reactor questions...

[DrMilhouse]

hi guys, ASAP I'm adding a calcium reactor to my 125. I'm reading also about kalk reactors. Would someone need one or the other, or would someone need both? It seems the overall task of either is that calcium is added to the water. That's it, right?

If I'm adding a calcium reactor, I won't need to add calcium and should not have to worry about dosing for the correct alk/calcium mixture because this takes care of both. Or am I missing something?

Chemestry was my good subject in highschool, unfortunately, I've slept MANY times since then. Now this stuff just leaves me confused...

[commandertekki]

the thing is.. it takes time to dial in the calcium reactor, so until then you may have to supplement with calcium like kalwasser or b ionic.

the calcium reactor maintains the calcium levels, it doesnt raise it dramatically as you woudl think.

In either case, you can go with either the calcium reactor or the neilson reactor.

I have a calcium reactor. I cant say for the others. I know some who have both and use the neilson(kalk) reactor to top off their tanks.

[Konadog]

Let's see if I can explain.....In a high demand SPS tank, both are needed sometimes. When you crank up your Ca reactor, it can cause low PH. The low PH can be corrected by adding kalk, as kalk water has a high PH. Adding kalk also has the added benefit of adding calcium, which in turn allows you to lower your Ca reactor...............well, how could you be confused :confused:

Basically, with both, if demand is high enough, it helps maintain stable water parameters. Go with the reactor first, and top off with kalk water. Then if needed, go with the Nielson.

[aquajames]

My understanding is that nothing is better in adding calcium than doing the top off with kalk water. Also kalk water tends to raise PH in tank. As you know, PH in tank tends to go a bit low without our intervention.

Although Calcium Reactor is not as good a method as Kalk water, if tuned right, it works fairly well as well. However, it must be tuned very well, since it has tendancy to lower the PH in tank and can mess up alkalinity. If tuned right, it can supply calcium to the tank without noticeably lowering PH in tank and also can sustain the alkalinity of the tank at the right level. http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-05/sh/feature/ is a very good article to read regarding how to tune calcium reactor.

James