Ok - I need some Alk and Ca advice

[Cali Kid]

well as of today, my alk and ca levels are as follows:

Ca = 300ppm (Salifert Test Kit)
Alk = 3.43 meq/L (Salifert Test Kit)

I'm currently dosing (Every Day) ESV B-Ionic. approx. 25 ml of each part.

I am also dosing 2 teaspoonsful of Turbo Calcium (Every other Day)

I do not buffer my make-up water.

My tank is a 125g main tank with 60g sump.

I have approx. 150lbs. of live rock. and coraline algae about 90% covering the back glass.

My corals consist of LPS and softies. I will list them all if neccessary.

Anyhow, my alk and ca have peaked at the current level, and I'm not sure if I should just increase the dosage to reach the desired level. I guess I'm concerned that this increase may be too aggressive.

Any suggestions??.....besides go buy a calcium reactor


Sean

[seahawkjohnny]

according to the insructions for B-Ionic it calls for 1ml for every 4 gallons...this is for total volume, not just your tank...you should start with 46.25 ml of each part......I started with the 1 ml for every 4 gallons, I am now dosing 1 ml for every 2 gallons of water...for your system that could get rather expensive, and prove to be quite a hassle, if you can afford it a calcium reactor would be more cost effective in the long run......


here is a good site for reasonably priced reators


http://www.myreefcreations.com/reactors.html

[Rick O]

At some point it just becomes too expensive to dose two-part. I tried it for a while in my 120 and I was going through about a gallon (of each part) every month. If you're going to continue with B-Ionic you need to up your dosage as seahawkjohnny has already said. And I know you don't want to hear this but you really could use a reactor.

[Spanky]

Sean try this

Start taking notes first. Write down your current levels, how much you dosed, and what the reading was 30 min later. That will tell you what effect you're having dosing at those levels. Also, you can dose twice a day instead of every other day too.

There's a slight chance that a large heavy dose of TCalcuim could drive your Alk down too.

SuperBuffer will bring your alk up faster too.

HTH
Jerel

[Cali Kid]

Once again you have pulled me from the fire

I don't know how I got myself into this mess.... I figured...LPS...softies...I don't have any SPS or clams. I suppose the calcium requirements for my corals is much greater than I had anticipated....I'm an idiot

I'm going to run some tests as Spanky suggested, then adjust the dossage to increase the levels...I'm thinking 440ppm is a good target.

I have a feeling I'm going to be purchasing a reactor pretty quick here....I think Rick is right unfortunately $$$$$$ Any other suggestions on reactors other than the one that SeahawkJohnny mentioned (Thanks SHJ)

Sean

[thebigblue]

sean

im in the same boat as you...

i have a 125 with about 25 gallons of sump/refugium...

my tank has been setup for about 9 months, and i have 150#s of LR and all softies with a squamosa clam...assorted fish and a magnifica anemone...

i dont do regular water tests, but just let the tank kinda tell me how things are going...but my calc has to be low as my coralline growth has not done much and the stuff that had grown on my overflows has kinda died off...i have none on the back glass at all...

i dose 50ml of each of the ESV 2-part daily...but even that doesnt seem to be promoting coralline growth...

ive talked to andy at www.myreefcreations.com and he is a cool guy and fellow reefer...his prices seem to be about the best ive found...but your still lookin at about $500 to do our size tank up right...

as long as your not heavy into sps and clams, i think you can "get by" with a lower calc level...at least i seem to be...

i really need to do a couple tests tonite... ...and keep up on them...

so...to answer you question, in all my searching on the BBs i dont think theres a miracle product you can use to keep your alc and calc at good levels...i think your already doing the best you can without over dosing your tank by using a bunch of different products together...and the best thing would probably be to spring for the calc reactor...

keep me posted on what you decide and how it works for you..

goodluck

brad

[UnseenTric]

Sean-
If you have the patience why not wait for a reactor to come along on the Reef Central classifieds. I waited 3 weeks (from the time I realized I really needed a reactor) to buy mine off RC. I was able to get a Knop C reactor with pump, media, and regulator for $145 shipped---and the unit was never used! I bought it off a moderator that had it sitting in his closet for 8 months.
If money is an issue, which for most of us it is, this I feel is your best option. Good luck Reactor shopping.

