Topoff via Kalk Reactor + Major evaporation = Problems?

[Anonymous]

Hey All,

I'm about to DIY a Kalkwasser reactor. I plan to set it up in the standard way, so that my topoff water gets pumped into Kalk reactor and then into sump.

But, I live in a very hot climate and have lots of evaporation every day. I top off a lot of water frequently.

Will I have problems if I set up this way and ALL of my top off water comes thru the Kalk reactor? I'm worried I may end up overdosing the kalk.

Many thanks!

 

[Anonymous]

You can put a solenoid (and a timer) on the kalk reactor to limit how much kalk goes thru.

When the solenoid shuts the kalk rxtor off, the top off water just by-pass it right into the sump.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Seven.

Is the solenoid you mention just an electronically controlled switch; when it's on, water goes thru kalk reactor; when it's off, water bypasses it?

What does a switch like that look like, and where should I look for one?

Many Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

Yes, it is a common valve like you described. Many places sell them. They are used in the RO filter, for example, for regular top off application with flow valve. Instead of a flow valve, you just put a timer on it to control the timing.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks.

I'm thinking though, to keep it simple, I may just try adding less kalk to the reactor.

 

[ChrisRD]

Adding less kalk to the reactor won't work - the kalkwasser coming out of a kalkreactor is completely saturated. Having more or less kalk in there will just vary the amount of time you go before you have to reload it.

IMO if you have an overly high and/or variable evaporation rate it would be best to setup the system with some sort of limit/regulation as 7 suggested vs. just trying to do it through the auto-topoff. Personally, I will never put a kalkreactor on an auto-topoff setup as I've seen/heard too many horror stories where the system fails and nukes the tank with kalkwasser (ie. pH spike).

Personally I prefer adding kalk on a dosing pump + timer setup and handling the rest of the evap via a float valve fed by a freshwater reservoir. IME it's easier to maintain consistent Ca/Alk/pH levels this way and it's less prone to failure (IMO).

JMO of course...

 

[Anonymous]

Great, thanks a lot guys.

I think I'm going to have my kalk reactor on a timer, and seperate from my auto-topoff. It sounds much safer this way, and easier too.