DIY kalkwasser reactor

[spaulr]

I can't seem to get my PH over 7.9 with my Ca reactor so I've decided to build a Kalk reactor - based on the Nilsen design.

However, most of the designs set the height at around 3'. I have a 40 gallon tank and a 20 gallon sump. This seems like overkill. Is there some reason to have that specific height? Granted, I'd also prefer not to have to be filling the reactor with Kalk or lime every two days too

Here's the link.
http://jjgeisler.com/reeftank/diy_kalkw ... eactor.htm

Although, the top cap sucks. I was thinking about going down to 3" and using a union for the top.

 

[jandree22]

I have zero experience and limited knowledge with Ca reactors, but could it be possible that you’re injecting too much CO2 into the system? Just a somewhat educated guess...

 

[spaulr]

Nope. I have the reactor ph setup to be ~7.6

It is controlled by a ph controller which will turn on CO2 if internal reactor ph goes above 7.7 and turns it off at 7.5. Ca and alk measurements look ok.

FWIW, my tank ph has always been about 8.0-8.2 (8.2 in middle of the day). It drops to ~7.8 during the night -even with my sump.

 

[ChrisRD]

I think the idea behind the height is so that you're dosing clear limewater and not suspended solids. Personally, I've never seen any adverse effects from dosing the solids, so I'm not sure this is much of a concern, however, there are ways of achieving similar results without the height.

IME the mixing pumps on these reactors only need to be run for a minute or two to completely agitate the mix. When I was using one of these reactors, I used digital appliance timers to operate the mixing pump and the feed/dose pump on different schedules so there would be time for the particulates to settle back out before the next dose.

As for the nightly pH swing / low pH issues - when I was running a Ca reactor I had the same problem. What I did was run the feed/dose pump on the kalkreactor only at night. The series of limewater doses throughout the night was great for counteracting the natural pH drop at night and keeping overall pH levels higher and more stable.

Also, the concern about the top plug is definitely valid IME. I tried the cleanout cover thing and didn't like it. I later tried a 4" union, but these are huge, expensive and don't seal easily (think strap wrench). I eventually ended-up using a 4" to 2" reducer and a 2" union for the top of my DIY kalkreactor as these unions were available locally and inexpensively at the LHS and provided a good seal being only hand tightened.

HTH

 

[Anonymous]

Here is one I made. It is still going good. In service since January.

http://www.reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=98852

 

[kgross]

You can make a kalk reactor much shorter than 3 feet. The only down side is the chance of suspended solids as Chris says. But if you setup your feed slow enough a few solids will not make any difference in your tank. The biggest problem with a short reactor is mixing it slow enough that it does not suspend all of the solids and take a long time to settle out. Just make sure your mixing pump setup is very low power and on for a very short time. Try to set your timer so the reactor fills about 2/3 with solids, that way the top should still be mostly clear and it will not take to long for the solids to settle back to the bottom.

Kim

 

[Reefless]

Nope. I have the reactor ph setup to be ~7.6 [/code]

Spaulr
unless the PH of your reactor is below 7 it will not disolve the media you are using. The "normal" range for a calcium reactor is 6.5-6.8
The settings you are using are not acidic.

just my .02

Adam