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Calcium reactors vs Kalk Reactors ?

The_Codfather

The_Codfather

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Hawkeye said:
danny used to post here a bit too. He had a great set up at one time. I've never been to his place - did he break down everything sid? Anyways I guess the good news here is that he probably kept his equipment in very good condition if my recollection of his tank serves me right.

Just keep an eye on Alk - as the CA reactor will drive that parameter down.
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Yeah he is out of the Hobby
 
Baxreefs

Baxreefs

I agree Darren. If i test I test Alk first if it's OK and things look good, I'm done testing.

I have found that my ProCal seems to provide most all the Alk my system needs especially since i switch to big bones media.
 
The_Codfather

The_Codfather

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Thank you everyone for Links and input.. I have one other question.. What is this "Big Bone" media? I have been seeing it's the best stuff but i can't seem to find it
 
TanksNStuff

TanksNStuff

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Unfortunately, I have no room to add any other types of reactors (I only have my BRS dual for carbon/gfo) ... so I don't have either of these to comment on.

What I would like to comment on though is Alk and pH. These are two things that I've been struggling to keep in the "recommended" parameters for some time now. My pH has been at a steady 7.0 and my Alk has been anywhere between 4.5 to 6.0 dKH! While these are both well below the recommended ranges, I've not had any issues with my corals other than slow growth. Nothing has been dying and in fact most corals are growing, albeit at a slow pace. Even still, I want to correct this "problem" and see if I can't get my corals to grow faster.

Over the last couple months, I've been dosing the 2 part from BRS (I consider it 3 part since it has Alk/Cal/Mag) and my parameters have been like a yoyo since. My problem is I don't keep at it daily as I should. I really need to get a couple dosers so I can keep everything more steady. The BRS 2 part does a great job at getting me back into the low-mid range for Alk and pH (and my Cal and Mag are both in the upper end of the recommended ranges too) but if I skip a day or two on the doses then it's right back down to the 7.0 pH and 4.5 to 6.0 dKH again.

I think getting dosing pumps would solve my issues without needing any reactors. But the point I was trying to make here was that either I have really resilient corals or being below the recommended ranges isn't that big of a deal. :undecided:
 
M

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
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Corals can survive and be ok at lower ranges but just like you observed they are not ideel. I struggled just like you to keep my params in check when I was dosing by hand because if I missed a day or more it would swing (especially in my 20g when I was dosing). I went out and got dosing pumps (marine magic, they sell on ebay and are a lot cheaper then the bubble magus ones) and everything took off in growth and color. It takes some time and daily testing for about a week or so to get them dialed in, but once they are dialed in it makes things so much easier. I just change out the dosing containers once a week and am good to go.
 
Baxreefs

Baxreefs

By "big bones" I meant the coarse media like what Darren liked you to. In coarse media, I've used the Gen-X media, bulk media from Aquarim Specialty, and I just picked up BW's Coral Lazerus. They are all very similar in size of the media. They also so far seem to produce similar result in the CaRx. Definitely better then the kitty litter sized media by far and away.
 
TanksNStuff

TanksNStuff

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Thanks Mike. I'll look into those marine magic dosers.

Sorry for derailling your thread a bit Sid.
 
Baxreefs

Baxreefs

Sid

That's the size in the link ... "Extra Coarse"

I may have made up the term big bones, or I may have read it somewhere, IDK, it refers to the larger size of the coral skeletons used in the media. The "common" sized media that resembles kitty litter is reprocessed and literally melts over time causing flow issues within the reactor chamber. These coarse media allow water to flow all around the media without clogging. The process within your CaRx is somewhat of a contact sport. The water need to move thru the chamber of media for the dissolved elements to be entrained in the water at the optimal efficiency. If your media becomes a mass of mush, the water tends flow around it resulting in less contact area and less flow.

Does that make sense?

In a two chamber reactor, the second chamber is there to scavenge excess CO2 and makes for a more stable effluent pH returning to the system. Because t's not getting the same level of CO2, I don't find thatthe media melts here, so I have continues to use the ARM kitty litter sized media here and do not see any down side.

The corase media are actual pieces of coral skeleton so when they dissolve, trace elements that went into making the coral skeleton initially are released. Who knows what the corals were using that we have not even identified. The manufactured kitty litter stuff probably does not have every element in the right amounts as the actual coral skeletons do. I'm fairly sure that it's not "all good" either. There is most likely some phosphate and neutrient released as well, but I feel it is worth it as my reactor runs better and my Ca stays up there. Like every choice we make in keeping a reef-in-a-box, they are trade offs.

