Making lime water

[heathd.hd]

So I went out today and bought me some pickling lime and some vinegar. I have 130g of water in my system. I have about 7g of water in my ato system full. I purchase my Rodi water from the lfs in 5 gallon containers. I grab 15 or 20 gallons at a time. So how do I mix it up. Should I grab a tub or can that can handle 15 gallons of water put a power head in there and mix like that. Idk. I could do something with a bulkhead and a ball valve for a drain? Keep the drain a couple inches off the bottom of the tank? I'll be making the lime in the basement and putting it back in the 5 gallon jug to put in my ato tank. I guess I'm just looking for easy ways to make it than transfer to my ato.

 

[chefjpaul]

Why not just mix one bucket at a time as needed?
You Only need to stir with a spoon for a minute and let settle for a day. (Covered tightly), Then just dump it in from the top, keeping the sediment on bottom.

Thats what I do, only needing one bucket with kalk sitting until needing to fill ato, then mix another bucket.

Some people just mix into ato container and let sit for 4-5 hours, I just don't want to clean it all the time.

Your plan may work, but the bulkhead And valve may stir up the sediment from the bottom as water gets disrupted from the flow / pressure.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/

 

[heathd.hd]

chefjpaul so you just clean your 5g container after dumping into ato.

 

[heathd.hd]

Also going my randyholmesfarley table I would add 1 cup vinegar and 1/3 of a cup pickling lime to 5 gallons. Atleast thats what I came up with for a conversion. 3 teaspoons lime per gallon and 45ml vinegar.

 

[chefjpaul]

chefjpaul so you just clean your 5g container after dumping into ato.

Thats exactly what I personally do, just rinse it out and make more water, mix new kalk.
I fill my ato at the same time I do water changes, so all my water is made day prior, with extra 5G. Ready to make next batch of kalk for next week.

 

[chefjpaul]

Also going my randyholmesfarley table I would add 1 cup vinegar and 1/3 of a cup pickling lime to 5 gallons. Atleast thats what I came up with for a conversion. 3 teaspoons lime per gallon and 45ml vinegar.

I dont use vinegar, I dont need to carbon dose yet. My PH stays @8.3-ish.

(If your PH is high, I believe vinegar will counter that).

Every tank is different and needs different levels.

I only use 1/2 the scale of Kalk from RHF recipe. Keeps my Alkalinity where I need it currently.
That will change as the SPS start growing in more consuming the 3 chemicals, I imagine.

FYI - cheep digital kitchen scale is a great tool for this hobby. Weight is best measurement. (From a chef not a chemist here). Lol.

 

[heathd.hd]

My ph runs on the low side actually

 

[chefjpaul]

Kalk will raise PH. - need to dose it slowly.

It has a saturated PH of 12.5-ish.

To much will spike it heavily and fast.
Read up on all Randy's articles via google before you start this.

I had to read everything like 5 times before I comprehended it and read all his threads.

 

[chefjpaul]

Also- read up on the chemical levels of calcium, alk, mag.
These need to be at the proper levels you want before you add it.

 

[heathd.hd]

Yah ive read tons on this stuff honestly just debating on how I wanna mix it really. My ato system runs alot of times a day at low amounts. Im working my alk up from 7 to 9 right now with dosing.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I make up 120 gallons at a time, without vinegar. I use it over a about a month from the Brute cans it is stored in.

My ATO sucks it directly from these barrels, but a powerhead to mix and the same one or a different one to pump it into your ATO from a mixing barrel is fine.

Only stir the limewater for an hour or two to mix, then let it sit unstirred.

Did that answer your questions?

 

[chefjpaul]

Run a line from the basement?

 

[heathd.hd]

Sure. I'm thinking I'll just do the bigger container thing also. Or I can honestly just make myself a acrylic tank for mixing and add some drains. At some point this year I'm buying a house and I'll have a Rodi system and whatever else in the basement so I'll be doing it anyways. So I'll make maybe 20 gallons at a time. I have a old WaveMaker and a small power head I can put in there. Thanks guys I'll get some pictures when done.

 

[heathd.hd]

Why do you not use vinegar randy? Seems like your a pretty big advocate in your articles kinda surprised you don't.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I dose vinegar with a dosing pump just upstream of my refugia.

I just don't mix my limewater with my vinegar because I do not need the extra potency.

 

[heathd.hd]

Sounds good. I'll start without vinegar.

 

[heathd.hd]

1/3 cup wages powder with 5 g sound about right?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Without vinegar, that will leave an excess of lime, which I usually do as well.

 

[DFW]

1/3 cup wages powder with 5 g sound about right?

10 teaspoons of Wages pickling lime will dissolve in 5 gallons of water making a saturated solution. 1/3 cup will only dissolve in the 5 gallons of water if you add the cup of vinegar, which in addition to being a carbon source, allows you to dissolve more lime in water than you can without the vinegar.

 

[heathd.hd]

Ok ty.