Kalk v 2 part v Wages

[Mark_C]

Hey folks.

With new big tank and my general laziness I’m looking to dose as cheaply and with as little equipment and effort as possible.

Initial thoughts were a doser and ESV or the Seachem 2part then I came across a post from 2012 from some guy named Red Fish Blue Fish, which led me down the line of Mrs Wages Pickling Lime.

Seems, through much research, that mixing pickling lime and adding via the ATO would be effective and is very appealing due to cost, lack of additional equipment, and laziness.

Planned to start with 1/2t per gallon of top up water. Monitor Alk weekly pre water change and adjust accordingly, testing magnesium occasionally and dose by hand if required.

Has anyone gone this route lately?
Anyone have any thoughts or advice?

 

[DangerDave]

I use kalk though a stirrer to supplement 2 part and keep ph up. Right now it’s 2 gallons a day. Easy and clean. When I was mixing it and dosing it was messy and the strength varied depending on how long it was in there. I had to sir manually daily. Stirrer wins in my book.

 

[Trio91]

I use kalk and have used it from day 1 without issues as my only supplement. I use 2.5tsp per 5 gal of RO.

Edit

This was a straight dump into my ro container and my ato would dose this automatically. Once stirsti till mixed, then allowed to settle for atleast an hour.

 

[Trio91]

Just make sure that:

A. You dont suck in the "skim" crust that's ontop of the water

B. You dont suck in the kalk sludge that's at the bottom of the bucket.

You want the clear-ish stuff that's in the middle

 

[Mark_C]

Cool, thanks guys.
The ATO is going to win.

So I prep by mixing X amount of calcium carbonate (hydrated lime/pickling lime) in 5g.
Let sit for a day or two.
Skim off top layer.
Empty clear fluid into ATO.
Monitor
Adjust CaCl 'top up' concentration as needed.

Sound right?

Oh, and check Magnesium every month and dose manual if required (is this step even necessary?)

 

[DangerDave]

Edit...Nm, you’re doing ATO...

 

[falconut]

I used Mrs. Wages many years ago & it worked just like the others. The only difference I found was it was harder on impellers. I went through many until I switched to the fish brand kalk. If you're not using an impeller to stir it, you probably won't notice a difference except in your wallet.

 

[Trio91]

Cool, thanks guys.
The ATO is going to win.

So I prep by mixing X amount of calcium carbonate (hydrated lime/pickling lime) in 5g.
Let sit for a day or two.
Skim off top layer.
Empty clear fluid into ATO.
Monitor
Adjust CaCl 'top up' concentration as needed.

Sound right?

Oh, and check Magnesium every month and dose manual if required (is this step even necessary?)

I usually let it sit for a couple of hours, its usually clear by then. I personally dont test much but it cant hurt if you do. You can always up the dose to a maximum of 2tsp per gallon but any more than that and the kalk wont mix, hence why some some with higher demands go other routes down the line. Some folks add vinegar to the mix for a boost but I've never tried it.

Also, very important. Keep a lid on your kalk mix as air will cause it to loose its potency.

 

[Trio91]

My 1st brand of Kalk was the Kent marine brand with great results. You can find that in any Petco. It's very "powdery" so be careful not to inhale the stuff.

 

[radiata]

I used Mrs. Wages many years ago & it worked just like the others. The only difference I found was it was harder on impellers. I went through many until I switched to the fish brand kalk. If you're not using an impeller to stir it, you probably won't notice a difference except in your wallet.

Interesting observation! I wonder what the chemical difference is between Mrs. Wages and fish brands. Any thoughts?

 

[Mrx7899x]

Interesting observation! I wonder what the chemical difference is between Mrs. Wages and fish brands. Any thoughts?

They are the same all of them are calcium hydroxide. There might be differences in how fine the powder is. But its calcium hydroxide

 

[kabal2]

They are not all the same BRS have a video about it and is pretty interesting
Comparing Different Kalkwasser Additives with Certified ICP-MS Testing - BRStv Investigates
I used pikle lime before with great results, and kalk stirrer is the way to go, just make sure your ato pump is before the kalk stirrer

 

[Mrx7899x]

There might be different purity levels but it's all calcium hydroxide. I use a avast kalk stirrer and mrs wages.

 

[Mark_C]

Decided to go with a kalk stirrer (Avast) and peristalic pump.
Screw simplicity, my credit card burned way past that.

So do I make Kalk (in the avast) and have the dosing pump drip it directly into the sump?
This, controlled by Apex, is my preference. I can calculate my tank usage and dose accordingly.

But I've seen a few posts on using the peristalic to dose the Kalk directly into the ATO as the ATO level drops.
Wouldn't this vary the Kalk dose based on seasonal evaporation?

So I have no idea on the preferred method and how to (generally) set the system up.

Advice and basic setup info appreciated.

 

[jhopiv]

I have the Avast kalk stirrer and i love it so far. I switched from 2 part to kalkwasser and do not regret it.
With 2 part i was getting a little swing in alk but with kalkwasser i am rock solid at 9.1 for the past month and my PH has been between 8 - 8.15.

I have a continus duty pump set to 15ml a min and i turn it on every hour for 15 min. That works for me and if i need to increase it ill just up it from 15 min to 20 min until i am at an hour then ill satart upping the ml per min.

First you should figure how many gallons you evaporate per day. For me its about 3 gallons. Leave your ATO alone and just make sure your kalkwasser dosing is less then you evaporate so your ATO can topoff whatever it needs and you will not be raising the level of your tank with rodi kalkwasser water.

Ill try to post a picture of my setup later.

 

[Mrx7899x]

For a new tank with not alot of coral you'll want to run the stirrer off a dosing pump or a timed outlet and not your ato. Ato with dose more then what your tank needs. A stirrer is fully saturated kalk you cant change the strength of it like you can if you put it into your ato reservoir.

 

[Mark_C]

Thanks for the insight guys.
I'll stick with the stirrer and dose via Apex controlled pump into sump.
So, if anyone has a kalk stirrer up for sale...
Otherwise I'll pick up the Avast 'Build your Own' option.

 

[Kovacjr]

Wonder if I need to look i to the stirrer. Im currently just mixing in the ato bucket once every 2 weeks. But im 20g and a 5g ato reservoir

 

[amado]

I do both I dose 2 part and I put kalkwasser in my ATO.