allsmilze

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What is Kalkwasser? and how do I dose it?

EVAPORATION MAKE-UP WATER & KALKWASSER

Because the tank is exposed to air, and strong pumps are circulating the water throughout the filtering system (overflow pipes, drip plate, prefilter, and protein skimmer), you will get a significant amount of evaporation. In fact, the better your skimmer and the stronger your water pump (both desirable features), the more evaporation you will get. You will need to replace the evaporated water regularly. An important reminder for the new hobbyist is that the water evaporates, not the salt. Do not add salt mix with the make-up water. The result will be a higher salinity than is desirable.

Adding make-up water provides a good opportunity to replenish much-needed calcium, which gets depleted rapidly in an enclosed reef system. This vital element is used by virtually all living creatures. Some of it also gets removed by protein skimming. In my opinion the best calcium additive is ?Kalkwasser,? which is calcium hydroxide. It is added on a regular basis by mixing it with the purified water being added to compensate for evaporation. These regular additions of calcium hydroxide also keep the pH elevated to the desired 8.2 to 8.4 level.

Kalkwasser is a German word. Literally, it means ?lime water.? Kalkwasser is a trade name for calcium hydroxide. The terms ?Kalkwasser,? ?limewater,? and ?calcium hydroxide? all mean the same thing in this hobby.

The water you use to replace what has evaporated will be called ?make-up water.? It is extremely important to use purified tap water mixed with calcium hydroxide (a.k.a. Kalkwasser, a.k.a. limewater) for the make-up water! Do not, I repeat, do not, use regular tap water or anything else for make-up water! This is asking for trouble.

As I have stated from the beginning, nothing will ensure your success more than the quality of your water. Once you have made the investment of a water purifying system and have started the reef with purified tap water, the reef will be accustomed to that quality of water. It would be extremely foolish to try to cut corners here. This is the last place to skimp. In fact, it would be inviting disaster by possibly introducing impurities (metals, silicates, phosphates, etc.) that are harmful and troublesome (hard to remove) into the pristine environment that we have tried so hard to create.

When to add make-up water:

Add the Kalkwasser within a day after you mix it; it gradually loses effectiveness after it is mixed Watch the water in the sump! This is where you will see the change in water level. Once you have established the ?working water level? in the sump, mark it on the side of the sump box, with magic marker. This will give a quick visual reference as to the height of water that is normally in the system. As evaporation occurs, watch this mark. When the level goes down by 3 to 5 gallons, or gets close to the top of the outlet for the pump, you need to add make-up water. Mix the water no more than one day before you add it to the tank; it starts to lose effectiveness right after it has been mixed. It will have the highest concentration of available calcium just after the sediment settles out of the solution.

On a smaller tank (even a 55-gallon), 5 gallons of high-powered make-up water must be used with caution! Kalkwasser has an extremely high pH. Pay close attention to the drip/dosing flow of water, to be certain that it is administered very slowly. For a 55-gallon tank, you should take a 48-hour period to administer 5 gallons of make-up water. Make sure you test-run your drip method, to be sure that it introduces the desired amount of make-up water over the correct period of time. Adding Kalkwasser too fast will cause pH shock, which can be fatal or, at the least, unnecessarily stressful to the livestock. Take the recommended precautions and do not let this happen!

On larger tanks, 125 gallons and up, 5 gallons of make-up water will not have as much of an effect as it will in smaller tanks. For a 125-gallon tank, the Kalkwasser can be added at the rate of approximately 5 gallons in 8 to 12 hours. In a 200-gallon or larger tank, the 5 gallons can be added without any clamping system, allowing the airline tube to empty the 5-gallon bucket unrestricted. This will take less than 1 hour.

Time of day to add:

Another suggestion is to add the Kalkwasser mix when the tank lights go out, or (ideally) first thing in the morning. While the lights are off, the pH drops, reaching its lowest level the next day just before the lights come back on. If you add the Kalkwasser during this reef ?night,? the effect of raising the pH will not be as significant as it would be during lighted hours.

There may be some questions and concerns about adding 5 gallons of Kalkwasser all at once. Yes, some critics may be correct that adding smaller amounts more frequently would be a less risky, less stressful, and more natural approach. However, I have used my method on tanks from 55 to 200 gallons, with no adverse effects, and I have not lost one creature due to pH shock. You do have to be careful on smaller tanks, but once you get familiar with this system, I?m sure you will find it to be very practical: (1) you will add make-up water less frequently, and (2) on larger tanks (125 gallons and up), you can add 5 gallons of make-up water at a time, which is a significant, convenient, easily measurable amount of water to add.

Do not mix with an airstone; this will add carbon dioxide and oxygen, which will reduce the effectiveness of the calcium hydroxide and defeat its purpose!

