limewater

[eroan]

Randy,
In reading you article in this months edition of Advanced Aquarist I noticed you are using codex lime from Mississippi Lime. I was reviewing their assays of trace contaminants. What trace contaminates stay in solution in saturated limewater (with extra lime on the bottom of the bucket and stirred with a powerhead for 30 minutes) and do not settle out on the bottom? The solution is allowed to settle for 24 hours and only clear limewater is decanted to the tank.
Thank You
Ed

 

[randy holmes-farley]

Limewater is wonderful in the sense that many of the impurities won't make it into the tank becasue the precipitate as hydroxides or oxides, or may precipitate as calcium salts.

Copper certainly falls into the former category. There will be essentially no copper in clear limewater, regardelss of how much is in the lime. This will be true of many other metals too.

Phosphate (and possibly arsenate) fall into the latter category.

Silicates will, I think, remain in solution, as may strontium. Magnesium will mostly not dissolve, but some will.


Is there a particular impurity that you are interested in?