Kalkwasser Alkalinity and Calcium

[KenRexford]

I am using some kalkwasser in my ATO. Ms. Fields I think. It's a tad on the old side. I have noticed that my alkalinity has increased fairly substantially since starting but that my calcium has barely increased if at all. Could this be a result of the pickling lime being old?

 

[Flippers4pups]

I am using some kalkwasser in my ATO. Ms. Fields I think. It's a tad on the old side. I have noticed that my alkalinity has increased fairly substantially since starting but that my calcium has barely increased if at all. Could this be a result of the pickling lime being old?

No, age shouldn't matter if it's kept in a sealed container.

What size tank? How much evaporation are you experiencing? How much calcium hydroxide are you adding to your ATO reservoir?

 

[nereefpat]

keep in mind that, even if dkH increases by an entire point, Ca will only increase about 7 ppm....which is impossible to see in our hobbyist test kits.

 

[KenRexford]

125g tank. ATO maybe 2/3 of a gallon per day. Alkalinity has gone from 8.1 to 10.1 in 1 month using hanna checker. Calcium MAYBE has gone from 380 to 400 using API test kit. ATI test at start was consistent with starting point on both. Ph has gone from about 7.5 to 8 with Hanna Checker but not sure if I calibrated it right. ATI test on magnesium was within parameters.

 

[ZoWhat]

...... I have noticed that my alkalinity has increased fairly substantially since starting but that my calcium has barely increased if at all.

IMO you need STOP what you are doing and find out what your weekly CONSUMPTION RATES are for Carbonate and Calc.

Before you know it....in a month your Alkalinity will be 15dKH or higher stressing and killing things.

If your Alk/Carbonate consumption isn't that much....STOP Kalk bc diluted Kalk is like 40+dKH you're putting in your tank.

You need to be 2parting instead. Using different ml amounts for Part1 and Part2

You're gonna kill your tank with the best intentions....

 

[KenRexford]

Thanks! I already planned to stop kalk as my Alk has reached my goal. Should I dose 2 part on the Calc only to raise that or am I at the right point to let the tank rest until I see dropping numbers?

 

[matttaylor1976]

I would stop dosing all together for at least 5 days, 7 is better.

Test and record your levels for a week. I'd recommend testing 2x per day to get a good feel for what is going on. (this really helped me get a handle on my tanks consumption, and stopped me from chasing numbers and dosing erratically). I also recommend you throw a water change in during the week so you can see what that does to your numbers.

Once you see the usage in the tank, you can base the daily dosage around it to help keep the values closer to your target.

 

[KenRexford]

Great ideas

 

[Crashjack]

There is nothing wrong with using kalk, and if you are increasing alk/Ca with kalk additions, you can certainly maintain them with kalk. Kalk adds alk/Ca in roughly the same proportions that corals use them so once you get to your desired levels, you can maintain those levels easier with kalk than with 2-part. The other benefits of kalk are increased pH and no increase in salinity, not to mention you get to dose 1-part instead of 2-part. I think people get confused because to set your levels initially, you have to set each level independently. In other words, if your alk is 7.0 dkh and your Calcium is 380 ppm, and you want your alk to be 8.5 dkh and your Ca to be 450 ppm, you can’t get to those numbers with kalk alone. You would either have to raise alk to 8.5 with kalk which should yield around 390 ppm Ca and then use Calcium Chloride to increase Ca the rest of the way, or use something like sodium bicarbonate to raise alk and calcium chloride to raise calcium, each to your desired levels. Then you could maintain those levels with kalk.