just need to make sure im right..

sausageman · 06-14-2005, 12:52 AM

Ok, i have done many searchs through out the forums and online.. and theres just so much things being said its almost to much and makes it more confusing...

I have a bucket of kalkwasser, and I plan to add this to my top off water. I do not have an auto top off system or a drip, how can i add the top off water to my system, without overdosing the tank to fast? Do i HAVE to set up a auto top off? is there a way around this? Right now room is limited for a top off resivor, or any container, so i usually just add about a gallon or 2 of freshwater every 3-4 days into the sump.

secondly, all my levels, ph, calcium, alk, are at good levels, and so adding kalkwasser will keep them at these levels, correct? I know I have to test how much kalk i use in my top off, to keep these levels, still have to do this testing..

ohh ... If i was to add a drip system to the sump, dripping kalk directly into the sump, and i just add freshwater every 2-3 days, would this be ok? would be levels be affected by this or as long as I keep add freshwater, things will stay balanced?

thanks for help and sorry for asking questions that keep being asked, i am just really paranoid about addatives, as i heard to much can be bad and im afraid of ruining this setup.

aussiereefer82 · 06-14-2005, 01:10 AM

You need to set up some sort of dripper or auto top off. Limewater (AKA kalkwasser) has a Ph of about 12 or higher and dumping large amounts in can raise the Ph of the systemto dangerous levels very quickly.

This link will tell you everything you ever need to know about Kalk
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-01/rhf/index.htm

This link has instructions for a very simple kalk dripper.
http://www.petsforum.com/personal/tr...rdripping.html

That should keep you busy for a while!!

skeety · 06-14-2005, 08:52 AM

Kalkwasser, WILL help you maintain your Calcium/Alk/pH levels, PROVIDED:

1. You find the right amount to mix in (recommended amount to START is 1 tsp per gallon. Test your levels, then adjust up or down from that).

2. You add the Kalk solution very slowly, over time. This means either a top off, or more preferably, a drip apperatus of some kind. I made my own for about $15. Send me a PM (private message) if you need details.

Provided you take care of those two items...YES, it will do WONDERS for your tank.

Loverotties · 06-14-2005, 09:32 AM

When you make a top off or drip,you won't need to add just water, this will take it's place.

drsyme · 06-14-2005, 09:43 AM

I am not sure what you mean by a bucket of kalkwasser. Were you planning on dripping kalkwasser AND top off water? The typical method is to mix up the kalkwasser in your top off vessel. The top off water IS kalkwasser ( RO/DI water, mixed with pickling lime (Calcium hydroxide) ).

sausageman · 06-14-2005, 10:17 AM

Ok, im going to go ahead a rig up an drip system for the tank, containing some water and kalk, with that link that aussie has.

In the link it said, it usually takes 2-5 hours for it to be done with dripping, how often should i drip? when its empty, fill it back up? or do this once a week?

Now this drip will have nothing to do with my top off water, i will still hve to add freshwater to replace the evaporation. will i have to adjust the amount of kalk water being add cause of this?

drsyme · 06-14-2005, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sausageman

Now this drip will have nothing to do with my top off water, i will still hve to add freshwater to replace the evaporation. will i have to adjust the amount of kalk water being add cause of this?

Why will it have nothing to do with your top off water? Typically kalkwasser IS topoff water, and you dont have to add any other water to replace evaporation. The rate of top off water is the same whether or not you have kalkwasser (calcium hydroxide) in the water or not, it is based on your evaporation rate. You want to replace the daily evaporation, ideally at the same rate as evaportaion, with the same amount of kalkwasser, and no other top off water.

wharyat · 06-14-2005, 03:18 PM

Agreed with drsyme, replace ALL the water you top-off with now with kalk'ed water.

aussiereefer82 · 06-14-2005, 05:54 PM

Agreed here to. You NEED toreplace the amount of water you evaporate each day to stop swings in specific gravity in the sytem. Dumping in a couple of gallons of fresh water every couple of days can be disasterous. When water evaporates from the system the salt stays in the water, thus raising the specific gravity of the system, if you do not top off every day the SG can change maybe a couple of points and dumping in large amounts of water can bring it back down suddenly, pontenially shocking delicate specimens. Specific gravity is one parameter that needs to be kept reasonably constant.

