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I finally got my ato working like a charm. I am using my reefkeeper, float switch, and aqualifter.
I bought some pickling lime.
Now what?
I bought some pickling lime.
Now what?
Fidofence;935534 wrote: After seeing the mixing station his ato is a 2x4 floating in the tank with a string tied to it
Allen;935551 wrote: Now what?
Do a good bit of research on Kalkwasser. Do it right, or it could be devastating to your tank.
I love Kalk. Amazing stuff.
Fidofence;935534 wrote: After seeing the mixing station his ato is a 2x4 floating in the tank with a string tied to it
Allen;935551 wrote: Now what?
Do a good bit of research on Kalkwasser. Do it right, or it could be devastating to your tank.
I love Kalk. Amazing stuff.
like I said little bit too much work for me..lolAllen;935561 wrote: Really? What was your method?
I like my method. Incredibly easy, and makes for a very stable system.
What I do:
I drilled holes in the side of old 1 gallon water jugs (milk jug style), about 2" from the bottom. (That puts the hole 1/2" over the cloud that forms at the bottom.) I stuck some tubing in the side of the jug, applied silicone around the hose to prevent leaks, and installed a valve on the end of the tubing.
All I have to do is fill up the gallon jugs with RO/DI water, dump in my desired ratio of Kalk:Gallon, mix, let it sit for 24 hours. After that is done, I open the valves and fill up smaller bottles that I have that I use for topping off/dosing Kalk. The bottles are 1/3 gallon.
That gives me 2.5 bottles of Kalk per gallon jug. My tank evaporates just under 1/3 gallon per day.
How I dose:
I built an ATO/Kalk dosing system. Less than $15 was spent on the build. I have my dosing system set to drip at nearly the same rate the water evaporates out of my tank. Approximately 1 drip per every 5 seconds (it differs depending on how much liquid is in the small bottles).
How much maintenance is it?
It takes me 3-5 minutes to fill up my 1 gallon jugs with RO/DI water and mix in the pickling lime. It takes maybe 5 minutes to move the Kalk to the 1/3 gallon bottles. It takes about 30 seconds to change the 1/3 Kalk bottle under my tank every day.
So, 8-10 minutes every week, and 30 seconds every day isn't bad in my opinion. It took me a few weeks to get the Kalk to gallon ratio perfected to where all of my parameters stay stable, and it was a minor headache. Still, very worth it.
Bonus: When you make a large quantity of Kalk, then transfer the usable Kalk solution to smaller bottles...you don't have to worry about disturbing the mixture. (If you don't know, when Kalk is made it must sit for 24 hours then you have to be careful to not stir up the undissolved Kalk in the bottom, and you must not add the film layer that forms at the top to your tank. The clear portion in the middle is what you want.) With my method, it is incredibly easy to be successful.
Perhaps I should just do a detailed write-up on this with pictures...
Curtismaximus;935686 wrote: Thanks for the info Acro! I will look into a reactor but right now I'm trying to keep it cheep and easy.
Anyone else using Kalk?
Acroholic;935693 wrote: Main point of my post was to suggest you monitor your magnesium levels. A reactor is great, but there are many ways to dose kalk.
Curtismaximus;935950 wrote: Ok thanks I will be sure to keep up with the Mg as well.
I do have a few questions.
Is it not as important to keep Mg stable? It seems a little counter productive to have a slow fall and then a quick rise in Mg.
Do you test for the Mg? Or just at first?
Is there anything else I need to be testing for besides Cal, Kh, and Mg?
I have a reefkeeper for my pH.
How often do you calibrate your pH probe?
Allen;936059 wrote: It needs to be dripped into your system. Otherwise, you will risk a rise in PH.
Curtismaximus;935986 wrote: Thanks for all the info and the detail. What pH probe do you use? Does it matter? Also is it fine to just use my aqualifter with Kalk? My research has said yes and no so just wanted to ask.