Can I mix kalk washer in my ATO container w/ a Maxijet ?

drew930 · 04/07/2013, 07:14 PM

Trying to figure out how I'm going to run kalk on my 60 cube . I'm going to have a small cube sump so I'm trying to save space . I know I can use a reactor but again for space reasons I'm trying to stay away from that .

Can I just mix kalk with my ATO water before I fill it ? And put like a Maxijet 400 in there to run constantly so it will mix ? Or will that somehow lead to a bad outcome ?

Any other suggestions other than a reactor ?

biecacka · 04/07/2013, 07:39 PM

Dose it through the ATO, but no need for a pump to mix it. I dump mine in, mix it manually and leave it be. What is usable dissolves fairly quickly so n need for constant stirring
Corey

drew930 · 04/07/2013, 08:59 PM

Okay... So would work best ?

Mixing kalk with the ATO water and let it sit ? Or use some kind of maxijet so nothing settles ?

But if I mix the right amount of kalk and not over do it, there shouldnt be anything settling anyway right ?

Terrance · 04/07/2013, 09:58 PM

Kalk is likely to contain impurities. Even if you dose properly, then you will still something at the bottom.

Dump in some Kalk into the ATO reservoir, stir manually for a minute, the water will only soak up a certain amount of Kalk and the rest would settle at the bottom as a white paste. Let it sit over night before starting your ATO. If you add more water to your reservoir later, then maybe you have some undissolved kalk left at the bottom from your previous mixture.

Always keep your pump off the bottom and away from the top.

drew930 · 04/07/2013, 10:39 PM

Thanks ! .... so then If I have some left at the bottom ... just dont add as much the next time ?

And I will be running a JBJ top off, so I should make it where the tube is about 2" or so off the bottom of the container so it dont suck the kalk powder ... correct ?

Terrance · 04/07/2013, 11:54 PM

Yes the further away from the bottom, the better. Place layers of those eggcrate ceiling panels at the bottom for safety.

Always better to overdo on the kalk rather than underdo. Sometimes I don't know how much kalk is left. If there is a white hazy water, then its good. If its a light white hazy water, then I add a little more.

jerpa · 04/08/2013, 06:41 AM

Generally you will always have some precipitate left in the bottom of the container. The magnesium and calcium that precipitate out, along with other impurities in the kalk or water, will not redissolve. You will eventually need to clean the bottom of the reservoir.

You never want to have a pump constantly running in kalkwasser. The aeration will cause all the calcium and alkalinity to precipitate out and it will lose its strength very quickly once the excess kalk at the bottom has dissolved.

drew930 · 04/08/2013, 06:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Terrance

Yes the further away from the bottom, the better. Place layers of those eggcrate ceiling panels at the bottom for safety.

Always better to overdo on the kalk rather than underdo. Sometimes I don't know how much kalk is left. If there is a white hazy water, then its good. If its a light white hazy water, then I add a little more.

Yea I might try the egg crate . Seems like a good idea !

drew930 · 04/08/2013, 06:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jerpa

Generally you will always have some precipitate left in the bottom of the container. The magnesium and calcium that precipitate out, along with other impurities in the kalk or water, will not redissolve. You will eventually need to clean the bottom of the reservoir.

You never want to have a pump constantly running in kalkwasser. The aeration will cause all the calcium and alkalinity to precipitate out and it will lose its strength very quickly once the excess kalk at the bottom has dissolved.

This is good information to me . Good thing you chimed in lol ... I was about to go the pump route

golfish · 04/08/2013, 10:48 AM

Why not use a kalk reactor? Cheap and easy to maintain.

kriv4o · 04/08/2013, 10:49 AM

^ as a rule of thumb RO/DI water only dissolves about 2 tsp per gallon. Even if you put too much it wont dissolve and it would settle on the bottom. What I do is add Kalk according to how much water I refill my ATO container with, and clean the bottom of it every now and then. As everybody said keep your pump off the bottom.

drew930 · 04/08/2013, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by golfish

Why not use a kalk reactor? Cheap and easy to maintain.

