Calc Reactor Set up: Need Assistance

[gmpolan]

So at what point during a set up should i install my calc reactor?
Also, would anyone be willing to come help me set mine up in the buckhead area as ive never ran one, just alil nervous...

Tank specs: 150 DT 25 Frag 55 Sump

Heres the equipment:
MRC CR1 ( it gets drilled for a probe holder next week)
5lb C02 tank
Azoo selonoid with bubble counter
Mag 2 or 3 i cant recall for the calc
DA probe ran by a RKE

Also, i have the opportunity to pick up another chamber for the cr1. Is this necessary as i know the output on the calc can be pretty acidic?

Am i missing anything else?

 

[lilrobb]

I prefer 2 chamber setups to get the pH up again afterwards, but they are not a MUST...
I am travelling til friday - but could lend a hand on the weekend, if needed.

 

[gmpolan]

Thanks Robb, i could def use the help and i will consider picking up the additional chamber. Im home friday and all of next week....

 

[enderg60]

Start by using the PH probe and the bubble counter on the CO2 to maintain the PH in the reactor at around 6.5. Then start adjusting your drip rate from the reactor to your tank slowly speeding it up until you are maintaining the desired levels. While doing this you may need to re-adjust the CO2 to maintain the PH in the reactor.

With both the CO2 and drip rate you want it to be as slow as possible while still maintaining propper levels.

A second chamber is nice, but if you put your effluent from the reactor close to your skimmer or in a high flow area it will dissapate the CO2.

 

[slayer]

why dont you attend the christmas party and bring the ca reactor with you myself and im sure 100+ reefers would be glad to show you how to set it up...

 

[slayer]

add on chambers help but as rob said not a must... you can get by using a food container (cylindrical) and making some holes at the bottom and filling it up with calcium media and drip the effluent coming out of your reactor onto it...this will work just as well as an expensive add on reactor chamber. If you do not want to use a second chamber just make sure your effluent drip back into the tank is somewhere in high flow, to dissapate some of the co2 in the water and not have your ph drop..

 

[gmpolan]

would love to but ill be out of town....the second is being offered at a good price, hints why i asked but if its not necessary then i could prob pass just as well, not sure whats gonna be easier

 

[gmpolan]

Robb, let me know whens a good weeked after this following one...

 

[hnguyen]

If you had a pH controller then you wouldn't have to worry about much of anything. Just gotta set it up and pretty much forget it. You can pick one up for about $100 and save yourself a lot of time and headache. Get yourself one of those and I'll be happy to stop by to help you. I work in the cobb area and I have to travel back towards your way before I get home so I can stop by after work. shoot me a pm if you still need help! Free of charge of course

 

[william1]

Ive always used this to set mine up...

 

[miami dolfan]

I have the same issue....have had this sitting around for 2 years ready to go but am worried of a meltdown because of a wrong set up. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

 

[geno]

For some reason we all have this fear of setting up a CR. I had mine for a year before getting the courage. I read article after article on how to set one up -- and after I began seeing the same advice over and over, I figured I had thoroughly covered the issue.

Like you, I wanted someone to look over my shoulder as I tried to follow the directions I had read so many times. However, I decided to give it a try on my own -- and with great success. They truly are not that difficult. They only seem intimidating.

If you monitor your effluent and tank parameters daily for the first few weeks -- you'll have a hard time crashing your 150g DT tank. Mine is a 125 and at the drip rate coming from your CR -- it will take a very long time to change the parms in your DT. As you may have read, a CR is NOT designed to change your CA or KH -- but rather <u>maintain </u>it.

 

[miami dolfan]

The problem with mine is that it appears to have been modified because the pics on the manuals look different than the actual unit and since I've never owned one, I don't have a clue of where to start.