Hi everyone,
I have 90G tank that has been running for the past 6 months with a calcium reactor. The reactor is filled with CaribSea A.R.M. The CO2 injection is managed by a controller that is set to inject at PH 7.4 and off at PH 7.3. My calcium level measures at a consistent 450-480 ppm, dKH at a consistent 8.5 and PH at a consistent 8.3. These numbers have remained steady for the past 4 months and I am happy with the results. Here's the problem: the media level inside the reactor looks exactly the same as when I first filled it up 6 months ago. How can I have a consistent calcium reading when the medial has not been depleted. There are articles that indicate aragonite media dissolves at a much lower PH, closer to 6.5. At the beginning, I tried dialing my controller to operate until PH is around 6.5. However, this rapidly dissolved the media and resulted in a "white milkshake" appearance in the reactor. This tells me that it is true that aragonite dissolves at this low PH level. I am just not understanding as to how this reactor can supply my tank with the amount of calcium for this long and yet the medial level remains the same. I have a small number (approx. 12-14) of calcareous species (frags and small colonies) in this tank, so I am aware that the calcium usage is minimal, but this just doesn't make any sense. BTW, I test the calcium level using only ELOS and Salifer test kits, and they both register the same number (+- 20 ppm). I hope that some of you more experienced reefers can chime in, but I am all ears as to an explanation. Thank you guys!
I have 90G tank that has been running for the past 6 months with a calcium reactor. The reactor is filled with CaribSea A.R.M. The CO2 injection is managed by a controller that is set to inject at PH 7.4 and off at PH 7.3. My calcium level measures at a consistent 450-480 ppm, dKH at a consistent 8.5 and PH at a consistent 8.3. These numbers have remained steady for the past 4 months and I am happy with the results. Here's the problem: the media level inside the reactor looks exactly the same as when I first filled it up 6 months ago. How can I have a consistent calcium reading when the medial has not been depleted. There are articles that indicate aragonite media dissolves at a much lower PH, closer to 6.5. At the beginning, I tried dialing my controller to operate until PH is around 6.5. However, this rapidly dissolved the media and resulted in a "white milkshake" appearance in the reactor. This tells me that it is true that aragonite dissolves at this low PH level. I am just not understanding as to how this reactor can supply my tank with the amount of calcium for this long and yet the medial level remains the same. I have a small number (approx. 12-14) of calcareous species (frags and small colonies) in this tank, so I am aware that the calcium usage is minimal, but this just doesn't make any sense. BTW, I test the calcium level using only ELOS and Salifer test kits, and they both register the same number (+- 20 ppm). I hope that some of you more experienced reefers can chime in, but I am all ears as to an explanation. Thank you guys!