Pete

BTW: If you do decide to buy off another reefer be sure to check the "Buyer/Seller Feeback" forum. Do a search for that persons name to make sure he doesn't have any negative feedback. Remember a deal to good to be true, most probably is...caveat emptor.

[Cali Kid]

Great Pete...you could have PM'd me with the info. Now Brad is going to outbid me....sheesh

Really...thats a great idea. I'll check it out. Boy if I find a deal like that I may have enough left over to upgrade my return pump to the ampmaster 3000...then I could take the MAK-4 and put that on the ETSS 700 sittin in the garage.....oh boy the wheels are turnin

Brad .... please ignore Pete's post

Sean


Oh - a bit of good news....I got the green light from the wifey for the $500.00....yipee!!!

[thebigblue]

the race is on!...

http://reefcentral.com/vbulletin/for...p?forumid=2

[Cali Kid]

I couldn't find the Reef Central Classifieds, but I did find this on EBAY.... Let me know what ya think.....Brad close your eyes.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=2052486107

[Cali Kid]

I forgot to mention that I increased the dosage of the two part supplement to 50ml each and threw two more teaspoons of the Turbo Calcium in the sump and......... Viola! The Ca went from 300ppm to 320ppm. Now thats what I'm talking about .....or atleast that was what you guys were talking about.....sorry got a little excited there.

The Alk stayed at 3.43 meq/L. Is superbuffer the same as baking soda?

Sean

[thebigblue]

sean

here is a portion of an email Andy at www.myreefcreations.com sent me back in february...

"Personally have a CR-1 single on my 150 gallon tank and my tank parameters this morning were pH of 8.23, ALK 9.3 DKH, CA 480. I have 25 SPS and 3 LPS corals. That should tell you that the single can handle the load. I run about 60 bubbles/min on my CO2 tank.

The advantage of a dual over a single is the CO2 efficiency, since it has to pass through two stages instead of just one. You can also run your effluent pH a little higher on a dual stage. Other than that they are fairly similar. I would never set up another tank without one. It has made my life so much easier."


The cost would break down as follows:

$120 CR-1
$155 Regulator package deal...CO2 regulator w/ solenoid valve, MAG 2 pump,
and 3 feet of CO2 safe tubing
$16 shipping

$291 Grand total

You would still need a MaxiJet 1200 ($17?) for the feed pump and a CO2 tank. A 5 pound CO2 tank is roughly $60-70.

so.... i guess your lookin at about $375 shipped (at least that was shipping to my area)...

brad

[mojoreef]

One thing to remember is that a cal reactor isnt very good at bring the levels up. You will still need to raise the levels with additives to the desired point. Then use the reactor to maintain them.
Sean bump up to 2 ml per gallon for the next 3 or 4 days then go straight to 1 ml per gallon. Sty their until you hit your targets.

On the dual stage reactor I wouldnt go for the dual chamber IMHO they r a waste of money. The concept is that the co2 will disapate by going through the media in the second chamber, but the problem is that the co2 still has to excape and the only place to do it is through the effluent and into the chamber.

thier are 2 good ways to get rid of the excess co2. 1. build a bubbleator (ok I made up the name ) have your effluent drip into a rubbermaid pitcher (or reasonable fasimily) then drill a hole towrds the top of the pitcher and insert a tube to take the effluent from that level to the sump (or wherever). Now just place an air stone pumping air into the pitcher. The air bubbles will pull the co2 out of the effluent and it should raise your PH level of the effluent by at least a point. The other is not as effective but does help and that is to drip the effluent into your refugium and allow the calurpa to suck up as much as they can before it gets past them.

Mike