Alk and calcium probs

[Mikef1]

I have had a reactor running for the last couple weeks. I have a pretty well stocked tank with three clams. My alk is up high 14.7 but my cal is only at around 320ppm. I turned the reactor down both co2 and the effluent to a very slow drip. I added some calcium chloride to try and boost the calcium but still isnt working. I also did a water change. What do you guys recommend?

 

[Anonymous]

<bump> Have you searched Randy Holmes-Farley's articles on this subject? If you like, we can request to have this moved to Chemistry.

 

[Mikef1]

I actually e-mailed him and he responded telling me to back off on the reactor and that should bring the alk down. But it will also bring the calcium down so I am worried that it will hurt my clams... He said he wasnt sure if he would dose cacium chloride so Im not sure what to do.

 

[taikonaut]

Dose CaCl2 until the calcium is at the level you want, then tune the reactor so that both ca and alk can be maintained. It is not easy to jack up the ca by ca rxtor alone, and that's where the cacl2 comes in.

 

[Anonymous]

What's your Mg++ level? You want it in the neighborhood of 1300+ ppm. If it's significantly lower than that, it alters the balance between Ca++ and alkalinity such that it is much more difficult to keep them both in acceptable ranges.

- Bert

 

[npaden]

what taikonaut said.

 

[dtiedke]

Check out this link....it really helped me figure out the issues of alk and calcium balancing...

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/nov2002/chem.htm


Enjoy....


Dave

 

[Mikef1]

Since I have been dosing calcium chloride my calcium is up today to 380 and alk is comming down . I have my reactor running very low now and I will adjust it to maintain it once I get alk and cal in target range.