Do you run a calcium reactor, what are your thoughts on it?

[straightjiggy10]

I HAVE A CALCIUM REACTOR I'M HESITATING ON SETING UP BECAUSE I GET SO MANY MIXED REVIEWS ON IT, SOME SAY " DUDE! ITS GONNA CRASH YOUR TANK". SOME SAY, ITS AWESOME I NEVER HAVE TO DOSE AGAIN", WHAT ARE YOUR OPINIONS AND THOUGHTS ON RUNNING ONE MY SYSTEM IS A 220G AND I HAVE A BERMUDA CALCIUM REACTOR. PH CONTROLLER AS WELL AND A 10LB CO2 CONTAINER. THX:help:

 

[ClosetFishGeek]

I have been using one for many years and absolutely love it. At first it was a little bit of a challenge to dial it in but I would never be without one(unless I had a very small tank with no real demand). I have never had a crash...this is rediculous. It is like anything else it needs to be maintained. All i can say is if you do decide to go this route do not cheap out on the unit and definitely do not cheap out on the regulator and needle valve that controls your co2. One word of wisdom that is to often overlooked when using a calcium reactor.....Dose two part until you get your dkh & calcium where you want it first. Find out the demand of your tank...then use your calcium reactor to Maintain these levels. And remember these levels will change over time(growth of corals..)....so check your levels weekly.

Thane

 

[OGGISPORTS]

I have been using one for many years and absolutely love it. At first it was a little bit of a challenge to dial it in but I would never be without one(unless I had a very small tank with no real demand). I have never had a crash...this is rediculous. It is like anything else it needs to be maintained. All i can say is if you do decide to go this route do not cheap out on the unit and definitely do not cheap out on the regulator and needle valve that controls your co2. One word of wisdom that is to often overlooked when using a calcium reactor.....Dose two part until you get your dkh & calcium where you want it first. Find out the demand of your tank...then use your calcium reactor to Maintain these levels. And remember these levels will change over time(growth of corals..)....so check your levels weekly.

Thane

+1 if you are willing to spent the money and take the time with it your be fine. And i know when it comes to your tank you are right on top of things so be fine for you . Just make sure you diff keep your eye on it and test.

 

[cali_reef]

Learn how a CaRX works first.. Joe Burger have a pretty good write up here.

I had melt downs within the reactor before but never had a "tank crash" because of it. It's like all things in this hobby, you need to take the time to learn it before you can perfected it.

 

[straightjiggy10]

ill take pics of what i got, untill then anyone else have any opinions on this?

 

[juiceguy]

i could not maintain my tank without one, dosing 2 part is just tedious and to expensive in the long run. it usually takes a week or 2 to dial the reactor in but once it is set you can forget it until it needs maintenance or re-filling.

 

[Bob 1000]

I've been using a precision marine prototype for a while.. Ca reactors are the best for stability when you get the right one.. I also have always had my co2 on my controllers so that I have less to worry about..

 

[JARRETT SHARK]

I just got one to work and it seems hard to dial in at first but I think I got it now. To me it was the thought to stop dosing and seen lots of good tanks with it in the past years.

 

[straightjiggy10]

jarrett which reactor did u get and what was the difficult part?

 

[mheaven]

I have been using one for a few years now and I love it. I also run a kalk reactor and like it also. I wouldn’t go back to dosing.

MRC cr2 and a PM kalk reactor

 

[straightjiggy10]

Is it necessary to run kalk and calcium reactor? i was under the impression calcium reactor did both? And whats the best type of regulator to have? keep the info coming guys wanna get this right

 

[mray]

Run kalk until it can no longer keep up with your tank's demand and then you can incorporate a calcium reactor.

The type of regulator almost doesn't matter as long as it is decent and you are running a ph controller with your calcium reactor. The best regulator would be an electronic one from aquariumplants.com but it costs around $190.

