Baking Soda?

[marki24]

can i use regular baking soda to raise my calcium level and how much would i need to add to a 55 gallon reef tank? Or any other home remmodies for raising the calcium level.

 

[regal]

No. Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate with no calcium. You can use it to raise the alkalinity. To raise calcium, you need either kalkwasser or b-ionic calcium buffer that are available commercially. Or you can make your own calcium supplement AKA Randy's 2 part solution with Calcium chloride (Dow's flakes or pellet)

 

[marki24]

would you recommend using purple up over kalkwasser?

 

[Tonyscoots84]

i would seriously recc. alot of reading before u start fooling around with the levels... know what you are doing and the relationship between the diff. levels before you do anything to adjust anything...

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/author/rhf.php deff. read alot from this link.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php 2 part recipe

 

[loismustdie]

Wow... a lot of baking soda questions lately. What's going on?
Anyway, since this is the newbie forum, I should say that you should not add anything to your tank that you do not test for. Calcium, alkalinity and magnesium are the things that SHOULD be tested weekly once stable. It should be test even more frequently while you are in the process of stabilization. All 3 are related and if one is out of whack, none of the other tests mean anything.
Now, I'll jump off my high horse and provide you with this link to make some very inexpensive yet crazy effective 3 part supplements:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php#4
DO NOT DOSE IT IF YOU DO NOT TEST FOR IT!!!
I can't stress that enough.

 

[loismustdie]

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php#4

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php#4

My bad... tony already provided the link

 

[Tonyscoots84]

im all over it chris... :biggrin: :lol2:

as chris said "do not dose if you dont test for it..."