#11
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Quote:
Steve
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*everything said above is just my opinion, and may or may not reflect the views of this BBS, its Operators, and its Members. If cornered on any “opinion” I post I will totally deny having ever said this in a Court of Law…Unless I am the right one* Some strive to be perfect.... I just strive. |
#12
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I certainly don't profess to understand the whole chemistry thing that goes on in my tanks but I do know through trial and error and doing a whack of research what works for me and at what levels my tanks seems to do their best. I try to maintain my aquariums calcium between 420 and 440, my Mg. at 1300 to 1350 and my KH at 6.5 to 7.5. Salinity between 33 and 35ppt. I run a calcium reactor on my 2 large systems and I would highly reccommend running this piece of equipment on any larger system that you plan on keeping calcium demanding species in. I am going to try adding some magnesium granules to my reactor media next time I have to add some to see if this will eliminate the need to dose mg. On my 44g cube I do dose C-Balance 2 part solution but I find this a PITA to stay on top of and not have swings in levels. If I do find my calcium dropping (which has not happened since I brought the reactors on line) I have some Kent turbo calcium that I plan on using.
I agree with Bev that it is difficult to talk about Calcium without also discussing the balance of KH and Mg as they are all related and integral to each other. |
#13
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Quote:
Steve
__________________
*everything said above is just my opinion, and may or may not reflect the views of this BBS, its Operators, and its Members. If cornered on any “opinion” I post I will totally deny having ever said this in a Court of Law…Unless I am the right one* Some strive to be perfect.... I just strive. |
#14
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I still find that I have to dose Mg. every once in a while as mine will creep down below 1300. I have been using the Seachem Mg. but here is a link to a page that lists what I bought (it is the granules)
http://www.captiveoceans.com/product...pplements.html Here is what it says about them: ZEOmag is a pure magnesium granulate to be used in calcium reactors (5-15% of total media volume) to maintain magnesium levels. Magnesium is easily added without chloride and without disturbing the ionic balance in your tank. Granulate size 6-12 mm. The tank that I have to dose the most often is my cube tank that does not have a reactor hooked up (yet). What I usually do is just add Mg. to my change water to bring the level up to just over 1400 in that water and it seems to keep things fairly steady in my tank. I think that the most advantageous thing about a calcium reactor is that it keeps your levels steady and consistent and balanced and not constantly changing the way they have a tendency to do unless you are super diligent in adding exactly the right amount of 2 part or other solution. |
#15
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I have used Kent's Liquid Reactor for my tanks for 2 years now & it's done a great job growing my clams especially. Ask any of the local reefers who've seen my Squamosa or Derasa (before it's mantle got torn from a shift in current) & they'll attest to the very high growth rates in my tanks. I don't have a calcium reactor, but then again, I'm not sps-heavy in my tanks. Yes, I have to dose frequently (daily or every other day) but I look at my tanks bazillion times a day anyways, so it's part of my night time routine to add the Liquid Reactor.
That being said, having seen Props, Chin Lee's, Jack's & TomR's tanks, if went really big or heavy into sps, then I would also invest in a Calcium reactor for the ease & stability it offers. Good idea on these discussion threads, btw. Anthony |
#16
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Quote:
Steve
__________________
*everything said above is just my opinion, and may or may not reflect the views of this BBS, its Operators, and its Members. If cornered on any “opinion” I post I will totally deny having ever said this in a Court of Law…Unless I am the right one* Some strive to be perfect.... I just strive. |
#17
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Compared to some other things that I buy for my aquariums $50 doesn't seem that bad and as I understand it the 15% will last as long as the reactor media so in my experience at least 6-8 months. I suspect that it is probably some kind of dolomite (I think that is what it is called) material. I'm going to put it in my reactor on my 230g because I have to add new media to that in the next month and on my 190g it looks like I will be another 6 months or so before I have to add any media so it will give me a chance to monitor if it makes a difference.
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#18
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In any article I've read (eg. http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2005/12/aafeature1 ) the Ca for NSW is generally referred to as 410 - 420 ppm. Evolution being what it is, why would we shoot for anything outside this range?
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#19
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Quote:
Steve
__________________
*everything said above is just my opinion, and may or may not reflect the views of this BBS, its Operators, and its Members. If cornered on any “opinion” I post I will totally deny having ever said this in a Court of Law…Unless I am the right one* Some strive to be perfect.... I just strive. |
#20
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I have been guilty of the same thing as Steve - if 400 is good then 450 must be better and 500........whoo hoo. My experience has shown me that if I shoot for calcium in the 400ppm range and Alk/DKH in the 8.5 range I seem to have the most success.
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