Great timing, been thinking of this lately too, looking forward to seeing your results, I've bought the reef flowers kalk which has magnesium and strontium added also, similar to brightwell kalk +2
Thanks Alex, gald your are going in not expecting much, keep your tests up as when the tank explodes it will deplete your majors quickly. KhK will help. I used the RK ph monitor and moved dosing kalk from 7pm to 7am to midnight to 6am. Same volume just during the low times. Tip, you may find the fastest flow in your filtration is actually the top of the overflow wier. Thanks for a good chat.
I've used one for years, plus I used it on my old freshwater frontosas cichlids aquarium, so it kept my pH up very high for the frontosas cichlids, when using ro water. I noticed more regular breeding.
I know its been a while since you recorded this video but I caught a few topics that I'd suggest different reasoning for... 1) Airstone, opening windows, and skimmer line to outdoors... this is going to be completely dependent upon each persons circumstances. I believe it was humblefish who suggested to perform a pH test on tank water immediately, and after sitting outdoors for an hour, to determine if indoor CO2 levels were substantially impacting pH, which more often than not, it can have a huge impact for (especially those who operate homes with central AC). Airstone is only effective for systems lacking surface agitation (no sump, no hob filter, poor flow directed at suface). 2) Measuring daily uptake of alkalinity in a reef tank... You 100% want to determine this by means of ml dosed and concentration of your product. There's plenty of online calculators for this. Apart from the unnecessary risk of turning off your doser for a day, I believe it is reasonable to say that as your alkalinity decreases, your corals will uptake less alkalinity. So if you turned your alkalinity off for a day, you'd be artificially decreasing the amount your corals would have taken in had the alkalinity been maintained. I'm very much open to correction. In any case, great discussion - tons of valuable information! One of my favorite channels for detailed, unbiased information.
O.k so I have my R/O plumbed directly into my sump via a float valve. Surely a kalk Stirrer could be modified for this low tech option to be implemented rather than use a £200 dosing pump. I'll just say so far the float valve has been more reliable than the tunze ato's I used previously.
Is Kalkwasser anything like the NaHCO3 I've been adding to maintain my KH levels in my reef tank? Or does Kalkwasser add Calcium significantly? Also is it true it reduces Phosphates? Would love to know where to learn more science on this.
I've been dosing kalkwasser in my ato for 2 years and It gets put in front of the water flow from the return pump. I use a peristaltic pump for ato not a normal pump so no risk of clogging up.
Great video Alex. One of the things I love about this hobby is there’s many different ways of doing things successfully. Personally I’m not a kalkwasser fan. I know it has a lot of plus points but it also has a fair few disadvantages. Instead I prefer to run Tropic Marin Balling method but substitute Part B for Soda Ash. It’s a really simple, affordable method that keeps PH high. It does require three dosing pumps and yes it does increase salinity however this takes a lot of dosing and is a really simple fix.
The Part C fixes the imbalance caused by the excess NaCl created from dosing Part A and B. You will still get a gradual salinity increase which will need to be rectified by removing tank water and replacing it with RO water.
Thank you Alex/ all plenty of info to take on board, going by some peoples comments do you think it’s not best to dose through lines & a dose pump ? I was going to use a Milwaukee PH controller with a dosing pump or is this a bad idea & will clog/ break?
I've been using seachem kalkwasser for a while I dripped kalkwasser in my 100 gallon tank 24/7 I have a motorized pump that drips it non-stop all day long at a very slow drip rate keeps my dkh stable about 9.5 dkh keeps my pH of about 8.2 in the late afternoon actually you could even use lime water that you buy in the store the same type of powder but they use it for food it also works well
Your Kalk container did you drill a hole in the lid for the dosing pipe? Or a little connection on top? If so where did you get the connector from? Cheers
If you’re worried about the kalk effects on equipment in the sump is there any way for you to dose into the display tank directly? Since your reactor passively drips into your sump you’d have to somehow raise it above your tank… 🤔. You could just dose kalk (not over saturated but the clear solution) from a reservoir with the versa like any dosing pump additive but I don’t know if it would raise your pH enough.
I looked into the Kalkwasser you really should just try the regular three part through BRS that will raise your pH and just does the soda ash at night. It has worked wonders for me this is the kit here. Bulk Reef Supply 2-Part Pharma Calcium & Alkalinity Starter Package - Bulk Reef Supply
Slightly off topic, I was thinking about investing in a alkalinity tester, the two I have seen use pH based titration methods. Do these devices tell you what the pH of the test water is?
