ACI Kalkwasser Method.... I've watched this video and read a few articles, still not sure the exact method.

[Reefscape20g]

Alkalinity and CO2 together determine pH mathematically.

CO2 has no direct impact on alkalinity.
CO2 and alk (and pH) will alter the ongoing demand for alkalinity. Higher pH and alk yield higher ongoing consumption of alk.

And what does calcium do is this equation?
For example, overdosing kalk causing ph to rise higher and higher making the excess calcium to percipitate?
Is there a situation/ possibility that calcium might go in solution again as ph goes down after some time? And thus co2 rises...

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

And what does calcium do is this equation?
For example, overdosing kalk causing ph to rise higher and higher making the excess calcium to percipitate?
Is there a situation/ possibility that calcium might go in solution again as ph goes down after some time? And thus co2 rises...

Calcium does nothing directly to alk or pH, and if it is in the 400-550 ppm range, it likely does nothing for biological use of alk and calcium.

Higher calcium levels will have a small effect on abiotic precipitation of calcium carbonate, so increasing demand for alk and calcium a little, but not as big of an effect as high pH or alk.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Calcium carbonate will only dissolve in seawater if the pH is below about 7.7 at 7 dKH and 420 ppm calcium.

 

[Reefscape20g]

Calcium carbonate will only dissolve in seawater if the pH is below about 7.7 at 7 dKH and 420 ppm calcium.

And if ph is kept below 8.3, how fast will the percipitation of calcium carbonate occur? At what max concentration? dkh Alk?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

And if ph is kept below 8.3, how fast will the percipitation of calcium carbonate occur? At what max concentration? dkh Alk?

There’s no quantitative answer that will be useful. It can happen in normal 35 seawater at about 6.6 dKH, and pH 8.2. The rate answer depends on how much exposed calcium carbonate is present and how clogged up the surfaces are with organics, phosphate, magnesium, bacteria, etc.

 

[Danny McElroy]

ACI Method.... I've watched this video and read a few articles, still not sure the exact method.

This video is better, because he shows the actual apex programming for how to peg the ph at 8.3, it's the missing piece that explains how to actually do it. 24:40 into the video shows his apex ph graph, and 1:53:42 shows the actual apex programming for the DOS... this is the key to getting the ph pegged in in the 8.24 to 8.33 range. He explains the way to get the maximum dos during those specific hours.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

This video is better, because he shows the actual apex programming for how to peg the ph at 8.3, it's the missing piece that explains how to actually do it. 24:40 into the video shows his apex ph graph, and 1:53:42 shows the actual apex programming for the DOS... this is the key to getting the ph pegged in in the 8.24 to 8.33 range. He explains the way to get the maximum dos during those specific hours.

Just don’t be misled into thinking this method can peg pH at any value when the alk demand is lower than this high alk demand system in the video, or when ambient CO2 is higher.

in many systems, alk will get too high before reaching any particular pH target.

 

[thatmanMIKEson]

This video is better, because he shows the actual apex programming for how to peg the ph at 8.3, it's the missing piece that explains how to actually do it. 24:40 into the video shows his apex ph graph, and 1:53:42 shows the actual apex programming for the DOS... this is the key to getting the ph pegged in in the 8.24 to 8.33 range. He explains the way to get the maximum dos during those specific hours.

Video unavailable?

 

[Garf]

I think that’s the vid where he sais a pH of 12.34 is ten times more acidic than 12.44pH, and where he gave one of his staff a telling off because they hadn’t sealed a bag of calcium hydroxide properly and it had degraded, even though it was inside a sealed bucket within another sealed bucket, lol.

 

[JB Reefer]

I have been dosing saturated Kalk via Kalk reactor for a couple years PH at night was 7.9 and during the day max was 8.2 Took a 45 gallon trash can threw some Kalkwaser in it and started dosing same amount at night and my PH has never been more stable.

Alot of stuff Chris said didn't make 100% since and was a little confusing but his method works for stability of PH my Alk never got above 9.0 DKH and I still have to use a calcium reactor my tank is 500 gallon sps dominant heavly stocked. Tank has never looked better I'm also dosing Moonshiners and doing ICP. My calcium is slightly Elevated but everything looks better then ever.

