Plumbing of Kalk reactor

[bigd]

Hey guys, Just wanna get some ideas on how different people have plumbed there kalk reactor.

Do you hock it direct to your RO/DI with a valve, do you use a dosing pump (before or after the reactor), a powerhead and float switch, or do you use gravity to feed it?? plus other ways im sure......


Im planning on using gravity from my RO/DI storage container to feed the reactor and then adjusting it to my evaporation rate with a wheel style medical drip valve. What do you guys think of this??

 

[tommyp]

Might be hard to get it to sync. Put your valve between the RO container and the kalk reactor so it doesn't clog. the drip rate will also change with how much water you have in the container. If there is alot there will be more pressure and if there isn't it will drip less.

I have a float switch/relay controlling a ph in the top off tub then into the kalk reactor. works okay but mine works the ph pretty hard. but it has been working for months with out it burning the maxijet out.

Tom

 

[dgasmd]

The way I have mine set up with a dosing pump. I have a 55g drum that I connected to my RO/DI unit. I turn on the RO/DI unit and turn it off when it is full. No automation to this part as I think it is a disaster waiting to happen. A litermeter pump takes water fromt he 55g container and puts it through the kalk reactor, which overflows it to the sump. I keep my drip line above above 10" the water surface or the kalk drip line tip gets clogged in a couple of days. It will take a few days to adjust your litermeter rate to match your evaporation, but it is worth every single pennie of it. Once done, it is set and forget. This is the most fail proof and safe way of dosing kalk I have found. I am yet to know of the first person that had a disaster because of their litermeter going crazy an dumping tons of stuff. Also, I calculated the sie of my top off container before I got it to make sure that if I added the entire 55g at once my salinity would not change much at all. It has worked like a charm for about 3.5 years between 2 different set ups.

 

[bigd]

Might be hard to get it to sync. Put your valve between the RO container and the kalk reactor so it doesn't clog. the drip rate will also change with how much water you have in the container. If there is alot there will be more pressure and if there isn't it will drip less.


Tom

I was planning on running the hose from the bottom of the RO storage tank up and over the RO storage tank (tash can) and on syhon have it flow down into the reactor. Inbetween the reactor and the storage tank I would have my medical wheel valve. What do you guys think of this. With the flow rate still change with the amount of water in the storage tank?? thanks

 

[BobinCovington]

Don't mean to hijack the thread but thought this may get some ideas going. I am thinking of the following kalk / topoff for my 29 tank with 175w halide and Stylophora, montiporas, stag, ricordia, xenia, star etc. (soon to be 55 gallon tank system):

Freshwater supply stored in a 15-20 gallon nalgene container (with lid) as freshwater storage fed by RO.
When needed pump out to fill a 5 gallon kalk mixing settling bucket. After settling siphon off kalkwasser to a 5+ gallon top-off water supply bucket.

This top-off supply will have an AquaLift pump (approx 2 gal/hr) pumping out to the sump dependant on a floatswitch in the last chamber of the sump. It should only pump small amount many times a day. My evap is less than 5 gallons a week.

Questions or comments? Is a Kalk Reactor just an easier system to manage?)

Help?

Can I run this 24 hrs a day? or should I run only at night?

Thanks for the help
Bob

 

[tommyp]

I dunno. You would just have to try it. kalk has a way of clogging things and that will change your drip rate as well. I used to drip it from a gallon container above my tank and that was a devil to get to dose right. If you have a lot of fresh water in the tank it will be easier to get a stable drip rate. But when ever I had it set up to get the drip rate right it would have to be dripping faster in the beginning to get it to stay dripping at the low end of the gallon. For me it was just easier to have some sort of pump pushing it into the tank instead of gravity. its not hard and it is cheap to do so give the gravity run a shot and see what happens

 

[tommyp]

I also want to say that I didn't try a syphon mine was straight drip so a syphon would probably work better than my setup. it might take out the variability.

Tom

 

[bigd]

How about this post from aquariumpros (canadian forum)

The output of the RO unit goes through a solenoid valve and then to the tank. As soon as I build my Kalk reactor i will have the flow of the RO through the solenoid into the reactor and then into the tank.

I ordered it from McMaster Carr part #7877k55. There are 3 models but this is the 12vDC unit so I just went to Forest City surplus and bought a $4 power supply and twisted the wires together.

www.mcmaster.com/

 

[bigd]

I find this method pretty good.....wondering why more people arent using it. No need for a storage container.

 

[Kensn]

When using a Kalk reactor how does one know that the mixture will not be added right after stirring with stir bar or pump. Always wondered this, or is adding the recently stirred mixture not that big of a deal. I always read that you wanted to add the clear mixture.

Ken

 

[tommyp]

People are a little weary of hooking an ro directly up to the tank. Incase the float or whatever malfunctions on. If you have a container you can control how much ro goes into the tank if it sticks and pumps it all in it will only be 10 gals or whatever not 50 or 100. also it is "better" to run the ro longer periods of time instead of short spurts so you would have to have a double float or timer or something hooked up to let the water drop a little bit lower before the ro turns on.

It might be a little over cautious but it works ether way.

 

[tommyp]

Not that big of a deal. You can time the top off to shut down at the times that you are stirring if you want or just let it dump fresh mix in. If you adjust the output to drip then you won't get a ton of fresh mix anyway i put mine drip in a high flow area so it mixes the kalk well if it does get dumped in. and if you kalk reactor is tall enough it can mix in the lower section and still give you clear but saturated kalkwasser at the top.