@@jules2545 the pH probe for sure - it takes the measurement in-tank, whereas the pH probe in the KHK has to draw water through a tube, for it to then drip into a beaker, which is likely to affect the pH. The pH meter is designed to measure pH in the tank, whereas the KHK is just designed to measure the change in pH in the beaker as acid (reagent) is added.
Very interesting video as always. My pH sits at 7.7-7.8 very occasionally it goes higher. I don’t have a sump so I’d have to dose automatically but don’t have an auto doser. Would using my ato reservoir with a small powerhead to mix a fully saturated solution be better than nothing? Opinions always welcome! Thanks
I don't think I'd ever put it in an ATO - far better to have a container of saturated Kalk and just dose that in my opinion. But don't forget I've never done this before!
@@ReefDork hmmm I’ll have to work out how I’m going to fit an auto doser in my cabinet! Thanks for replying I’ll do some more homework. It will be interesting to see how you get on and I’m looking forward to it 👍🏻👍🏻
Hello, hiw did you end up dosing please? Im dosing AllForReef atm and starting Kalk tonight with Versa pump. Do you dose Kalk at night and you ATI on days please?
I switched over to BRS three part soda ash as alkalinity has a build in buffer my pH now sits at eight Four where it used to sit around eight it doesn’t fluctuate anymore than point one at night time and I only dose the soda ash at night which is alkalinity and I use all their other chemicals as well and it’s been working out great and it’s super cheap you get a gallon of alkalinity for seven dollars
If you could do a video on flat worms that would be awesome. I have clear flat worms crawling over my torch corals and can not figure out which type they are to try to get rid of them. They don’t seem to fit the description of any of them😩
I have been using kalk for 2 months and just added a co2 scrubber because kalk was rasing my alk to high and I couldn't reach 8.3 with the co2 and kalk I can hit 8.3. I only have lps and softies but I have noticed a significant increase in polyp extension and growth rate in just 2 months my ph used to be 7.9 high and 7.6 low now I hit 8.3 high and 8.15 low. Also dont dose more kalk than the evaporation rate of your tank and salinity shouldn't be effected. I measured how much my tank evaporated for a couple days before I started dosing kalk
Your Ph is not bad and your corals are not bad growers. I dose kalkwasser and it does raise it up a little by about a .1 to .2 but I don't have room to dose a lot as many people do. There are now the slurry people who are able to raise it more but you need advance monitoring and control system like apex and ghl. Too expensive for me and my space is too small.
I'll probably start using that at some point - it's 1/3rd the cost on ebay here in the UK. But for now, as a Kalk nube, a reef brand gives me comfort! I know that's daft but hey 🤷😅
i like the idea of kalk but after listening to your videos its a HUGE cost to monitor correctly. PH and salinity probes, kalk stirrer, large container etc. lot of effort and outlay for PH. I hope it works out for you though mate.
I'll do an update this Sunday - i've changed plans and I'm currently doing it much more simply and cheaply. Although the pH probe I admit will always be an expense...
@@ReefDork i'm not hating by the way. just started to tot the cost in my head of the kamoer continuous doser, probes, stirrer and quickly rose to over a grand which turned me off the idea immediately lol
Great timing, been thinking of this lately too, looking forward to seeing your results, I've bought the reef flowers kalk which has magnesium and strontium added also, similar to brightwell kalk +2
Thanks Alex, gald your are going in not expecting much, keep your tests up as when the tank explodes it will deplete your majors quickly. KhK will help. I used the RK ph monitor and moved dosing kalk from 7pm to 7am to midnight to 6am. Same volume just during the low times. Tip, you may find the fastest flow in your filtration is actually the top of the overflow wier. Thanks for a good chat.
About to do the same sort of thing myself. looking forward to seeing your updates !
I've used one for years, plus I used it on my old freshwater frontosas cichlids aquarium, so it kept my pH up very high for the frontosas cichlids, when using ro water. I noticed more regular breeding.
