Kalkwasser And Calcium

[DarrenUnwin]

Hi,

Appreciate this may be a stupid question, but could some one explain the difference between kalkwasser and liquid calcium. On the advice of my LFS I use the Kent Marine reef starter suppliments in my tank but see a lot of articles around on the net about kalkwasser and wondered if I should be using this instead of the calcium.

Many Thanks

 

[SkiFletch]

Well, thats quite the entailed question... Short answer? Kalkwasser is very high in pH and difficult to dissolve properly in reef systems. It is USUALLY added via a kalkwasser reactor and is very prevalent in those reef systems with high coral loads. "liquid" calcium suppliments usually come in 2-part addatives like b-ionic (the second part is alkalinity). They use different chemical principles and thuse are more like squeezing a bottle into your tank to dose. Piece of cake.

For the aquarist that really doesnt know much or want to know much about reef chemistry, 2-part addatives like b-ionic are the way to go. Test for calcium and alkalinity, and when one or the other is low, add the appropriate addatives. If you want to get really advanced with chemistry, kalkwasser and calcium reactors are where its at.

Either way, check out this article on reef chemistry. It may be painful to read, but it WILL save you from some of the perils of blind-dosing. And if I may ask, why are you looking to suppliment calcium?

 

[DarrenUnwin]

Hi Skifletch

Many thanks for the article and advice. I have tried to research as much as I can on the net but sometimes you can read too much and you have just got to ask the experts. Think I will stick to the fortnightly water changes!!.

As for the dosing, I was told that the Iodine, Strontium and Calcium get stripped out by the skimmer, instructions on side of pack also suggest this. I have a test kit from hagen (Nutrafin) for calcium and although I havent seen it drop below the recommended 400mg/L for saltwater I add a half dose once a week to keep it topped up. I have to be honest though, I dont have a test kit for the Strontium but figured the half dose wouldnt hurt if the packaging is correct and it gets removed by the skimmer. Any advice on suppliments would be appreciated

I know that sounds a bit aphazard but I'm trying to keep things simple and not too technical.

Many thanks an advance

 

[Mr Miagi]

I think you are already doing more things than neccessary. Your calcium should only start to deminish if you have corals consuming it. Strontium would be replaced in a tank with a low coral load in your weekly water changes, much the same as Calcium.

I dont think Skimming removes calcium, iodine and strontium suggested, but wait till a chem buff like Ski ansers!

Id just stick with your weekly/fortnightly water changes if you have a low coral load. Test your water and make sure calcium and Alk remain stable, if they do, you know you dont need to add anything.

Iondine is recomended for corals like Mushrooms, so you could dose it, just dont go over the top!

 

[SkiFletch]

Glad I could help. If you want to keep it simple, my suggestion is water changes, a low to moderate coral load, and weekly chemistry testing. Skimmers CAN pull calcium and stronium from the water, but they do it so slowly that you wont really notice it if you do regular water changes and keep your salinity where it should be. From my own personal experience, I have 15 different coral colonies ranging in size from frags to full-blown adults in my 45gallon w/sump. I test my water parameters for pH, alkalinity (KH), calcium, nitrate, magnesium, and phosphate. About 3 times in two months I've had to add a little calcium supplimentation to keep levels where they should be. I try to run no less than 410ppm of calcium in my reef and a dKH of no less than 10. Water changes have kept the alk at 10-11dKH and when my calc drops to 420, I put a little home-made calcium chloride addative in there to kick it back up to 420. Hasvent had to dose magnesium ever either. Phosphates and nitrates are monitored just to double check for nasty bilological events, and if I do detect phosphate, I drop a knee-high stocking full of phosphate binder in to remove it (couple hours usually). I do weekly ~10% water changes of 5 gallons using Reef Crystals salt. It's pretty maintenance free and simple. Definitely what I'd reccomend for all first-timers

Edit: I'm a chem buff now? . The only reason calc, iodine, and stronium are removed is because skimming removes some water along with the nutrients. SO you are technically removing SOME of those elements, but its really really negligable. If you never did water changes you'll notice your salinity drops over time with skimming, cause it removes some salt too. But its never anything that aquarists worry about.

And one word on iodine for mushrooms. I dont add a drop of iodine and my shrooms are taking over parts of my tank... Take that for what its worth

Finally, make SURE you take your chemistry readings at the same time of the day when comparing. ALL chemistry values will fluctuate as the day goes on, but should remain constant at the same time period (provided a consistent lighting cycle) from day-to-day. I could go into the photosynthetic reasons, but I've got a beer and a tube of superglue waiting for me, so just test at the same time everyday

 

[Matthew5664]

Could I just add (no pun)

If using a two part additive you will find that many trace elements are contained within the supplements not just Calcium and Alkalinity. However when using the 'home-brewed' stuff you may need to add these trace elements as well. Please remember that the 2 part additives are supposed to be used together in equal parts! Adding just one part, like the Calcium Chloride will cause an imbalance between the sodium and the chloride ions contained with in the water. Tho this will not cause too much harm in small amounts, regular dosing will cause a bigger imbalance. Just remember you can add stuff to the tank no problem but taking it out is so much harder.

 

[DarrenUnwin]

Guys,

These are great posts and many thanks for the advice, especially the bit about testing same time of day, never thought about that one

I only have 5 types of coral, all soft, but when you visit the LFS you see the vast range of addatives, you start to think "do I need this or not". I'm real gald you recommend just water changes and monitoring.

Daz

PS No wonder I failed my chemistry O'level