lime water

[dwarflion]

G-day all just want to know how to mix up lime water,how much lime would i need to add to say 10lt of water and how long do i let it sit before i can use it
cheers
may you all have a great christmas

[Reefmedic79]

Don't have the Metric conversions but 1-2 tablespoons per gallon of fresh water. Mix well and (I personaly) allow it to sit for at least 12 hours preferably 24 hours.

The mix will leave some undissolved Kalk on the bottom of the container. You want to use only the clear water. The undissolved Kalk can then be reused with the next mix.

[Reefmedic79]

In case you didn't already know make sure you add this slowly using the drip method for example.

[dwarflion]

thanks for that mate.i mixed the lime water up today and will let it sit for 24 hours then i wil let it drip in around one drip per second,will that be alright at that rate?
cheers

[deansreef]

1 drip per second sounds a bitmuch. maybe 1 drip per 40-45 seconds is better.


Dean

[staticfishmonger]

i do 2 tablespoons per gallon and let sit for a few hours. i usually mix it up in the mornig and start the dripping that night.

[jerrymlr1]

Darren, One drip per second is a bit slow for me. I have a 200 gal setup. Mine drips about 2 drops per second I think and I am using about 4 gallons a day. Once you get setup let it drip about one drop per second and you can adjust it from there.

[mickey57]

...I am also going to mix Mrs. Balls' Pickling lime this morning,for the first time I need to add about 5 gallons of 1.026 salinity water also.From this thread it sounds like the suggested method would not allow me to mix....say,five tablespoons of the pickling lime,to the salt water.Is this just for kallawasser?Am I correct in assuming that mixing with unsalted water is the suggested method?
...............................Mickey............

[tomterreefic]

Mickey57, I honestly don't know if you can mix Kalk with SW or not. It always seems that everthing says not to mix with Kalk. It just seems easier for me to mix Kalk with my top-off water and let it drip each morning before lights come on. I drip mine a rate of 1-2 drops per second. JME

[romunov]

See article The degradation of lime water in air - Randy Holmes-Farley. I find this method pretty simple...

[jun_celis]

1 tablespoon per gallon of RO water. I stir it for about 1 minute which turns the color to dirty white and then let it sit until you see the mixture goes down to the bottom of the bottle and all you see is the color of the water. It usually takes about an hour or so. Then 2 drips per second. I also drip my kalk every other day to maintain my calcium 450 and alk at 3.5 meg/l.

[jfloydr]

how many drips per second for 1.5 gallons evap a day. i got mine set at 1 drip every 10 seconds now. I just set it up last night.. Also, do I need to boost the Ca to 450 then topoff or will the kalk take it to 450 and maintain?

[rayjay]

I mix 2 1/2 tablespoons per gallon, let sit for 24 hrs, siphon off the clear, leaving behind the paste residue, and does the tanks by siphoning with air line tubing. I let it run full flow and that is on my tanks from 20 to 90 gallons. I've never found a need to have to "drip" it in.
I average about 22 to 24 litres per night.

[Dog boy Dave]

You cannot add salt water to your lime to make Kalk. Must be fresh. You should use it to replace evaporated water from your tank.

[mickey57]

....I understand.The thing is I have a 2 gallon a day loss from a leak in my skimmer,plus the 2 gallons of evap.Just trying to be lazy and not fix the leak Thanks guys
....................................................Mickey...............

[romunov]

Leak? Where does it leak to? What is your salinity?

[mickey57]

Originally posted by romunov
Leak? Where does it leak to? What is your salinity?

....The skimmer is outside the sump with a mag 12 cranking to it.I have the base sitting in one of those styrofoam coolers that you get fron the fish store when you bey to much Salinity stays @1.025.I was just useing the leak to replace 5 gallons a day of the tank water.Fixing the leak is no big prob,but it requires me to shut the skimmer down and unhook it from the pipes,take it outside,etc......The five gallons a day has been my water change
...............Mickey

[jerrymlr1]

Hey Mickey. You need to get off your lazy butt and fix that leak and get back with the program. Once that's done all you have to add is your RO water w/Kalk with a controlled drip to keep your tank topped off. No excuses!

[mickey57]

.... I know I should but................it's raining maybe tommorow
..................Mickey..............