H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
I've been looking into both of these options and I'm leaning more towards running a kalk reactor. But I'd like to hear some pros and cons from people that actually use them
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Kalkwasser vs calcium reactor (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter H-D-Fatboy-16
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Stickboy97
Supporting Member
I can tell you the CaRx I have is one of the best investments on my tank... bullet proof, set it & forget it. I have 2 other tanks I dose manually and that is a pain! I have a geo carx with extra canister to help with ph and a masterflex pushing the water through (next time I will go with a ecotech versa as their cheaper), a high quality dual regulator by Alan le on my CO2 bottle, loaded it with rebourn media & done.
Never used Kalk, so no input there.
Never used Kalk, so no input there.
If your going to go sticks I would invest in a calcium reactor for sure but your not going to really need it for awhile. I currently dose 2 part and had a reactor on my old tank. Now that I am up to 170ml of alk and calcium a day I am switching back to a calcium reactor. I feel they are much more stable in terms of alk and calcium as opposed to dosing once an hour. Kalk has the benefit of being high in ph while carx you are definitely going to have suppressed levels of ph. At some point I will probably have to do both kalk and carx down the road
Depends on what kind of tank you are setting up and what you want to achieve. Both work, but if you’re getting into SPS then you will quickly realize that Kalk is a weak solution even when fully saturated and nothing is as stable as a reactor. If you want to grow corals fast then I’d suggest a reactor. Otherwise if you’re not trying to go too crazy and don’t mind waiting then 2-part via dosing pump works pretty well. I found the ultimate was running all three. 
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H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
I want to do lps and zoas mostly with a few pieces of sps thrown in. Like german blue digi and some montis
You can do kalkwasser or 2 part with no issues unless you start going crazy with the sps.
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H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
What are guys using to make corals pop in color
Stickboy97
Supporting Member
When you want some german blue digi let me know, I have a pile of it & you can have a large chunk.
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H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
What are montis like
Stickboy97
Supporting Member
My experience with montis is they are very easy to grow.... eventually to the point they take up space you want for other stuff. LOL
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H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
I love welso's, facial and acans. As well as some chalices
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H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
Favias
Both will grow your corals. I recently switched back to Cal Reactor and putting my Kalk Reactor in the closet. If you don't have an Apex I suggest a Kalk Reactor it's more forgiving even if you had a massive dump from the ATO. Once your level are where you want it just run the Kalk system and it's autopilot from then on. Just your WC to put in the missing trace element. Just my 2 cents, happy reefing!
Stickboy97
Supporting Member
I have several acans, seem pretty bullet proof, never tried blasto or favia. Chalice are cool looking but grow pretty slow. In the end I think a doser will handle most of these on a smaller tank. If you plan SPS or a larger tank I'd go CaRx.
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H-D-Fatboy-16
Guest
A doser such as a kalk reactor
The problem I have with smaller tanks and 2 or 3 part dosing is the salinity starts creeping up from the CaCl. Then you have to start using lower salinity water changes to keep the salinity in the right range.
I like kalk because you can dose it without worrying about that. If your alk demand exceeds your evaporation rate then that is also an issue but I doubt you will see that unless you have a bunch of SPS. The other benefit is it helps with increased Ph. Kalk be delivered via drip from a container, doser or ATO.
I like kalk because you can dose it without worrying about that. If your alk demand exceeds your evaporation rate then that is also an issue but I doubt you will see that unless you have a bunch of SPS. The other benefit is it helps with increased Ph. Kalk be delivered via drip from a container, doser or ATO.
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Stickboy97
Supporting Member
I prefer to dose Aqua Forest 1,2,3. My Salinity doesn't change. I dose it in both my Red Sea Reefer 170 & a Biocube 32. I personally use a Jebao doser, though I know many don't trust them. So you could use a GHL or something more pricey if preferred.
Huh not sure why you don’t see a salinity increase.
It’s well documented
It’s well documented
The Many Methods for Supplementing Calcium and Alkalinity - REEFEDITION
There is no aspect of reef aquarium chemistry more important than calcium and alkalinity. Many of my previous articles have described various aspects of these systems in detail. In reading those articles, aquarists will note one pervasive theme: that maintaining appropriate levels of each are...
www.reefedition.com
Stickboy97
Supporting Member
Might be the dosing material. Never tried 2 part. Maybe aqua forest has something figured out. I also almost never do water changes.
Plating Monti’s grow like weeds. I took all mine out and scraped them off the rocks. They were becoming like Xenia for me.