I know its been a while since you recorded this video but I caught a few topics that I'd suggest different reasoning for... 1) Airstone, opening windows, and skimmer line to outdoors... this is going to be completely dependent upon each persons circumstances. I believe it was humblefish who suggested to perform a pH test on tank water immediately, and after sitting outdoors for an hour, to determine if indoor CO2 levels were substantially impacting pH, which more often than not, it can have a huge impact for (especially those who operate homes with central AC). Airstone is only effective for systems lacking surface agitation (no sump, no hob filter, poor flow directed at suface). 2) Measuring daily uptake of alkalinity in a reef tank... You 100% want to determine this by means of ml dosed and concentration of your product. There's plenty of online calculators for this. Apart from the unnecessary risk of turning off your doser for a day, I believe it is reasonable to say that as your alkalinity decreases, your corals will uptake less alkalinity. So if you turned your alkalinity off for a day, you'd be artificially decreasing the amount your corals would have taken in had the alkalinity been maintained. I'm very much open to correction. In any case, great discussion - tons of valuable information! One of my favorite channels for detailed, unbiased information.
O.k so I have my R/O plumbed directly into my sump via a float valve. Surely a kalk Stirrer could be modified for this low tech option to be implemented rather than use a £200 dosing pump. I'll just say so far the float valve has been more reliable than the tunze ato's I used previously.
Is Kalkwasser anything like the NaHCO3 I've been adding to maintain my KH levels in my reef tank? Or does Kalkwasser add Calcium significantly? Also is it true it reduces Phosphates? Would love to know where to learn more science on this.
I've been dosing kalkwasser in my ato for 2 years and It gets put in front of the water flow from the return pump. I use a peristaltic pump for ato not a normal pump so no risk of clogging up.
Great video Alex. One of the things I love about this hobby is there’s many different ways of doing things successfully. Personally I’m not a kalkwasser fan. I know it has a lot of plus points but it also has a fair few disadvantages. Instead I prefer to run Tropic Marin Balling method but substitute Part B for Soda Ash. It’s a really simple, affordable method that keeps PH high. It does require three dosing pumps and yes it does increase salinity however this takes a lot of dosing and is a really simple fix.
Doesn’t part C fix the salinity issue? I do the 2 part dosing with the TM part A, B, and C also 👍
The Part C fixes the imbalance caused by the excess NaCl created from dosing Part A and B. You will still get a gradual salinity increase which will need to be rectified by removing tank water and replacing it with RO water.
Thank you Alex/ all plenty of info to take on board, going by some peoples comments do you think it’s not best to dose through lines & a dose pump ? I was going to use a Milwaukee PH controller with a dosing pump or is this a bad idea & will clog/ break?
I'm using John guest tubing which isn't clogging, I'd bet plenty of people use normal tubing though
I've been using seachem kalkwasser for a while I dripped kalkwasser in my 100 gallon tank 24/7 I have a motorized pump that drips it non-stop all day long at a very slow drip rate keeps my dkh stable about 9.5 dkh keeps my pH of about 8.2 in the late afternoon actually you could even use lime water that you buy in the store the same type of powder but they use it for food it also works well
Your Kalk container did you drill a hole in the lid for the dosing pipe? Or a little connection on top? If so where did you get the connector from? Cheers
Can't remember what I did for this, but I currently use a John Guest bulkhead
@@ReefDork perfect cheers 👍
If you’re worried about the kalk effects on equipment in the sump is there any way for you to dose into the display tank directly? Since your reactor passively drips into your sump you’d have to somehow raise it above your tank… 🤔. You could just dose kalk (not over saturated but the clear solution) from a reservoir with the versa like any dosing pump additive but I don’t know if it would raise your pH enough.
I'll update on Sunday - i've changed the plan already! Should be easier now. I'm not too concerned about pumps getting clogged any more either...
I have the Deltec one, watch out as the exit tube blocks up then it overflows.
I looked into the Kalkwasser you really should just try the regular three part through BRS that will raise your pH and just does the soda ash at night. It has worked wonders for me this is the kit here.
Bulk Reef Supply
2-Part Pharma Calcium & Alkalinity Starter Package - Bulk Reef Supply
Hey Alex,
What kind of container and dosing pump are you using for dosing kalk?
Thanks a lot in advance.
A large ldpe container from tanksdirect.co.uk and an Ecotech Versa.
@@ReefDork Thanks Alex! Is the container lid loosely tight or do you have any small hole?
@@GabyWeeb I drilled a small hole in it
@@ReefDork Thanks a lot Alex!
Slightly off topic, I was thinking about investing in a alkalinity tester, the two I have seen use pH based titration methods. Do these devices tell you what the pH of the test water is?
The Alkatronic and kh keeper do, although it's not accurate on the khk ime and my dedicated pH probe gives a different number
Hi Alex,
Are you considering the Alcatronic if your not fully happy with the KH Keeper or some other brand as you had issues with the KH Director
@@ianmcgregor1529 no, I'm happy with the KHK. I did think about the Alkatronic but it's too big
@@ReefDork Thats the trouble which probe do you believe?
