Inexpensive two-part calcium and alkalinity system

[beareef19]

I have been using only kalk for the past two years and I have always had problems keeping my alk in the correct range due to the fact that my corals were using it up as they build thier skeletons. After reading the link on this two part solution I realized they are used in conjunction with each other I started using the two part solution and with in 5 days I have hit a target of where my tank should be ,I am still adding kalk with my top off water but I am now watching my levels alot closer and adjusting the amount of two part solution to keep with in the levels I want.

Barry

[britfish]

I've researched this some more and according to Randy Holmes-Farley who developed the two-part formula I'm planning to use, the improved recipe does not substantially skew the aquarium's ionic balance any more that just using Kalk alone and this can be mitigated with regular water changes (which should be done anyway) as stated by Ping. Obviously every aquarium's demand for cal and alk are going to be different and the solutuion neeeds to be tailored to fit the demand and an eye kept on the water chemistry.

I'm going to dose my two-part manually to begin with but have found a low-cost method for automating the process on another forum and plan to give that a try asap.