Whether you evaporate 1/4gal a day or whether you evaporate 5 gals a days you want to replace it all with kalk top off. Work out how much you evaporate each day, lets say 1/2 gallon a day (may be more or less). Put a 1/2 gal of kalk water into the dripper and start the dripper once the lights have gone out (or shortly before they go out). Set the valve on the airline tubing so that it drips about once per second, thus allowing the kalk to drip in very slowly into the sump or high flow area of the tank (Taking roughly 4-5 hrs to drip half a gal) . The reason for dripping the kalk at night is that when the lights are out the pH of the system will fall, kalk having a pH of about 12 helps keep the pH of the system up. If you drip the kalk during the day it MAY raise the pH of the system to elevated levels.

The amount of kalk you use in the system is irrelative. Limewater (kalkwater)should be a saturated solution. Whether you put 1tspn of kalk per gal or 4tspn per gal the water will only be able to take up so much until it becomes saturated and some solid should be left on the bottom of the container. If there is no solid left on the bottom of the container the solution is not saturated and more kalk powder should be added to the mix. However- under no circumstances should the solid material left at the bottom of the container be added to the reef system!!!!

If you can, go back to the links i gave you and print them out (about 35 pages total) and sit down and read them. There is some technical jargon that the average person will not understand, but for the most part they are very informative and will really help you understand.

Here is another link http://www.petsforum.com/personal/tr...alkwasser.html

HTH.

sausageman · 06-14-2005, 08:35 PM

Ok, i understand, i was having a brain fart there for a while, and not raelly thinking, realize how much top off water i'd be adding a day, Ill go ahead and measure evaporation rate and set up an auto top off, i got some IV tubing and things from the hospital to use this for.

Thanks for the help guys.

tdwyatt · 06-14-2005, 10:40 PM

look up kalkwasser reactors, this would be aa great device for you to do d-i-y if you're handy.

adrianleewelch · 06-15-2005, 02:53 AM

I realize most of you wont have access to this equippment but on my 75 gallon with two 400 watt MHs I have too add several gallons a day to keep mine topped off so I got an IV pump, I have 2 kent aquadose containers, and use a braun medical Iv pump running at 430 cc/hr, the two tanks are at different elevations so the pump will pull from the highest container first, which is just water, and when it is empty it will pull from the lowest container (kalkwasser) this way I have freshwater drip in the afternoon, and kalk at night, constant delivery rate, it keeps my level in the sump within an eighth of an inch over a weeks time (except for skimmate) !! All I do is refill each container in the am and restart the pump. look around for one of these, hard to come by, but absolutely perfect for switching from water to kalk automatically, day after day. HTH

skeety · 06-15-2005, 06:38 AM

SO i just want to make sure I'm understanding this.

When dripping Kalk'ed water for top off...we're supposed to ONLY run it at night? Shut it off during the day? Then what? Have another seperate container with just RO/DI water that drips in?

drsyme · 06-15-2005, 06:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skeety

SO i just want to make sure I'm understanding this.

When dripping Kalk'ed water for top off...we're supposed to ONLY run it at night? Shut it off during the day? Then what? Have another seperate container with just RO/DI water that drips in?

I run mine 24/7. The pH fluctuates and it is the highest at the end of or near the end of the photoperiod. But even with kalkwasser dripping the highest (in my tank) is around 8.2 and it drops over night from there. (I generally get 0.3 points of pH fluctuation in a 24 hour period, and this is with a refugium on a reverse photoperiod.) If my calcium and alkalinity are both on the high side, or if they are out of balance, I will just run ro/di for the next batch fo top off water. My top off system is a 5 gallon tank and this would run 3 days or so ( in the winter), but i would drip it day and night until empty. The calc or alk level would determine if I added kalk or not, and now that I have more corals I am pretty much needing to add kalk all the time now.

skeety · 06-15-2005, 07:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drsyme

I run mine 24/7. The pH fluctuates and it is the highest at the end of or near the end of the photoperiod. But even with kalkwasser dripping the highest (in my tank) is around 8.2 and it drops over night from there. (I generally get 0.3 points of pH fluctuation in a 24 hour period, and this is with a refugium on a reverse photoperiod.) If my calcium and alkalinity are both on the high side, or if they are out of balance, I will just run ro/di for the next batch fo top off water. My top off system is a 5 gallon tank and this would run 3 days or so ( in the winter), but i would drip it day and night until empty. The calc or alk level would determine if I added kalk or not, and now that I have more corals I am pretty much needing to add kalk all the time now.

Sounds EXACTLY like my set-up/routine. 5 gallons. Dripping 24/7. lasts ~3 days. Check levels, adjust amount of Kalk I add. Once every two weeks or so, just drip straight RO/DI to adjust levels and clean out dripping apparatus.

Okay...I feel better now.