@@jules2545 the pH probe for sure - it takes the measurement in-tank, whereas the pH probe in the KHK has to draw water through a tube, for it to then drip into a beaker, which is likely to affect the pH. The pH meter is designed to measure pH in the tank, whereas the KHK is just designed to measure the change in pH in the beaker as acid (reagent) is added.
Very interesting video as always. My pH sits at 7.7-7.8 very occasionally it goes higher. I don’t have a sump so I’d have to dose automatically but don’t have an auto doser. Would using my ato reservoir with a small powerhead to mix a fully saturated solution be better than nothing? Opinions always welcome! Thanks
I don't think I'd ever put it in an ATO - far better to have a container of saturated Kalk and just dose that in my opinion. But don't forget I've never done this before!
@@ReefDork hmmm I’ll have to work out how I’m going to fit an auto doser in my cabinet! Thanks for replying I’ll do some more homework. It will be interesting to see how you get on and I’m looking forward to it 👍🏻👍🏻
Hello, hiw did you end up dosing please? Im dosing AllForReef atm and starting Kalk tonight with Versa pump. Do you dose Kalk at night and you ATI on days please?
Here you go - i've made a video explaining that th-cam.com/video/Os7LEiqmhvE/w-d-xo.html
I switched over to BRS three part soda ash as alkalinity has a build in buffer my pH now sits at eight Four where it used to sit around eight it doesn’t fluctuate anymore than point one at night time and I only dose the soda ash at night which is alkalinity and I use all their other chemicals as well and it’s been working out great and it’s super cheap you get a gallon of alkalinity for seven dollars
If you could do a video on flat worms that would be awesome. I have clear flat worms crawling over my torch corals and can not figure out which type they are to try to get rid of them. They don’t seem to fit the description of any of them😩
Never had any real outbreaks but there are plenty of fixes you can try.
So looking to start a reef got a 30 gallon and 35 gallon would it be possible to direct me on stock
Prestige Reef website, or the coral centre...
I have been using kalk for 2 months and just added a co2 scrubber because kalk was rasing my alk to high and I couldn't reach 8.3 with the co2 and kalk I can hit 8.3. I only have lps and softies but I have noticed a significant increase in polyp extension and growth rate in just 2 months my ph used to be 7.9 high and 7.6 low now I hit 8.3 high and 8.15 low. Also dont dose more kalk than the evaporation rate of your tank and salinity shouldn't be effected. I measured how much my tank evaporated for a couple days before I started dosing kalk
Your Ph is not bad and your corals are not bad growers. I dose kalkwasser and it does raise it up a little by about a .1 to .2 but I don't have room to dose a lot as many people do. There are now the slurry people who are able to raise it more but you need advance monitoring and control system like apex and ghl. Too expensive for me and my space is too small.
Why not use Marine source kalk stirrer from ali express?
It's much cheaper & reliable. 5L one for 50 bucks only. Even diy could cost more.
I'll probably start using that at some point - it's 1/3rd the cost on ebay here in the UK. But for now, as a Kalk nube, a reef brand gives me comfort! I know that's daft but hey 🤷😅
i like the idea of kalk but after listening to your videos its a HUGE cost to monitor correctly. PH and salinity probes, kalk stirrer, large container etc. lot of effort and outlay for PH. I hope it works out for you though mate.
I'll do an update this Sunday - i've changed plans and I'm currently doing it much more simply and cheaply. Although the pH probe I admit will always be an expense...
@@ReefDork i'm not hating by the way. just started to tot the cost in my head of the kamoer continuous doser, probes, stirrer and quickly rose to over a grand which turned me off the idea immediately lol
Dosing kalkwasser through ATO is not recommended as much nowadays cause it’s not consistent
personaly think, we aquarist dont have an hour to watch, and even do ads, so maybe edit the vid and be on point? just saying
Speak for yourself, the more @ReefDork the better 🤣
Ads don't bother me, and if it helps give a couple of pence to the channel its fair game 👍
subscribe to youtube and then no ads ever 😉👍
If you don’t have 90 mins to spare then you probably shouldn’t be reefing. Just saying.
@@smokeandkippers i chose to work on tanks then to watch other ppls tanks
@@ZeroCarbo then why are you chatting crap in the comments on this video. Off you go then.