Any mods for MRC Kalk reactor?

[rostato]

Well, it's only been a month or two since I had the pump changed in my older version of MRC's Kalk reacotr, and the pump is ALREADY dead ($50 plus shipping later)! This reactor has been a PITA since I got it.

I had to have the pump changed because it would not mix the kalk properly, and they said it was not putting out enough power. Well its doing the same thing again. My ph in the reactor will only be 11 after the pump just tried to mix it.

So any one have any ideas? I don't want to sell this thing, because it sucks, and I would feel bad.

 

[jmaneyapanda]

You are putting too mmuch kalk powder in the unit, I bet. People fill up the canister with powder, and when the pump fires, it loads the impeller with solid kalk slurry. That is not what ANY pump or kalk mixer is designed for. There should only be a small amount of powder on the bottom.

Soak the pump in vinegar periodically. People do this with pumps and powerheads, but for some reason, people dont think that kalk reactors need it. They need it more than anything.

 

[jmaneyapanda]

I wasnt intending to be accusatory in this previous post, that has just been my experince. Which reactor are you talking about? The one with the pump in the lid, or plumbed through the side? Pic?

 

[rostato]

The one with the pump in the lid. I knew there was no pun intended, I don't offened easily.

MRC states that it can hold 2 cups of kalk, and I usually put in 1 and 1/2 cups. This is seriously the first batch of kalk I put in there, even if it were too much I don;t see it burning up the motor that fast.

 

[rostato]

Pic, thsi is just after filling it, not when pump is running...

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[jmaneyapanda]

I have/had the same model, and it ran for 3+ years without issue. I recently did have the pump get squirrelly, and opted to have them add an external panworld ( a la their new kalk reactors) to make it easier to service. They kept the same timer and everything. Just give them a call, and they should be able to have you drop it off for the upgrade.

The kalk slurry doesnt burn up the motor, but seize it. The heat generated from the impeller magnet caused the calcium to deposit on the magnet.

Anyway, try soaking it in a bowl of vinegar. FWIW, what are the settings on the timer?

 

[rostato]

Well the timer is all messed up too. I brought that to there attention last time, and that didnt get fixed. I have it set on every 3 hours, but it only comes on like 3 times a day, and set to run for 120 seconds, but it rund for about a min.

If you don't mind me asking...how much for the external pump?

I live far away, so I would have to ship it back to them again...

 

[jmaneyapanda]

I dont remember, it was a while ago. Dont get me started on living far from them. I drive over 2 hours to them. I just called to make sure they could do it, and they did it while I was there.

 

[rostato]

Yeah it's about 2 hours for me too, maybe next time when I go to stone mountian...

This really stinks because my calcium reactor is killing my PH, and the kalk is not helping.

I was thinking of adding some tubing to the output of the pump all the way into the kalk paste to blow it up easier...