Kalwasser Dripping

[sjimmyh]

Some of you may have read about my CO2 issue in a couple of threads regarding Alk and pH.
I recently started dripping Kalkwasser as a means to help control this. Goes to show you that after 15 years of doing marine tanks you can still experience something new. I never have used Kalkwasser before now.
So, my question is this. Did you all that have been using this method for awhile now ever have the tank kind of get a cloudy appearance? Not the real milky look of an overdose. I have read a ton about that. I am talking about just a light cloudy appearance kind of like the new tank bacteria bloom with ammonia look. (I actually thought I may be cycling again, but tests on Ammonia, Trites and Trates all show zero) I have done no other changes to the tank other than dripping.
I think maybe I am getting some of the precipitate from the Kalkwasser container into the tank. Just wondered if anyone else had had this happen, and what you did to help minimize the precipitate getting into the drip if you had experienced this.
Other information: Drip rate near equal with evaporation (about one drip every couple seconds), Kalk is well mixed prior to use and sets for close to 24 hours before use like recommended, drip takes suction off the container about 2 inches above the bottom to try to minimize precipitate getting into the drip. I test for pH, Alk, Calcium, Magnesium, Iodine, NH3, NO2, NO3, PO4, Strontium. No abnormalities.
Thanks in advance.

 

[teen]

i use the slurry method and the tank gets a little cloudy, but it usually goes away within a half hour.
i dont remember the tank getting cloudy when i used to drip. maybe your mix is to concentrated. your only supposed to drip the clear water on top and that never clouded my water.

 

[sjimmyh]

Originally Posted by teen
i use the slurry method and the tank gets a little cloudy, but it usually goes away within a half hour.
i dont remember the tank getting cloudy when i used to drip. maybe your mix is to concentrated. your only supposed to drip the clear water on top and that never clouded my water.
I thought I was dripping only the clear liquid, but the container is opaque so I can't really see it. Maybe a couple inch off the bottom suction for the drip is too low. Maybe I got a bunch of stuff in the drip line when I mixed it up... not sure.
Was just wondering if someone else had experienced it.
What is the "slurry" method, if I may ask you?
I don't think you can really get "too concentrated" with Lime. From what I have read, if you over add CaOH to the RO/DI water it will just sit at the bottom and not disolve. Thats what I read anyways. Like I said, I am new to Kalkwasser use.

 

[teen]

the slurry method is basically taking the amount of kalkwasser your tank uses, mixing it up in some RO/DI water and dumping it in your sump.
some people dont like it because it adds impurities to your water, but i skim wet and run carbon to keep up with it.
it keeps my dkh right around 9, before i started this, my dkh was usually around 7. calcium stays put at around 420. no complaints on my end and its a lot easier than dripping IME. only thing is that it can spike your pH, so its best to do it at night.
you can read up on it by doing a google search. anthony calfo wrote some stuff on it.

 

[sjimmyh]

Thanks!

 

[azfishgal]

Originally Posted by teen
the slurry method is basically taking the amount of kalkwasser your tank uses, mixing it up in some RO/DI water and dumping it in your sump.
some people dont like it because it adds impurities to your water, but i skim wet and run carbon to keep up with it.
it keeps my dkh right around 9, before i started this, my dkh was usually around 7. calcium stays put at around 420. no complaints on my end and its a lot easier than dripping IME. only thing is that it can spike your pH, so its best to do it at night.
you can read up on it by doing a google search. anthony calfo wrote some stuff on it.
OK, just poked my head in here because I'm needing to do the Kalk drip (or slurry) for the same reason Jimmy is needing to (high CO2). It would seem to me that the slurry method would be a lot easier than dripping. But can I ask you if you let it sit for 24 hours after mixing and then only dump in the top half of the water (the clear water). I am a little nervous about doing it this way as I don't want my pH to swing to fast.

 

[teen]

i just take a small bit of the powder, dump it in a pint of water, stir it up and dump it in my sump. i do this right before i go to bed, so its usually several hours after lights go out for the night.
it helps to know how much kalk you system uses first. after dripping for a few weeks, i figured out approximately how much kalk my tank uses each week and i try and get that much back in the tank in the course of a week. i dont use this every night. a few times a week does the trick, you just have to keep an eye on your alkalinity because it can drop if you stop using it for a few days.
i was nervous too at first, but a few people in my local reef club use this method. i was particularly scared because my tank is so small (30 gallon and 10 gallon sump), its much easier to overdose a samller tank. one girl in the club said shes been doing it in her 24 gallon, so i figured i could pull it off. ive been doing it succesfully for about 6 months.