Benefits of adding Kalkwasser:

You may be interested in why it is so important to add Kalkwasser. Some of the benefits are:

It adds calcium that is needed by most of the creatures in the reef.
It encourages the growth of pink and purple coralline algae.
It keeps the pH elevated. By adding Kalkwasser on a regular basis (make-up water) and doing water changes every 2 to 3 weeks, I have found my pH to be consistently between 8.2 and 8.4. Keeping the pH at this level makes it less likely that micro-algae will become a problem.
The reef just seems to love Kalkwasser.
There are many more scientific and chemical reactions that are beneficial. Take my word for it: adding Kalkwasser on a regular basis is one of the most beneficial procedures for maintaining a healthy reef and desirable water chemistry.

link:http://www.simplifiedreefkeeping.com/faq/17.htm
 

allsmilze

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Matt, all you need is a 2 litter soda bottle or a empty gallon on milk (I prefer the bottle of soda) pierce a hole on it just large enough to insert an air hose. I have osd so I actually use a drill bit on the soda cap for a perfect hole. Insert the air hose in the hole and insure you have no leaks. You can run a test by simply adding water to the bottle and turning it upside down. (same for adjusting the drip rate) I recommend getting an inexpensive plastic air hose valve there you can adjust the drip rate by simply opening and closing the valve. If you can't come by the valve, making a knot on the hose also works but keep your eye on the drip. The tighter the knot obviously the less the drip & vise versa..
As for dosing the 2 part, I would discontinue using the 2 part if you are going to do the kalkwasser. You will already be dosing calcium with kalkwasser so there will be no need to dose more calcium with the 2 part that would probably cause a spike, and throw of your ph as well because of the Alkalinity. Hope this helps...
 
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Mattl22

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Yes it does thanks alot!
Now the 2 guys that I know that have a full blown sps tak run kalk through their ato as well as a. Cal reactor ! Now my tank is mostly sps frags and a few colonies so I'm assuming that just dosing kalk through my ato and weekly water changes will keep my levels good for now until my Sps get larger
????


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NYreefNoob

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matt as i have stated in your other post, best way to see what is actually needed is to do a wc and few hours later check all parms, dont dose for the week and see what parms are right before next wc then easy to figure usage out, as things start to grow usuage goes up
 

Boomer

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In my opinion the best calcium additive is ?Kalkwasser,? which is calcium hydroxide

I and any others will agree, that if a system CAN run on just kalt that is the way to go. However, all systems can not as it depends on the Ca++ and Alk demand, to include pH and the same can be said for any Ca/ Alk sup method. This is something one has to determine on their own. Here is a good run-down.

How to Select a Calcium and Alkalinity Supplementation Scheme
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/feb2003/chem.htm
 

Mattl22

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Question I'm going to dose kalk through a jbj ato system with 5 gal can as mixing container should I run a power head in that container to keep the kalk mixed ?
What pump can I use with the ato I ordered a maxi Jett will this work??


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fishman1069

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You would only use the powerhead to initially mix the kalk. Once its mixed, you have to let it settle for a couple of hours. Then you want to use the solution thats in the middle of the mix. So if you are using a 5 gak bucket, you want to put a small stand for the pump so it dosent suck any thing off the bottom of the bucket. You also want to keep a close eye on it because you dont want to suck any of the top layer either.. I dont know about the pump cause I never used a JBJ but I would think a small maxi jett would work.
 

evoIX_Reefer

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^somewhat of the same question.

so you you make a mix of fresh ro/di + mrs wage picking lime and suck out the middle of the mixture keeping away from the top and bottom which will be used as the ATO water.

I thought I read it is suggested to have the kalkwasser mixing in the ATO container?

i use a 5gal container for ATO and about 40DT+10Sump volume with 1gpd evap.

Is there a calculator for the amount of pickling lime to use for a 5gal mix? 1or2 tbspn?
 

irvp13

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In my case, I'm dosing Kalk with my top off water, but the alk keeps going down. While my calc is at 450 steady my alk drops in time. Do I also need to dose buffer from time to time to bring up the alk? or could it be that I'm adding too much buffer and the raise in Ca is depleting the alk?
If I need to dose buffer, can I do it int eh saem water as the kalk?
 

Bry17nyc

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oh ok not i get it..thanks alot....so when adding the "make up water" is better to mix it with Kalk than "Ph buffer"?
because i see that my alk is always kind of high..now i know why...ive always added ph buffer when i see my ph goes down
 

BKLYNREEF123

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2 teaspoons per gallon is the saturation point. Any more isnt doing anything but precipitating in the dosing container. Some heavy loaded SPS tanks dose Kalkwasser to cut down on the quantity of 2 part they have to dose.
 

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