High calcium???

[poakley723]

I have a 125g tank that has been set up for about 9 months now. For some reason it doesn't seem to use calcium. I use an API calcium test and I usually stop testing at 20 drops which would be 400 PPM. Today I tested just to see how high the calcium actually is. It is actually at 480. I don't have a huge coral load and things are growing. Monthly pictures don't lie. I was told at a LFS a while back that I could have low ALK which would be giving me a false high calcium test. At the time was at 8 but has since been raised to 10. My Mag is at 1250 and salinity is at 1.024. My tank temp is always at like 80-81.

I guess if things are growing I shouldn't worry about high calcium but it is kind of strange. Could my use of Pickling lime to kill off Aptasia, about four or five, keep my calcium that high all year long. Humm I am just kind of boggled.

Thanks for any thoughts.

Nick

 

[Palancar]

Are you dosing anything or running a calcium or Kalk reactor?

 

[poakley723]

Nope Haven't dosed and am not running any thing. Only things I have added are Baking soda to raise ALK and used a thick mix of Pickling lime to kill aptasia.

 

[Boomer]

Nick

I was told at a LFS a while back that I could have low ALK which would be giving me a false high calcium test.

That is gibberish nonsense :lol:

Could my use of Pickling lime to kill off Aptasia, about four or five, keep my calcium that high all year long.

Yes if you used to much. It your calcium went up from 400 to 480 then

480 -400 = 80

1 meq/ or 2.8 dKH increase in Alk will raise the calcium 20 ppm

80 / 20 = 4

So, that means an Alk addition of 4 meq/ l or 11.2 dkH. If your tank has a high Alk demand you may not see this over the course of a few months, unless you measured the Alk after the addition of the lime.

Lastly, check that test kit out on another sample of water or use another test kit to see if they match. You may have a testing error.

 

[poakley723]

I used a 1 ml shringe with a toothpaste consistancy pickling lime. I probably used about .3 or .4 ml to kill aptasia and I have done it twice in the last 5 or 6 months.

My tank does seem to be using a lot of ALK. I have added 14 tsp of baking soda over the last month or two. Each time I added 7 tsp of baking soda it was added over two days using a drip.

I think I will take some water to a LFS and have them test it.

Thanks for the info.

Nick

 

[ReefferMan]

This is very interesting, i didnt know that dosing buffer would raise the CA. Ive seen reverse of that, when i buff my tank my ca goes down and vs versa. I dont use kalk or baking soda just the stuff made for reefs n such....turbo CA and super buffer by kent.

One question i havent seen yet is, what salt are you using?

2nd thing is how often are you doing water changes? if you test after a WC the levels are elevated.....Alk Ca ect...

Other then that confirm that your test kit isnt inaccurate.

The thing is.....your tank sounds like its doing well so maybe doing nothing at all would be best...

 

[Boomer]

This is very interesting, i didnt know that dosing buffer would raise the CA.

Only if it is a calcium based buffer like Kalk. Baking Soda will not at all, as it has no calcium

Kalk

Ca(OH)2 ===> Ca(Calcium) + 2 OH

OH + CO2 ===> HCO3 (buffer and the same that is in baking Soda)

 

[ReefferMan]

Very Interesting Boom Boom... So the saying that a Kalk Reac helps your Ca Reac isnt totaly false but only partially...lol So what im getting out of this is about 20% Ca out of dosing with kalk? im just happy that my tank is at 410 Ca, and 8.8Dkh as of tonight....Yaahoo...lol Thats a tough feat in large tanks....Bla bla bla... learned somthing tonight...Thanks boomer..

 

[Boomer]

The ideal way for a reef tank, if one can do, is is to use only Kalk, as it adds nothing extra(unwanted ions) to the tank. Many people can and do this. If you used Kalk to raise the Alk 2.8 dKH it will raise the calcium 20 ppm. That is really what a Kalk reactor is for, to raise the Alk and calcium

 

[returnofsid]

So how does the use of a Kalk reactor differ from the use of a Calcium reactor?

 

[Boomer]

There is no use of CO2 and no media to add other than Kalk powder. It does not have all those unwanted ions that many reactor medias have to include the low pH output of CA.

DIY
http://www.mv.com/users/besposito/nilsen.html

http://jjgeisler.com/reeftank/diy_kalkwasser_reactor.htm

Store bought examples
http://www.tsunamiaquatic.com/catalog/item/1919611/2134015.htm

http://www.marinedepot.com/Deltec_K...D_The_Aquarium_Solution-DD5211-FICRKR-vi.html

http://www.aquacare.de/produkte/kalk/e1kwr.htm

http://www.championlighting.com/product.php?productid=21061&cat=647&page=1




A good pros and cons review of the various types of sup methods
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=16+2154+2156&aid=2999

Randy has similar
How to Select a Calcium and Alkalinity Supplementation Scheme
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/feb2003/chem.htm