calcium reactor effluent

[this is me]

Don't forget about Ca consumption as well. Some tank comsume ALK faster than Ca and vice versa.
I'm no expert in tank chemical but based on my own experience and my own tank, I found that a faster drip rate will keep my Ca up better than a slow drip.

if your dripping fast say 20 dpm (co2 at 40 bpm)and your affluent is say 10 dkh.. and then you drop your dripping to say 10 dpm (20 bpm)and your affluent is 20 dkh then is it really a difference?

 

[stevenp]

Don't forget about Ca consumption as well. Some tank comsume ALK faster than Ca and vice versa.

This is my biggest problem. I have a hard time keeping them both right where I want them with just a reactor. I use a controller to keep my effluent at a ph 6.7, so if I increase the effluent drip rate both alk and ca rise. If I lower the effluent drip rate both alk and ca fall.

If I top off with kalk everything stays right where I want it, but I'm trying to get away from that...

 

[biggyclops]

Good point!

 

[marine mike]

not necessarily the case. Ray is right with respect to the drip rate and the co2 rate. If you increase your drip rate, the water is in the chamber for a shorter amount of time so it cannot grab as much dissolved media as if your drip rate was slower, thus the effluent ph should rise. You would then have to increase your co2 rate to compensate for this shorter time in the chamber to achieve the same ph (and alk/ca) content in your effluent. he may end up wanting to adjust his effluent ph slightly up to compensate for the added effluent volume. you would then achieve the proper drip without an overloaded alk/ca amount in the tank. that would be one way for Joel to solve that problem as it seems that the pressure getting to the end of the effluent line is not strong enough to keep the flow going. increasing the flow and the co2 so the effluent remains at the target ph would probably solve this problem as would a new pump, most likely.

 

[Aquadiva]

I had a similar problem.

I changed the tube running from the top of the reactor to the needle valve. It was gummed up with stuff that would come off and clog the needle valve.

If that doesn't work, try changing the feed pump. These are the two easiest methods.

If that doesn't work, I also did what Ray did. I increased the flow out of the needle valve. The slow drip was causing the tube to clog. The faster flow kept things, well, flowing. You'll need to adjust your CO2 and PH accordingly. They can argue about how to tweek it, but it solved my problem.

 

[this is me]

Yes, I totally agree on the increasing drip rate and increasing the Co2 to compensate. But now you are putting more alk and ca into the tank that you might not necessary need....

not necessarily the case. Ray is right with respect to the drip rate and the co2 rate. If you increase your drip rate, the water is in the chamber for a shorter amount of time so it cannot grab as much dissolved media as if your drip rate was slower, thus the effluent ph should rise. You would then have to increase your co2 rate to compensate for this shorter time in the chamber to achieve the same ph (and alk/ca) content in your effluent. he may end up wanting to adjust his effluent ph slightly up to compensate for the added effluent volume. you would then achieve the proper drip without an overloaded alk/ca amount in the tank. that would be one way for Joel to solve that problem as it seems that the pressure getting to the end of the effluent line is not strong enough to keep the flow going. increasing the flow and the co2 so the effluent remains at the target ph would probably solve this problem as would a new pump, most likely.

 

[Ray]

see here is where it has always lost me, I was taught to set up the reactor by measuring the ph of the effluent and that is how I have always set up reactors and it has worked. I have never ended up with high alk or ca and every 4 months I have to sometimes adjust one of them along with my Mg. No matter what I have had in my tank for corals and clams this has worked (please note I have never been lightly stocked) I have done the slower drip rate as well as the fast stream with the same results. The ph coming out is always the same and the ca and alk I add is always around the same with a fast or slow drip. I understand what you are saying Nick but I have never ended up with a high alk and ca even when moderately stocked.
I may not know the working but what I do works for me

 

[Joel A]

thanks guys... it stopped completely again last night, and i woke up to a ph of 6.26 in the effluent chamber...

I'm going to try changing the line first, and if that doesn't work then i'll try a different feed pump..

 

[this is me]

Did your media turn into mush with that low PH?

 

[Joel A]

mushier than it was before, that's for sure... it still looks OK though.. as far as i know at least.

This whole damn thing is really starting to aggrivate me..

i tried to swap out the tubing for standard airline, but the outside diameter of the standard airline is to damn small to fit into the valve, then i tried to switch the pump to a MJ 1200, and the same issue, the feed line to the reactor is to big to fit snuggly around the maxijet's nozzle... so i need to make modifications for either one of those ideas to work.

I took the valve out, and rinsed it clean to the best of my abilities, it didn't seem clogged though, i also cleaned the feed pump, but again, it seemed fine.

 

[Ray]

what is your drip rate? I would guess it is small pieces of media or build up getting stuck somewhere

 

[Joel A]

what is your drip rate? I would guess it is small pieces of media or build up getting stuck somewhere

drip rate out of the effluent? I don't really have one lol... whatever i can get it to stay constant at for the time being....

 

[stevenp]

mushier than it was before, that's for sure... it still looks OK though.. as far as i know at least.

Eh, I'd replace that media or you're going to be fighting an uphill battle. From my experience it's more prone to clog the valve once it gets the slightest bit mushy.

I've always had the best luck with the coarse ARM media.

 

[Joel A]

yeah, well i'm currently using the Fine media, i wasn't the one that put it in there, but it looks like ARM.

i think my reactor is supposed to be used with coarser media though, because the recirculating pump kicks a bit of the fine media up and around in the chamber.

 

[Ray]

I use the large stuff in mine and have had far less problems.

http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=cmedia

 

[Joel A]

the carib sea stuff, or the gen X stuff?

 

[Ray]

I have used both and never had a problem, I have a 50/50 mix right now. I think I am going to try the larger ARM ones next

 

[jbishop]

I use larger ARM with no issues.