Reef Discussion

Sam Parker

Moderator
May 6, 2013
4,802
2,397
Geelong
If anyone in Victoria is interested in buying pre-made randy's alk, cal or mag - I have large batches made that I use on my tank. I have around 30l of each, but enough ingredients to make a few hundred litres of each. Can supply pre-made in containers or bring your own container :D
 

Nicksy23

Member
Apr 14, 2013
202
100
Adelaide
Sam I am lazy and would love some of that action but I'm in Adelaide. Can i ask any Adelaidians are they interested in getting something like that up and running or does anyone already have a heap made up that is just waiting for me to purchase?
 

VaultBoy

Member
Jul 10, 2011
2,279
673
Gawler, S.A.
I bought bulk quantities from a chemical supplier in Adelaide. I still have a couple of litres made up but dont have any left to give away. If you google ace chemicals they are easy to deal with and will sell any quantity of CaCl and MgCl you desire. They will also sell you NaHCO3 if, for some reason you didn't want to use baking soda...
 

RobbieMVFC

Member
Feb 25, 2013
1,232
610
Has anyone had to add a pump to keep the calcium stirred?
I find that all the partials fall to the bottom and in essence give you a stronger dose at the start of the mix and a weaker one towards the end of the mix
not sure how long the pump will last
 

Attachments

RobbieMVFC

Member
Feb 25, 2013
1,232
610
Not sure what I am doing wrong , I am adding 396 grams of Damprid to 3L of water.
how long do you guys mix/shake it ?
 

MagicJ

Moderator
Jul 11, 2011
9,650
3,761
Hobart, Tasmania
I also use Recipe 1 which calls for 396g per 3 litres. The calcium requires a bit of shaking but not as much as the alk.

@RobbieMVFC how big is your tank? I couldn't see the dimensions in your TJ but it looks to be around 300l??

If so, 225ml/day would indicate that your tank is using around 25 ppm of calcium per day which seems a lot :confused:
 

RobbieMVFC

Member
Feb 25, 2013
1,232
610
QUOTE="MagicJ, post: 151229, member: 5"]I also use Recipe 1 which calls for 396g per 3 litres. The calcium requires a bit of shaking but not as much as the alk.

@RobbieMVFC how big is your tank? I couldn't see the dimensions in your TJ but it looks to be around 300l?

spot on on the tank size. Its jammed packed with SPS

.

If so, 225ml/day would indicate that your tank is using around 25 ppm of calcium per day which seems a lot :confused:[/QUOTE]
 

Ziggy

Member
Jul 6, 2015
154
61
Adelaide
Having read through everything here, I'm giving it a go. My calcium is 460, Mg 1320 but alkalinity os only 6.2. So alkalinity is my target to balance up. I've made some of the alkalinity mix and to target a dKh of 8, the calculator says I need 226mLs to start with.

My two questions are this.
1. Do I dose the first 226mLs over a 24 hour period to get the level back to target range?
2. Do I then retest again in a couple of days and recalculate my daily dose (of all three requirements) and just dose top up amounts each day thereafter?

Thanks heaps for the info.
 

Kenneth

Member
Dec 16, 2013
167
39
Having read through everything here, I'm giving it a go. My calcium is 460, Mg 1320 but alkalinity os only 6.2. So alkalinity is my target to balance up. I've made some of the alkalinity mix and to target a dKh of 8, the calculator says I need 226mLs to start with.

My two questions are this.
1. Do I dose the first 226mLs over a 24 hour period to get the level back to target range?
2. Do I then retest again in a couple of days and recalculate my daily dose (of all three requirements) and just dose top up amounts each day thereafter?

Thanks heaps for the info.
I don't use calculator 100ml then check
 

Lesley

Member
Apr 2, 2013
2,086
1,079
Having read through everything here, I'm giving it a go. My calcium is 460, Mg 1320 but alkalinity os only 6.2. So alkalinity is my target to balance up. I've made some of the alkalinity mix and to target a dKh of 8, the calculator says I need 226mLs to start with.

My two questions are this.
1. Do I dose the first 226mLs over a 24 hour period to get the level back to target range?
2. Do I then retest again in a couple of days and recalculate my daily dose (of all three requirements) and just dose top up amounts each day thereafter?

Thanks heaps for the info.
You don't really want to increase Alk by any more that 1dkh in a 24 hr period. So I would add it over the next few days. Or calculate what 1 dkh dose is and do half in morning half at night to stop such huge swings. Do that until you reach your target.
 

MagicJ

Moderator
Jul 11, 2011
9,650
3,761
Hobart, Tasmania
Also keep in mind that the calculator is assuming a certain concentration of calcium, alkalinity etc which may not actually be correct.

Treat the result of the calculator i.e. 226mL, as a guide but don't expect your next measurement to be exactly as expected.
 

Lesley

Member
Apr 2, 2013
2,086
1,079
Nick
Sam I am lazy and would love some of that action but I'm in Adelaide. Can i ask any Adelaidians are they interested in getting something like that up and running or does anyone already have a heap made up that is just waiting for me to purchase?[/QUOTE. It's easy to mix @Nicksy23 lee at something fishy or m+ sell 1kg packets of each. That 1kg makes 8ltr cal & Alk & 4ltr of mag. If I can do it you can too ? Lol
. Lee at something fishy or m+ sell 1kg packets of each. That 1kg makes 8ltr cal & Alk & 4ltr of mag. If I can do it you you can that's for sure ! Lol