 

[thatmanMIKEson]

I have been dosing saturated Kalk via Kalk reactor for a couple years PH at night was 7.9 and during the day max was 8.2 Took a 45 gallon trash can threw some Kalkwaser in it and started dosing same amount at night and my PH has never been more stable.

Alot of stuff Chris said didn't make 100% since and was a little confusing but his method works for stability of PH my Alk never got above 9.0 DKH and I still have to use a calcium reactor my tank is 500 gallon sps dominant heavly stocked. Tank has never looked better I'm also dosing Moonshiners and doing ICP. My calcium is slightly Elevated but everything looks better then ever.

Sounds nice I've heard this a few times now.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I have been dosing saturated Kalk via Kalk reactor for a couple years PH at night was 7.9 and during the day max was 8.2 Took a 45 gallon trash can threw some Kalkwaser in it and started dosing same amount at night and my PH has never been more stable.

It is certainly true that dosing high pH additives of any sort at night will help stabilize pH. That's been known for many decades, and in a certain sense is obvious.

FWIW, slowly rising calcium is a consequence of dosing kalkwasser, and it is one of the things that Chris does not (or at least did not) understand when talking about kalkwasser.

Elevated alk in a system that has high alk demand and needs addition methods liek you and CHris do is not the concern.

The concern (rising alk when targeting a specific pH) is extrapolating to systems without such high demand or with high Co2.

 

[Garf]

Chris Woods;

 

[dbq5anlxj]

@Randy Holmes-Farley Hey Randy. The bromine level in my tank is increasing by 15mg every months for five months now. The only thing I constantly dosing is Sr aquatic kalk slurry (since October) and arm&hammer baking soda solution. The increase happend after December 23rd 2022 icp test that's the time I start adding baking soda solution. What's do you think it's come from? Thanks

 

[Garf]

I’ve also got a question relative to this thread. Chris runs a farm that is sustained by kalk? That’s low demand in a system that’s wall to wall SPS isn’t it? He sais his calcium reactors are shut off at times.

 

[JimWelsh]

I’ve also got a question relative to this thread. Chris runs a farm that is sustained by kalk? That’s low demand in a system that’s wall to wall SPS isn’t it? He sais his calcium reactors are shut off at times.

I think the basic idea is that he doses saturated kalk if the pH is < 8.29 (I may be wrong about the exact number). It is not tied to evaporation. He has his CARX programmed with a legacy program to turn off if pH > (some number less than 8.29) that now is irrelevant because his pH now never gets low enough to turn the CARX on. That is, *if* I understand it correctly.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

@Randy Holmes-Farley Hey Randy. The bromine level in my tank is increasing by 15mg every months for five months now. The only thing I constantly dosing is Sr aquatic kalk slurry (since October) and arm&hammer baking soda solution. The increase happend after December 23rd 2022 icp test that's the time I start adding baking soda solution. What's do you think it's come from? Thanks

I do not know if it is accurate, or where it is coming from.

Certainly, calcium hydroxide might be contaminated with excessive bromide, but I did not find that to be the case,a nd I'd be surprised it it is present in food grade sodium bicarbonate.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I’ve also got a question relative to this thread. Chris runs a farm that is sustained by kalk? That’s low demand in a system that’s wall to wall SPS isn’t it? He sais his calcium reactors are shut off at times.

Just to clarify, are you asking about Chris Meckley from ACI or Chris Wood (who you mentioned above) from Captiv8 Aquaculture? both are in videos together.

 

[Garf]

Just to clarify, are you asking about Chris Meckley from ACI or Chris Wood (who you mentioned above) from Captiv8 Aquaculture? both are in videos together.

Sorry, Chris Meckley sais his calcium reactors are off lots of times, just relying on night time Kalkwasser, as far as I can tell. I know he sais he used a bit of potassium hydroxide at times and dabbled with strontium hydroxide. Just seems low demand to me. Perhaps I’ve misunderstood him.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Sorry, Chris Meckley sais his calcium reactors are off lots of times, just relying on night time Kalkwasser, as far as I can tell. I know he sais he used a bit of potassium hydroxide at times and dabbled with strontium hydroxide. Just seems low demand to me. Perhaps I’ve misunderstood him.

I certainly do not know the details of what he is doing, but I would not assume it is low demand in a hard coral farm. It seems that are many mentions of different alk sources.