Randy's two part recipe

[alindell]

So I like the idea of buying bulk 50lb bags of dow flake, mag flake and boxes of arm and hammer baking soda, but I am still a little unsure as to incorporate these ingredients into my system. Who still uses the two part recipe, what modifications or updates have been done? Is this recipe still reliable? Is there a consensus of alternate brands and ingredients to use other than the ones specified in the recipe and what are the places you have found them specifically for the mag and calcium parts? Basically I want to know if this is still safe to use, what and how you use it if it deviates from the original recipe and where you get the ingredients either online or from major retailers, as saving money from buying bulk is important to me.

 

[beaslbob]

I think the diy two part is still very viable.

on the calcium chloride side I found 25 pound bags of cal-chlor (?) from a local redimix concrete supplier. earlier I found 50 pound bags of down flake. this was about 10 years ago and the cal chlor was $8 and the down flake was $22. Cal chlor is anhydrous (92-96%) also. Calcium chloride is used to speed hydration (hardening) of concrete at lower temperatures. Hence the redimix.

Epsom salts and baking soda from drug/grocery stores.

I did find magnesium chloride from a local industrial supplier at $15-30 for 50 pound bags with no shipping charges. Later I also used them for the calcium chloride as well.

 

[alindell]

how did it work for the reef tank? do you know where I can find an online supplier for products that would work for Randy's two part. I can find epsom salts and baking soda easy, its just the cal and mag parts.

 

[alindell]

so I was wanting use Prestone driveway heat and mag flakes 50lb bags. Does anyway use these products in their reef tanks. If you do or do not can you provide some knowledge as to if these are still good to use or if you do what is your anecdotal evidence as these are the only products I could find online for the mag and calcium parts.

 

[marke]

How big is your system? How much do you consume daily? What have you been using before? Do you grow sps or just softies?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

so I was wanting use Prestone driveway heat and mag flakes 50lb bags. Does anyway use these products in their reef tanks. If you do or do not can you provide some knowledge as to if these are still good to use or if you do what is your anecdotal evidence as these are the only products I could find online for the mag and calcium parts.

The problem is locating the original materials that I evaluated and analyzed, not that there is any problem with them. Dowflake now allows more bromide in the product, but I do not think that is a significant problem.

Because of availability issues, however, many people have switched to bulk materials from BRS, Dr Foster and Smith, etc. Some people do use other brands, such as Leslie's Pool Hardness for calcium, but I've not tested it for purity.

 

[alindell]

How big is your system? How much do you consume daily? What have you been using before? Do you grow sps or just softies?

I am in the process of setting up a 75 gal tank and will be implementing a plumbing system to do water changes quickly. Preferably I would want to have a 55 gal brute trash can which raises another question I have is where to get the trash can, is it safe or which ones are safe, but anyways I was going to use instant ocean purple box, and mix up alot of salt water and then add in mag, cal, and alk adjusting for correct parameter's myself so that have easy water changes with correct parameters and reduce cost of water changes and I can dose cal, mag, and alk. The system right now is going to be for mainly soft corals, but I may have a couple easy going SPS just to see what happens.

 

[alindell]

I guess I will have to see what Prestone drive way heat, and mag flakes do as I found those products readily available, but I want to make sure that they are still safe and if anyone uses them any tips or knowledge on their effects are welcomed.

 

[Tanggirl12]

I unfortunately bought some generic calcium chloride I found at a pool store, it had no other ingredients and looked just like Dow flake. My sps started browning slowly out and STN set in over a couple of months of use. Sent my water to triton and I had been slowly dosing my tank with heavy metals, zinc, copper.....just be careful what you use, it was an expensive dummy mistake.

 

[redfishbluefish]

I've been using Randy's recipes since 2008 when I purchased 50 pound bags of Prestone Driveway Heat and MAG Flakes....both for less than $20 each. I purchase Arm & Hammer baking soda at Sam's in (I think) 13 pound bags for somewhere in area of $5 a bag. Epsom Salt is purchased at my local drug store (I've only purchased this once in a relatively small box). I'm still working off the original bags of Prestone and MAG flakes (MAG flakes will last me my lifetime.....I've given away more than I've used myself.)

Changes to the recipe.

ALK PORTION: I bake my baking soda at 350 for an hour. Original recipe was at 300, and I thought some baking soda wasn't blowing off the CO2, so I upped the temperature. No damage would be done at 350, so no problem.

MAG PORTION: I separately mix/dissolve the MAG flakes and the Epson Salt, and then once dissolved, mix the two solutions together. It would appear that I get less precipitation when I do it this way. Original recipe had you put both solids together and then add water.

CALC NOTE: Prestone is the anhydrous form of Calcium Chloride, so you only need 2 cups to one gallon. Note that this gets fairly warm when dissolving.

 

[JimWelsh]

I use calcium chloride from the swimming pool store. Have done so for years. My Triton results showed all unwanted heavy metals as unmeasurable.

I think that most people currently consider BRS to be the go-to place for these chemicals.

 

[alindell]

thank you for the tips

 

[beaslbob]

how did it work for the reef tank? do you know where I can find an online supplier for products that would work for Randy's two part. I can find epsom salts and baking soda easy, its just the cal and mag parts.

They seemd to work fine and in fact I gave away lots at club meeting and frag swaps. Got no complaints and may requests for more.
The redimix places for calcium chloride was reliable.
The magnesium chloride was more problematic until I found the local industrial chemical supplier.

 

[alindell]

I think my plan will be to buy mag flakes, Epsom salts, arm and hammer soda and Prestone heat either online or local and if I can not do that I'll have to find an alternative and then do a trial run where I mix it all up in the storage bin, test the water myself with some hobby grade Hanna kits just to see what it shows and send in a sample to AWT to test for hard metals and any impurities that would not be acceptable for salt water. I'll have to share my findings.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I think my plan will be to buy mag flakes, Epsom salts, arm and hammer soda and Prestone heat either online or local and if I can not do that I'll have to find an alternative and then do a trial run where I mix it all up in the storage bin, test the water myself with some hobby grade Hanna kits just to see what it shows and send in a sample to AWT to test for hard metals and any impurities that would not be acceptable for salt water. I'll have to share my findings.

If you want to test metals, I'd send it to Triton before AWT.