 

[rambomessiah]

I use this SIMPLE DIY drip method. I use a 5 gallon polar spring water jug drilled out following this method. It's easy and works great. I have 2 jugs setup so that I can run vinegar thru one the hoses to clean out buildup.Works great and keeps my alk and Calcium right were it needs to be.
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...nftt/index.php

 

[azfishgal]

Thanks! I'll drip first to see how much my tank uses and then try the slurry method, seems a lot easier to do. I already add my calcium every night so I wouldn't be doing anything different. Speaking of, do you add Turbo Calcium in addition to your Kalk mix or just the Kalk mix?

 

[teen]

i dont add anything to the tank but the kalkwasser and magnesium crystals. if you try the slurry method, be sure to run carbon and adjust you skimmer to run a little wetter.
i was adding purple up for awhile, which is basically a calcium additive, but once my calcium was where i wanted it, i stoped using it.

 

[azfishgal]

Originally Posted by teen
i dont add anything to the tank but the kalkwasser and magnesium crystals. if you try the slurry method, be sure to run carbon and adjust you skimmer to run a little wetter.
i was adding purple up for awhile, which is basically a calcium additive, but once my calcium was where i wanted it, i stoped using it.
OK, I've always wondered what "wet skimming" ment, so how do you make it run wetter?

I have an in-sump skimmer so not sure how much wetter I can get it.

(Sorry, couldn't resist.)
I don't think I need to add "purple up" as my rock is covered in purple coraline.

 

[teen]

yea, my rock is purple too, but no thanks to the purple up. i just used it as a calcium additive, since thats pretty much all it is.
wet skimming is pretty much raising the bubble level in your skimmer, so that the skimate is a yellow, wetter, solution. it isnt as concentrated as the dark green or brown skimate. difference is that wet skimming pulls pretty much little thing including more water. dry skimming means your skimmer is pulling nastier heavier junk and less water. hope that made sense.

 

[azfishgal]

Well my calcium is around 420, so I think I'm good.
Now for another stupid quesiton: How do I raise the bubble level in my skimmer?

 

[sjimmyh]

Originally Posted by azfishgal
Thanks! I'll drip first to see how much my tank uses and then try the slurry method, seems a lot easier to do. I already add my calcium every night so I wouldn't be doing anything different. Speaking of, do you add Turbo Calcium in addition to your Kalk mix or just the Kalk mix?
Keep in mind Teen isn't using his drip for CO2 (at least I don't get the impression he is). I know that my tank would re-absorb the CO2 removed by kalk if I stopped adding it for a 24 hour period (at least most of it, because I had to stop once already and watched pH go right back down). I don't think the slurry method would work as well in my situation or yours, AZ.
It does sound easier, but the real reason I am using Kalkwasser is to provide a higher pH that is stable. The drip gives me a continuous CO2 removal tool. I think I would yo-yo if I used the slurry. Teen may not have the CO2 issues we have, AZ, which would make sense why it works so well for him.

 

[teen]

true. my pH is pretty much at a constant 8.3, it drops a bit at night, but thats how it is for most people, and thats why i dose the kalk at night.
basically the only reason i dose the kalk is to keep my dkh at 9. without it, it drops to 7.

 

[azfishgal]

Originally Posted by SJimmyH
Keep in mind Teen isn't using his drip for CO2 (at least I don't get the impression he is). I know that my tank would re-absorb the CO2 removed by kalk if I stopped adding it for a 24 hour period (at least most of it, because I had to stop once already and watched pH go right back down). I don't think the slurry method would work as well in my situation or yours, AZ.
It does sound easier, but the real reason I am using Kalkwasser is to provide a higher pH that is stable. The drip gives me a continuous CO2 removal tool. I think I would yo-yo if I used the slurry. Teen may not have the CO2 issues we have, AZ, which would make sense why it works so well for him.
Thanks, makes sense. I will say this, over the last few days my Alk has been dropping in both my QT and DT, but my pH is still staying the same at 8.0. In eight days my DT has gone from 5.26 Alk to 4.24 Alk. It's not a huge drop, but at least it's going in the right direction. I'm still going to do the Kalk drip though so I can get my pH up. I got my air-valves and hoses and just need to drink the rest of my lemonaid so I can use the bottle.

I thought I would do the drip at night (to make sure the pH doesn't swing to high) and then in the morning do my test (I'll start with the low dose). Or should I wait until the middle of the day, to give the Kalk time to mix well? How often should I test?