In the near future i need to decide what method i want to use for suppliments and whats effective and depenable. all advice would be apperciated. Thanks said:IMHO
2 part is the most dependable, especially with a quality dosing pump system. I prefer it over the calcium reactor for two reasons... no chance of meltdown of media which can trash a tank and you can adjust your alk and ca independently, you can't do that with a ca reactor.
Dosing pumps are not 100% fool proof, but a quality para pump is as close to bullet proof as you can get for anything mechanical. I have yet to hear about a Litermeter failing and flooding a tank with solution.
Dosing will also take up less room... if thats an issue.
A good quality dosing system will set you back about as much as a calcium reactor setup so they tend to balance out $$ wise.
Downside of dosing.. you have mix your solution from time to time. If you use 1 gallon jugs depending on your usage level that could be every week to every few weeks. Mine are lasting about 3 weeks at present time. You don't have to do that with a calcium reactor, though you will need to change your CO2 every once in awhile.
Both will take tests to nail down and occasional tests to verify quantity. Adjusting two part is simply changing the output reading on the device, doing it with a caclium reactor is done by adjusting the flow or the CO2 input, or combo. Its a little more work and hit and miss.
Chemically... they are about the same. Ca Reactor media is probably less risky as far as contaminates go, but if you buy your 2-part from reliable sources in the industry and not out at a hardware store or something, you run less risk of that happening.
Calcium reactor requires less storage space to run... more equipment space, but very little storage space for media and such. 2-part will require more storage since you have to keep the buckets someplace.
Sometimes calcium reactors need pH boosting, like a kalk reactor to keep pH up. Dosing won't need that since there is no CO2 going in. If you go with a ca reactor, I would recommend a dual chamber model so you can buffer the effluent as much as possible.
I think overall the dosing is easier to setup and tune. Ca reactors can be tricky to setup and tune, though they do tend to be stable once they get going. Maintenance is about the same...
So there is no RIGHT answer.. it just depends on how you feel each benefit /downside will effect you. In my situation dosing is the best solution... I might feel different if I was home all the time and didn't need to dose different quantities of alk/ca to maintain my target levels.