 

[Alex]

What type of regulator depends on what you are comfortable with. I use a milwaukee and find it to be great, my brother in law uses the pinpoint and likes it better. As Mray stated aquariumplants.com had two that they have for sale, they seem to be great products. there have been some negative feedback by users on the electronic version of aquariumplants regulator, you can look at RC for this. But im sure you will find negative feed back on many regulators.

As for CR I had an MRC CR5 and it was a good product. currently I use Geo 612 with a milwaukee 622 regulator on a 20lb co2 bottle. what i love the most about this product is the internal ph probe, which reads the ph of the chamber.

dont be fooled though, many people will find that after there corals reach a certain growth they have to go bigger or add kalk just keep up with calcium demand.

 

[juiceguy]

ppl usually run a kalk reactor to counter the CO2 from the cal reactor, i don't use a kalk reactor because it is another tedious chore to refill and it fouls up your pumps very easily. i run the effluent of the cal reactor near my skimmer so the excess CO2 gets blown off inside the skimmer. As for regultaors, the Reef Fanatic is pretty good, i use this one:

http://www.greenleafaquariums.com/co2-regulators/ideal-2-co2-regulator.html

 

[E.intheC]

This thread has been helpful so far. What does a typical (read: middle of the road) Calcium reactor setup cost? (I've looked this up but haven't been able to get a list of all the 'required' parts together, IE pump, motor, CO2, etc).

Thanks for helping an SPS noob.

 

[ReefFan]

I have a basic Geo 618 reactor on my 175 gal system. I dont have too many sps in there but I do have a couple large Halimedia plants. I love the Ca reactor. You just have to be patient dialing it in to what your tanks carbonate and Ca demands are. With my reactor, it basically requires two drops of effluent per one bubble of Co2, to produce effluent rich in elements. If the drip rate is too fast or bubbles too slow, the PH inside the reactor wont be low enough to release the elements into the effluent. Thats just a basic rule of thumb but so far its been working for me. Bubble rate as to be at least half the rate of the drip.

It'll take a few weeks to get to know your reactor. One thing I can advise is try to rig the effluent to enter into a refugium. I have my Cheato fuge set up so that tank water enters from the left and gets pushed straight down to the floor before it makes its way through the fuge. So with the effluent dripping directly above the entry baffle, its gets sucked under with the rest of the supply water. then it enters the fuge and gets pulled through the Cheato on its way up to the overflow-bulkhead. Once through the bulkhead its channeled into the MT. I think this helps alot in taking care of the Co2 while it aids in Macro algae growth. My tank's PH has been a solid 8.1-8.3 for 2 months. Every day I give my PH monitor a look and its never been outside of this range.

Its just an idea to consider. Use the CO2 to help your macro algae growth and your systems PH will be stable.

Once you get to know your reactor youll love the stability and not having to dose and check so much. You also begin to learn visual indicators of KH/Ca imbalances. Youll just notice your rock isnt looking right. The most obvious indicator to me is that the Coralline Algae loses its pigmentation. I mane its always a good idea to routinely test these levels, but the appearance of Coralline has never failed me. Each time I suspect a problem, my Salifert test always confirms something is wrong with either the reactor or too many phosphates in the system to allow the absorbtion/usage of the effluent.. as a result the unused carbonates mount and youre left with too high of a KH. Phosphates inhibit calcification.

GL with it, youve made a great investment.

 

[straightjiggy10]

wow thanks for such a detailed post its helping me with my decisions as well as a bunch of other members here.

 

[Bob 1000]

If there's any advice I could give about calcium reactors,,,,, Get a beast, If you don't get one that is big enough for your system you'll end up doing the kalk thing or using so much co2 your ph will be dragged down.. Don't skimp on this reactor save up if you have to.. Don't settle for just anything..

 

[straightjiggy10]

If there's any advice I could give about calcium reactors,,,,, Get a beast, If you don't get one that is big enough for your system you'll end up doing the kalk thing or using so much co2 your ph will be dragged down.. Don't skimp on this reactor save up if you have to.. Don't settle for just anything..

how exactly would u tell if you have a beast or not?

 

[straightjiggy10]

heres my Calc reactor what do u guys think? not cleaned up yet been sitting for a while.