Tuning your CalRx | Alternate method thats too easy

[JBNY]

I agree there are lots of ways to dial it in, I guess it is what works for the person. Here is what I do ReefCartel. Use it how you want.

So say you start with your alk at 8 dKh. I would first, before you have the reactor going, dose nothing for one day and see what your alk consumption is. for example if after 24 hours you measure the alk at 7.2 you consume .8 alk a day. So then dose to get your alk back up to 8 and turn on the reactor. Wait 24 hours and test again, if you alk is lower dose to get it back to the stating point and turn up the effluent a little. If it is you alk is too high, turn off the reactor until the alk is at the starting point and turn it back on and adjust the effluent so you have a little more. repeat until you measure the same alk every day for 3 or 4 days, then you are dialed in, After that is done go back and measure you ca and mg and dose them to get them back in order. From then on you should be rock steady. But it is important to test after 24 hours of making an adjustment on the reactor

 

[ReefCartel]

IMO, when you turn it back on you'll still be guessing how to set it. I personally would only turn it off if the alk was high enough to actually be causing a problem of some sort.

Okay. Well I adjusted the PH to the highest recommended level of dissolution 7.5. not sure if anything higher will steadily drop the ALK? and at the same time keep it steady.

 

[ReefCartel]

I agree there are lots of ways to dial it in, I guess it is what works for the person. Here is what I do ReefCartel. Use it how you want.

So say you start with your alk at 8 dKh. I would first, before you have the reactor going, dose nothing for one day and see what your alk consumption is. for example if after 24 hours you measure the alk at 7.2 you consume .8 alk a day. So then dose to get your alk back up to 8 and turn on the reactor. Wait 24 hours and test again, if you alk is lower dose to get it back to the stating point and turn up the effluent a little. If it is you alk is too high, turn off the reactor until the alk is at the starting point and turn it back on and adjust the effluent so you have a little more. repeat until you measure the same alk every day for 3 or 4 days, then you are dialed in, After that is done go back and measure you ca and mg and dose them to get them back in order. From then on you should be rock steady. But it is important to test after 24 hours of making an adjustment on the reactor

Actually my tank has been set up for only 5 months, and only up until a few days ago I finally set up the CaRx. For the entire 5 months my Alk has actually stayed at 6.1 dkh with only a few corals when i had my tank. The first day i set up the reactor my Alk jumped to 8 dkh, (Which was perfect), then the next day, 9dkh (This is when i increased internal PH to 7.4 - 7.0 , when I checked again the next day Alk was at 10dkh.

 

[JBNY]

Your demands are probably just very low right now. A reactor can pump out a serious amount of alk, I think many people don't realize that. That is why people tend to recommend a slow drip from the effluent in the beginning.

 

[ReefCartel]

Thanks so much for the advice @JBNY I will try your method. still a little confusing but just to clarify. I would need to dose liquid to level out the parameter when the CaRx is off?

 

[AquamanE]

Subscribed. Nice video and thanks.

I'll be setting up my CaRx over the next few weeks after running 2 part for 10 years.

 

[Liquidgold]

Thank you for the informative step by step protocol. Can you explain the how you titrate the Ca reactor when there is an Kalk reactor involved? Do you set the Ca reactor first or the kalk reactor first? Do you really need both?

 

[ReefCartel]

I thought Kalk is only best when dosing 2 part but not for CaRx because the CaRx is all you need.

 

[Liquidgold]

I thought so too but, at the end of the video, he commented that his Kalk stirrer turned on. I guess when the calcium demand is too high for ca reactor, Kalk is needed perhaps?

 

[Liquidgold]

I thought so too but, at the end of the video, he commented that his Kalk stirrer turned on. I guess when the calcium demand is too high for ca reactor, Kalk is needed perhaps?

 

[ToXIc]

Link to my tank thread in my sig.

I drip 3500ml of kalk over a 24hr period using a BRS 50ml pump into an Avast K2 stirrer and my apex along with the CalRx setup.

pic_2 by kevan hosein, on Flickr
pic_1 by kevan hosein, on Flickr

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I thought Kalk is only best when dosing 2 part but not for CaRx because the CaRx is all you need.

The combination of a CaCO3/CO2 reactor and limewater (kalkwasser) is a very good one that many people usebecause the limewater boosts the pH, helping to offset the drop in pH from the CaCO3/CO2 reactor.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Thanks so much for the advice @JBNY I will try your method. still a little confusing but just to clarify. I would need to dose liquid to level out the parameter when the CaRx is off?

The point is to not dose anything until the level drop to where you want it, then restart the reactor very slowly (meaning high pH or low flow rate) to maintain alkalinity (and calcium) at that level.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Thank you for the informative step by step protocol. Can you explain the how you titrate the Ca reactor when there is an Kalk reactor involved? Do you set the Ca reactor first or the kalk reactor first? Do you really need both?

I would set up the limewater at full strength (assuming you need that much), and then use the CaCO3/COs reactor as usual to make up for any additional needs for calcium and alkalinity (if any).

 

[ToXIc]

once again thanks Randy for elaborating..

i would say tho that instead of shutting off your Rx just raise the internal Melting/Dissolving ph, you dont want it to swing too much. slow raise the internal ph of the chamber until you get where you need then keep testing and lower as needed..
i chose to run Kalk also because of all things it coral crack.. lol.. but really to raise my ph along with the 2nd chamber from the Rx and although its called a CalRx it actually influences alk more than Cal and the Kalk fills in the Cal deficiency very well but can also assist the in an alk spike so its a delicate balance.
there are some reefers that use something called "driveway heat" to fill the Cal deficiency. yes i'm not mistaken "driveway heat"

 

[ReefCartel]

So after raising the internal PH and lowering down the effluent to the lowest setting. My Alk was still climbing high. So i shut down the reactor and started testing Alk every other day. Here were my results:

Day 1: 10 dkh (Turned off Carx)
Day 2: 9.6 dkh
Day 3: 9.1 dkh
Day 5: 8.3 dkh
Day 7: 7.8 dkh
Day 9: 7.3 dkh
Day 10: 7.28 dkh
Day 11: 7.22 dkh

What are your thoughts?

 

[ReefCartel]

My goal is to maintain Alk at 7 dkh

 

[DCReefer]

Don't a just effluent an ph. Adjust one or the other or you will never get the reactor dialed in. I agree on the slow steady flow method it prevents clogging. Just raise or lower you pH in the reactor. In addition Kalk is a great addition.

 

[d2mini]

The pH in my reactor stays around 6.5-6.6 and I adjust the effluent rate as needed.
Currently I'm pulling about about 90 ml/min through the reactor with a Cole-Parmer pump.
Tank pH runs about 7.8-8.05 throughout the day.

 

[ReefCartel]

The pH in my reactor stays around 6.5-6.6 and I adjust the effluent rate as needed.
Currently I'm pulling about about 90 ml/min through the reactor with a Cole-Parmer pump.
Tank pH runs about 7.8-8.05 throughout the day.

I kept the PH in my reactor at 7.1 and Co2 turns on at 7.4 (Tank PH was 8.1)

But my Alk was still climbing too high. Im thinking i should just run the reactor with the Co2 off. idk