 220 Ozone Generator.

Thoughts? Do I need to turn the powerhead off and let the Kalkwasser fall out of suspension?

 

[Moxtrain]

You don't want to agitate the kalkwasser. It will interact with atmospheric co2 and will no longer buffer properly.

 

[Jon Fishman]

so agitation for 15 minutes and then jist let it sit?

 

[UCF Alum]

No Powerhead.
You can put kalc in the ATO. Mix it for a few seconds upon addition then don’t touch it again. Lift your ATO pump a few inches off the bottom so it doesn’t suck the settled powder and you’re good to go.

 

[BeejReef]

Agree - I do this as well. No agitation beyond the initial mix. If you find that you're solution is too strong, you can actually stir it or mix it to dilute it's potency. The wildcard is your evaporation rate. If you have good climate control and your house is always 72 degrees, it'll probably work well. We go from windows open, to closed running AC.... from 70-78 degrees. Your alk will swing pretty much in line with your evap rate.

Another drawback is forgetting to unplug your ato when doing a water change or drip acclimating new livestock. Anytime your ato kicks on for a prolonged period, you risk spiking your alk.

 

[Rubblereefer]

You don't want to agitate the kalkwasser. It will interact with atmospheric co2 and will no longer buffer properly.

Randy Holmes Farley (sp?) did an article about this. Although it is technically true, it doesnt drop the potency significantly enough to be a real issue. With that said I agree there is really no need to agitate it, it mixes in with a quick 3 second stir.

 

[Rubblereefer]

OP make sure you elevate your pump a little bit off the bottom, you dont want to dose that solid crud at the bottom of the kalkwasser ato reservoir. I have my little pump suction cupped to one of those plastic little "tables" that holds up the center of a pizza box if you know what I mean

 

[Jon Fishman]

Sounds good guys! I hope to get a legitimate dosing setup one day..... but we will see