I also like to run BWs NeoMag mixed in with the CaRx media in my second chamber. Since doing so, my Mg stays much more stable. I still adjust Mg with dosing, but much less frequently.
 
The_Codfather

The_Codfather

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Baxreefs said:
Sid

That's the size in the link ... "Extra Coarse"

I may have made up the term big bones, or I may have read it somewhere, IDK, it refers to the larger size of the coral skeletons used in the media. The "common" sized media that resembles kitty litter is reprocessed and literally melts over time causing flow issues within the reactor chamber. These coarse media allow water to flow all around the media without clogging. The process within your CaRx is somewhat of a contact sport. The water need to move thru the chamber of media for the dissolved elements to be entrained in the water at the optimal efficiency. If your media becomes a mass of mush, the water tends flow around it resulting in less contact area and less flow.

Does that make sense?

In a two chamber reactor, the second chamber is there to scavenge excess CO2 and makes for a more stable effluent pH returning to the system. Because t's not getting the same level of CO2, I don't find thatthe media melts here, so I have continues to use the ARM kitty litter sized media here and do not see any down side.

The corase media are actual pieces of coral skeleton so when they dissolve, trace elements that went into making the coral skeleton initially are released. Who knows what the corals were using that we have not even identified. The manufactured kitty litter stuff probably does not have every element in the right amounts as the actual coral skeletons do. I'm fairly sure that it's not "all good" either. There is most likely some phosphate and neutrient released as well, but I feel it is worth it as my reactor runs better and my Ca stays up there. Like every choice we make in keeping a reef-in-a-box, they are trade offs.

I also like to run BWs NeoMag mixed in with the CaRx media in my second chamber. Since doing so, my Mg stays much more stable. I still adjust Mg with dosing, but much less frequently.
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Thanks Bax

PaulM said:
Has anyone tested the effluent for phosphates with the ARM media? I heard it has alot of phosphates.
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From what I'm reading it's 0% In PO4 and NO3 And is the best midia
 
AqOb

AqOb

dnov99 said:
Phil Its not Ozone that runs on a calcium reactor, its CO2.



A calcium reactor will not drive down ALK. That is a myth. If anything these reactors should be called Alkalinity reactors because that is what they supply. I dont even bother testing for calcium, I have not in 5 years. Keep your alkalinity at a stable, balanced level and calcium and PH will all fall in line. The key is just getting the reactor tuned in properly. The need to run a Kalk reactor in addition is a complete waste. The media from a Calcium reactor will provide so much more than just calcium and alkalinity. It provides trace elements MG, etc.

Most people who have problems with Calcium reactors is a result of them not getting them tuned in properly to begin with or using some sort of PH controller, which is the second biggest mistake to do. They also worry about getting their PH raised and usually do more damage trying to keep it high by dosing extra stuff. I have not checked my PH in years, IMO another thing that is fine if its low as long as it is stable. A dip to 7.7 in the evening is fine.
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+1
 
Hawkeye

Hawkeye

dnov99 said:
Phil Its not Ozone that runs on a calcium reactor, its CO2.



A calcium reactor will not drive down ALK. That is a myth. If anything these reactors should be called Alkalinity reactors because that is what they supply. I dont even bother testing for calcium, I have not in 5 years. Keep your alkalinity at a stable, balanced level and calcium and PH will all fall in line. The key is just getting the reactor tuned in properly. The need to run a Kalk reactor in addition is a complete waste. The media from a Calcium reactor will provide so much more than just calcium and alkalinity. It provides trace elements MG, etc.

Most people who have problems with Calcium reactors is a result of them not getting them tuned in properly to begin with or using some sort of PH controller, which is the second biggest mistake to do. They also worry about getting their PH raised and usually do more damage trying to keep it high by dosing extra stuff. I have not checked my PH in years, IMO another thing that is fine if its low as long as it is stable. A dip to 7.7 in the evening is fine.
Click to expand...

Ahh my bad - I meant to say PH is driven down if the CO2 is not tuned correctly. And not Ozone - duh!....Man two wrong facts in one post. I should just retire from this thread and go into the corner.
 
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