Overnight Kalk Drip??

[runningrandy04]

Hey everyone, so over the past few months I've determined that my tank does amazingly better with an 11 kh and 450 calcium. Problem is I've gone through a lot of additives trying to keep it that way.
-I was wondering what you thought of a 1 gallon kalk drip every other night? -How much pickling lime do I use?
-Would a milk jug with a pinhole sitting on top of the tank work?
I know this is gonna drop my magnesium. The test kit and additives for that is on my never ending list of stuff to get. I'll still be doing a 10% water change weekly to keep trace elements and magnesium up. Thanks!!

 

[ccCapt]

Here's just about everything you want to know about kalk.
What Your Grandmother Never Told You About Lime by Randy Holmes-Farley

I personally found using kalk to be too much of a hassle. It's used for maintaining alk and ca levels. Generally, you use 1 tablespoon for 1 gal of ro water and use that as top off water. 1 tablespoon will saturate the water, so adding more will only cause it to precipitate. You would need to figure out how much to use to keep the levels you want...and that's by trial and error.

I found using the 2-Part DIY Solution works best and is the easiest for me.
An Improved Do-it-Yourself Two-Part Calcium and Alkalinity Supplement System by Randy Holmes-Farley
You can buy the calcium and mag at www.bulkreefsupply.com and use Arm&Hammer baking soda for alk. Use this Reef Chemistry Calculator to determine how much of each you need to raise your levels to where you want them.

 

[Oscarsdad608]

I use the DIY 2 part it is way easier than the kalk drip.

 

[runningrandy04]

thanks guys, I'm just gonna use kalk for now since I already have it. I'll have to get into the 2 part once I get my top off figured out.

 

[Altohombre]

seriously some of this stuff goes way over my head and this kind of stuff is one of them.

 

[simpleman]

Not trying to Hijack, but I just mixed up my first batch of Kalkwasser (kent brand) not too long ago and did not see any crusty layer on top or milky layers on the bottom. It was completely clear, I followed the directions, did I do something wrong?

 

[ccCapt]

Nope. There shouldn't be anything on top and maybe only a slight dusting on the bottom of the container after it sits a few hours. If you see alot of stuff settled, you either used too much and it precipitated or there are alot of impurities in it.

 

[simpleman]

Sweet! I knew I wasn't crazy. It just shows on the directions that 4 different layers should appear and that you should only use the clear middle layer. Thanks Capt!