Triton Core7 Question

MMOORE0324 · 12/02/2017, 06:04 AM

Hey everyone,

My current system is about 3 months old and is approximately 107 total system gallons. I set the system up from the beginning using Triton Methodology. I currently have a 20g refugium growing Chaeto very nicely on a reverse photo cycle. I have done zero water changes and set the tank up with ESV Salt and mixed the batch to 8 Dkh. I've been waiting to start dosing Core7 until I get a Dkh drop. The tank is moderately stocked with SPS and a few LPS sprinkled in. I do have coralline growing, the frags are slowly encrusting, and I've seen about 3/4" growth on my Milka Stylo, however my dkh has not dropped at all. So being frustrated by this, yesterday I started really looking at the system and realized that my Ph is low. 7.8 - 8.0 (my PM1 died on my last system and I didn't replace, so testing with API for now.) Now it started to make sense why my ca / dkh uptake is been low. I live in Florida and in the cooler months when I'm not running the A/C all the time we don't get a lot of fresh air circulation through the house so I'm looking at running a fresh air line into my protein skimmer. I also dosed some AquaVitro Balance last night to boost the Ph.

My question is... should I go ahead and start dosing Core7 on a low dose to get the Ph up, I believe Core7 runs 8.3 ph? I know the dkh will rise, but hopefully once Ph gets back up, dkh will then be depleted in a normal fashion.

Thanks for the help and insight
Matt

Cheapreef · 12/02/2017, 11:29 AM

My advise Do Not Chase PH, Maintain your ALk at a stable level and forget about PH unless you see ill effects on the tank inhabitants. My PH runs super low has for the last 1.5 years since setup in the basement, 7.75-7.9 I ignore it and keep my alk solid.

MMOORE0324 · 12/02/2017, 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cheapreef

My advise Do Not Chase PH, Maintain your ALk at a stable level and forget about PH unless you see ill effects on the tank inhabitants. My PH runs super low has for the last 1.5 years since setup in the basement, 7.75-7.9 I ignore it and keep my alk solid.

Thanks for your reply! I'm really not trying to chase Ph, I just want to raise it to the 8.3 area which is where all my previous tanks have seemed to flourish. I do know that low Ph can hinder calcification. My alk has been rock steady but with that said I've never had a tank that has had SPS and the alk stay at the exact same number for 3 months without any additions. I've got my Ph up to 8.1 right now and just that little bit has moved my alk by .2 dkh. I think I'll start the Core7 dosing tomorrow with a very small dose and will monitor alk closely.

bertoni · 12/02/2017, 07:29 PM

The pH of the tank is set largely by the alkalinity and the carbon dioxide level. For reef tanks, unless you add a lot of borate, a pH range of 7.8-8.0 is normal, and it's also fine for growth. I would ignore it. A lot of Tanks of the Month have run at 7.8. If you want to try to raise the pH, a carbon dioxide scrubber or an air exchanger might be all that you can do. You could consider using Kalk for dosing alkalinity, because it'll consume more carbon dioxide per unit of dKH added, but usually, that's not enough to make much of a difference.

12/02/2017, 06:04 AM	#1
MMOORE0324 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Cape Coral, Florida Posts: 834	Triton Core7 Question Hey everyone, My current system is about 3 months old and is approximately 107 total system gallons. I set the system up from the beginning using Triton Methodology. I currently have a 20g refugium growing Chaeto very nicely on a reverse photo cycle. I have done zero water changes and set the tank up with ESV Salt and mixed the batch to 8 Dkh. I've been waiting to start dosing Core7 until I get a Dkh drop. The tank is moderately stocked with SPS and a few LPS sprinkled in. I do have coralline growing, the frags are slowly encrusting, and I've seen about 3/4" growth on my Milka Stylo, however my dkh has not dropped at all. So being frustrated by this, yesterday I started really looking at the system and realized that my Ph is low. 7.8 - 8.0 (my PM1 died on my last system and I didn't replace, so testing with API for now.) Now it started to make sense why my ca / dkh uptake is been low. I live in Florida and in the cooler months when I'm not running the A/C all the time we don't get a lot of fresh air circulation through the house so I'm looking at running a fresh air line into my protein skimmer. I also dosed some AquaVitro Balance last night to boost the Ph. My question is... should I go ahead and start dosing Core7 on a low dose to get the Ph up, I believe Core7 runs 8.3 ph? I know the dkh will rise, but hopefully once Ph gets back up, dkh will then be depleted in a normal fashion. Thanks for the help and insight Matt __________________ -Matt- 50g Acrylic SPS http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2653554 Retired34g Solana SPS Reef

12/02/2017, 07:29 PM	#4
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	The pH of the tank is set largely by the alkalinity and the carbon dioxide level. For reef tanks, unless you add a lot of borate, a pH range of 7.8-8.0 is normal, and it's also fine for growth. I would ignore it. A lot of Tanks of the Month have run at 7.8. If you want to try to raise the pH, a carbon dioxide scrubber or an air exchanger might be all that you can do. You could consider using Kalk for dosing alkalinity, because it'll consume more carbon dioxide per unit of dKH added, but usually, that's not enough to make much of a difference. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

12/02/2017, 11:29 AM	#2
Cheapreef Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 1,076	My advise Do Not Chase PH, Maintain your ALk at a stable level and forget about PH unless you see ill effects on the tank inhabitants. My PH runs super low has for the last 1.5 years since setup in the basement, 7.75-7.9 I ignore it and keep my alk solid.