SaltyQueen
Member
I currently am not using any sort of kalk drip to buffer my tank, & I'd like to start using something. Because I want to avoid having to buy all sorts of dosing equipment, I'm interested in trying a product by ESV called B-Ionic Calcium Buffer System. Here are the instructiond for use from thrit website:
"Our recommended starting dose is 1 ml. of each component per 4 gallons of aquarium capacity per day. Maintain alkalinity between 3.0 and 3.75 meq/liter (8.4 and 10.5 dKH) by testing daily and adjusting dose accordingly. Depending on the degree of calcification occurring in the aquarium, dose may have to be significantly increased over our recommended starting dose. Never add more than 1 ml. per gallon of each component in a 24 hour period, and never allow pH to rise above 8.45. Once the proper dose has been determined for your aquarium, testing can be performed less frequently. If your aquarium tends to run at a higher pH (over 8.45) we suggest you try our B-Ionic Calcium Bicarbonate System. When using kalkwasser in addition to B-Ionic Calcium Buffer System, follow the above procedure but start with 1 ml of each component per 8 gallons of aquarium capacity per day. For more detailed directions please refer to our product label."
Now, maybe I'm being a complete moron- but these directions seem to contradict eachother. First, they say to add 1ml of each solution for every 4 gallons of water, then they say not to add more than 1ml per gallon. So I'm wondering- is it 1ml of each solution for every 4 gallons or for every 1 gallon??? Also, do you add it all at once, or over a period of several days? Then, once you've reached the adequate "starting dose" do you still add it every day, or only as needed? The website says that a supply to treat 30 gallons for 60 days is $16.50- if this is something that gets added every day, even after the starting dose, that is ridicuously expensive! I'm just wondering if anyone has any experience with this product that could explain it to me in not so confusing terms- the ESV website isn't very clear on this.
Also, I've seen a similar product by Kent Marine called Tech CB- it's also a 2-soltuion set, but seems a lot easier to use, and it says that 16oz of each solution (part A & part B), which is about $10, will treat 1900 gallons. This seems a lot more economical!
So if anyone has any experience with either of these products, I'd love to know how they worked for you, if one is better than the other, etc.
Thanks!
"Our recommended starting dose is 1 ml. of each component per 4 gallons of aquarium capacity per day. Maintain alkalinity between 3.0 and 3.75 meq/liter (8.4 and 10.5 dKH) by testing daily and adjusting dose accordingly. Depending on the degree of calcification occurring in the aquarium, dose may have to be significantly increased over our recommended starting dose. Never add more than 1 ml. per gallon of each component in a 24 hour period, and never allow pH to rise above 8.45. Once the proper dose has been determined for your aquarium, testing can be performed less frequently. If your aquarium tends to run at a higher pH (over 8.45) we suggest you try our B-Ionic Calcium Bicarbonate System. When using kalkwasser in addition to B-Ionic Calcium Buffer System, follow the above procedure but start with 1 ml of each component per 8 gallons of aquarium capacity per day. For more detailed directions please refer to our product label."
Now, maybe I'm being a complete moron- but these directions seem to contradict eachother. First, they say to add 1ml of each solution for every 4 gallons of water, then they say not to add more than 1ml per gallon. So I'm wondering- is it 1ml of each solution for every 4 gallons or for every 1 gallon??? Also, do you add it all at once, or over a period of several days? Then, once you've reached the adequate "starting dose" do you still add it every day, or only as needed? The website says that a supply to treat 30 gallons for 60 days is $16.50- if this is something that gets added every day, even after the starting dose, that is ridicuously expensive! I'm just wondering if anyone has any experience with this product that could explain it to me in not so confusing terms- the ESV website isn't very clear on this.
Also, I've seen a similar product by Kent Marine called Tech CB- it's also a 2-soltuion set, but seems a lot easier to use, and it says that 16oz of each solution (part A & part B), which is about $10, will treat 1900 gallons. This seems a lot more economical!
So if anyone has any experience with either of these products, I'd love to know how they worked for you, if one is better than the other, etc.
Thanks!