I was trying to save as much space as I could. But after thinking about it , I could use a kalk stirrer instead. As long as I put it in my ATO chamber, then it will be filled with water anyway. So i probably wouldnt lose to much area I guess. Just the area of the cylinder and the ends.

Whats a good Kalk Stirrer, thats not too bad on the wallet ?

04/07/2013, 07:14 PM	#1
drew930 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Middletown, Ohio Posts: 1,333	Can I mix kalk washer in my ATO container w/ a Maxijet ? Trying to figure out how I'm going to run kalk on my 60 cube . I'm going to have a small cube sump so I'm trying to save space . I know I can use a reactor but again for space reasons I'm trying to stay away from that . Can I just mix kalk with my ATO water before I fill it ? And put like a Maxijet 400 in there to run constantly so it will mix ? Or will that somehow lead to a bad outcome ? Any other suggestions other than a reactor ?

04/07/2013, 09:58 PM	#4
Terrance Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Seattle Posts: 352	Kalk is likely to contain impurities. Even if you dose properly, then you will still something at the bottom. Dump in some Kalk into the ATO reservoir, stir manually for a minute, the water will only soak up a certain amount of Kalk and the rest would settle at the bottom as a white paste. Let it sit over night before starting your ATO. If you add more water to your reservoir later, then maybe you have some undissolved kalk left at the bottom from your previous mixture. Always keep your pump off the bottom and away from the top. __________________ Kind regards, Terrance Current Tank Info: None

04/07/2013, 11:54 PM	#6
Terrance Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Seattle Posts: 352	Yes the further away from the bottom, the better. Place layers of those eggcrate ceiling panels at the bottom for safety. Always better to overdo on the kalk rather than underdo. Sometimes I don't know how much kalk is left. If there is a white hazy water, then its good. If its a light white hazy water, then I add a little more. __________________ Kind regards, Terrance Current Tank Info: None

04/08/2013, 06:41 AM	#7
jerpa Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Pittsburgh Posts: 2,174	Generally you will always have some precipitate left in the bottom of the container. The magnesium and calcium that precipitate out, along with other impurities in the kalk or water, will not redissolve. You will eventually need to clean the bottom of the reservoir. You never want to have a pump constantly running in kalkwasser. The aeration will cause all the calcium and alkalinity to precipitate out and it will lose its strength very quickly once the excess kalk at the bottom has dissolved. __________________ Jer Current Tank Info: 40b basement sump, 40b refugium, 30g frag

04/08/2013, 10:48 AM	#10
golfish Team RC Member Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Alta Loma, Ca Posts: 6,776	Why not use a kalk reactor? Cheap and easy to maintain. __________________ grow em, frag em, trade em... Current Tank Info: TOTM curse

04/07/2013, 07:39 PM	#2
biecacka Registered Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Columbus Ohio Posts: 6,361	Dose it through the ATO, but no need for a pump to mix it. I dump mine in, mix it manually and leave it be. What is usable dissolves fairly quickly so n need for constant stirring Corey

04/07/2013, 08:59 PM	#3
drew930 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Middletown, Ohio Posts: 1,333	Okay... So would work best ? Mixing kalk with the ATO water and let it sit ? Or use some kind of maxijet so nothing settles ? But if I mix the right amount of kalk and not over do it, there shouldnt be anything settling anyway right ?

04/07/2013, 10:39 PM	#5
drew930 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Middletown, Ohio Posts: 1,333	Thanks ! .... so then If I have some left at the bottom ... just dont add as much the next time ? And I will be running a JBJ top off, so I should make it where the tube is about 2" or so off the bottom of the container so it dont suck the kalk powder ... correct ?

04/08/2013, 10:49 AM	#11
kriv4o Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Ocean Pines, MD Posts: 509	^ as a rule of thumb RO/DI water only dissolves about 2 tsp per gallon. Even if you put too much it wont dissolve and it would settle on the bottom. What I do is add Kalk according to how much water I refill my ATO container with, and clean the bottom of it every now and then. As everybody said keep your pump off the bottom. __________________ 40b DT, with a 20l DIY sump 10g clam lagoon plumbed together with^ 10g stand alone NANO, JBJ 24g NanoCube rescue project