# Calcium Chloride and RO water



## andy485 (Aug 19, 2005)

I had a question on Calcium chloride I purchased from greg watson and RO water. 

1.On the fertilator would this be CaCl2 or CaCl2.2H20 they have different values? It says dihydrate so I am guessing CaCl2.2H20. Also I am trying to swith over to RO water in my tank about a 90% to 10% tap ratio. 

2. If I dose CaCl2 and MgSo4 to the parameters recommended on the fertilator(Ca 10-30, Mg 2-5) will this be enough to reconstitute the RO water and balance the electrolytes. What about if I went to 100% RO water?

3. One last thing, sorry. Will Plantex B or Flourish dosing be enough to put the traces back into the RO water? Should I dose more? My tank specs should be below.


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## Edward (May 25, 2004)

Hi
CaCl2 and CaCl2.2H2O are two different chemicals. You need to know which one you have. When you mixing tap with RO, check how much Ca there already is before you add more by CaCl2&#8230;. More is not better so keep it on proper level. Personally I don't see any benefit using tap if you have enough RO. Making 20 ppm Ca by CaCl2 and 2 ppm Mg by MgSO4 takes care of GH. 
Look more closely to KH as this will determine your pH. Using baking soda will do the job. For your 90 gallon aquarium 10.8 grams => 1 dKH.
Trace elements do not need to be dosed at higher levels because of the cleaner water approach (RO). 



Thank you
Edward


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## andy485 (Aug 19, 2005)

Where should I run my KH at? Tested today with my 90% RO and 10% tap and it took 1 drop to change color. I have my PH controller set at 6.2-6.4 and my tank is pearling very heavily. Do I still need to add baking soda and what do you think my target should be?


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## Edward (May 25, 2004)

You could try KH of 1 degree. Then at pH of 6.2 to 6.4 CO2 will be up to 20 ppm.

*FAQ*


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