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    Thread: The Kalkwasser Thread

    1. #16
      RussM is offline SDMAS Staff Member
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      I personally do not like the idea of adding kalk to topoff water. IMHO, they should be kept as separate functions. Here's why: topoff water consumption is based on the tank's evaporation rate. Evaporation rates vary - especially with the wild changes in humidity we get here in San Diego; some days/weeks a tank might need significantly more topoff water than others. So, if you add kalk to your ATO, the dosage of kalk will also fluctuate. And this is contary to one of the prime tennets of reefkeeping... stability and consistentcy. When I was doing kalk, I used a kalkwasser reactor; supersaturated kalkwasser was dosed by an AquaLifter, with pumping timed by my AquaController. Over a period of several weeks, I determined the best amount of kalk to dose on a daily basis, and split that up into multiple small dosing periods per day. The kalk reactor was supplied pure water from my ATO resevoir. While this did replace some of the water lost due to evaporation, my ATO unit handles all additional makeup water needs.

    2. #17
      vlad_acosta is offline Registered User
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      Thumbs up

      great info thanks

    3. #18
      bpro32 is offline Registered User
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      so you basically dose this stuff just like you dose 2-part then, except there is only 1 part? You have to test every couple days and make sure nothing is spiking or dropping too low?

    4. #19
      Two Bit Scooter is offline Registered User
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      Quote Originally Posted by bpro32 View Post
      so you basically dose this stuff just like you dose 2-part then, except there is only 1 part? You have to test every couple days and make sure nothing is spiking or dropping too low?
      Even better, there really isn't anything that can drop too low. The only thing you need to be carefull of is rapid changes in PH. The kalk solution reacts with a carbon source which is usually dissolved co2 in the tank water to bring the PH back to normal, but it takes time. You can add vodka or vinegar to the kalk before dosing to help with this, but those are also a food source for micro-organisms, which could be good or bad... If you don't super saturate the kalk solution you shouldn't ever have to worry about too much buffering or calcium. The biggest problem I have is scraping all the coraline algae that grows everywhere.

    5. #20
      bpro32 is offline Registered User
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      Alright, I have my plan for this stuff now.

    6. #21
      Therapy is offline Registered User
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      Quote Originally Posted by RussM View Post
      My local Wal-Mart just stocked the shelves with seasonal canning supplies, including Mrs. Wage's pickling lime... high-quality low-cost kalk. So if you use kalk, this is a good time to stock up. $2.64/lb. But no more wide-mouth jars... it now come in heavy ziplock bags.
      How do you use pickling lime exactly.....step by step instructions for the ignorant ?!

    7. #22
      jrod11 is offline Registered User
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      Supersaturated?

      What does supersaturated kalk look like?

      I have been mixing up my kalk in a bucket for about a minute and the water turns a milky white.

      I then add it to my Kent drip dose jug. Over time the white water settles at the bottom, so i shake up the jug again to make the water milky that is getting dosed into my fuge.

      Am i completely off?

    8. #23
      Therapy is offline Registered User
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      I believe that you should be adding two spoons of kalk for every gallon of water into a bucket. You shake that up and let it sit overnight. The clear liquid that is not on the bottom of the bucket or the crusty stuff on top is what you should be dripping into your tank. That clear liquid is saturated kalk water. You definitely don't wanna be dripping cloudy milky water into your tank . Correct minh?

    9. #24
      jrod11 is offline Registered User
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      Quote Originally Posted by Therapy View Post
      I believe that you should be adding two spoons of kalk for every gallon of water into a bucket. You shake that up and let it sit overnight. The clear liquid that is not on the bottom of the bucket or the crusty stuff on top is what you should be dripping into your tank. That clear liquid is saturated kalk water. You definitely don't wanna be dripping cloudy milky water into your tank . Correct minh?
      uh oh, i've been goin' for the cloudy water. those directions that come with kalkwasser don't really tell you much...

    10. #25
      jrod11 is offline Registered User
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      Quote Originally Posted by Therapy View Post
      I believe that you should be adding two spoons of kalk for every gallon of water into a bucket. You shake that up and let it sit overnight. The clear liquid that is not on the bottom of the bucket or the crusty stuff on top is what you should be dripping into your tank. That clear liquid is saturated kalk water. You definitely don't wanna be dripping cloudy milky water into your tank . Correct minh?
      I posted on RC and asked the question. Seapug who was the tank of the month a little while back was kind enough to respond:

      "The traditional way is to mix it and let it settle then siphon off the clear part and only drip that, but many people (including me) mix it and set up the drip with a cloudy mixture right away. As long as the drip is slow and pH doesn't cause pH to rise too fast it's not a problem.

      Keep in mind that the white stuff at the bottom of a reservoir that settles after mixing is not necessarily unmixed Kalkwasser. It's mostly precipitated calcium carbonate that forms from contact with atmospheric C02. It will not redissolve. You want to avoid having too much of that getting dumped into your sump at once. It's basically Aragonite dust at that point. A major influx of that stuff into your system can actually cause your alkalinity to drop and magnesium bottom out."

    11. #26
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      Thread Sticky-fied.

      Thanks Minh.

    12. #27
      Bodie is offline Registered User
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      Years ago I bought a 20 lb bag of food grade lime from somewhere in town. I don't remenber where. Does anyone know where I could get that? I remember it was only like $20. I'm cheap so I remember the price but not where I got it.
      Thanks

    13. #28
      baldbean is offline Registered User
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      I have heard that Walmart sells small bags of pickling lime, but it is seasonal. Other than that I am not sure who would sell it.

    14. #29
      bradreef is offline Registered User
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      Has anyone seen it at walmart lately? It is about that time of the year.

    15. #30
      jneiss19 is offline Registered User
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      so, let me get this straight. i can mix up the pickling lime in RODI or distilled water, and add the clear mix(not cloudy) to my sump. i dont have a top off, i do that myself, and i dont have dosing pumps because, well, i do that myself aswell. im oly running a 10 gal display w/ a 5 gal sump. would it be worth it?

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