Calcium reactors or dosers?
- Thread starter andrew
- Start date
Better as what? Cheaper? Less maintenance? Less chance to go wrong? Better tank parameters?
Currently, I am trying to dose a solution of sodium bicarbonate and sodium carbonate(baking soda & baked baking soda) to maintain alkalinity levels. I chose a combination in an attempt to keep pH fluctuation at a minimum.
As a college student, funds are tight so I am trying to:
Once I get the ALK down, I'm going to set up a similar system to dose calcium chloride dihydrate. This should be a relatively cheap solution with less maintenance then daily dosing.
Currently, I am trying to dose a solution of sodium bicarbonate and sodium carbonate(baking soda & baked baking soda) to maintain alkalinity levels. I chose a combination in an attempt to keep pH fluctuation at a minimum.
As a college student, funds are tight so I am trying to:
- use an aqualifter to dose(~$15)
- a ball valve to control the flow (~$1)
- an analog timer(works in increments of 30 minutes) (~$3)
- I dont really like digital timers, if the power flips for even a second I have to go through and reprogram.
- A hefty safety margin in the concentration of my ALK solution.
- While I'm still determining the daily amount of solution to add, it is at least 50mL. I am going to dilute it to about 500mL and then play around with the amount that gets used in 30 minutes. I will have it dose 4 times a day, I may move up to 6 times.
- Should take me a week or two to determine the exact amount of solution to maintain levels. I figure I'm going to dilute my ALK solution at least by 3(so if I need 50 mL daily, I'll dilute to 150 mL).
- Keep only a few days solution in the vessel until I get the numbers down.
Once I get the ALK down, I'm going to set up a similar system to dose calcium chloride dihydrate. This should be a relatively cheap solution with less maintenance then daily dosing.
I currently use a Ca reactor and love it. I've heard some people say that with a heavy number of stony corals you will end up having to top off your dosing bins often. With the reactor I just add media every 6 months or so and fill the co2 tank about every 6 or 7. Lately it's been speeding up though and I'm considering topping my levels off by adding a dosing pump to the system in addition to the reactor. Or I can just add a second effluent chamber to the reactor and double the amount of media the co2 has to dissolve.