Low PH HELP!

[gcutting]

Hello Reefers!!

I have low PH (8.00 night to 8.10 day)

History:

3 month old 60 gal reef with a 60 gal sump
40 pounds live rook
7 snails
1 brittle star
Eco-mud filter- no macro algae yet.
kalk reactor addition to make up water
0 nitrate
0 nitrite
10 dk harness
430 orp
77 temp


PH was around 8.2 until I put the brittle star and snails in ,now PH has been slowly dropping to 8.00 at night. I have done the arriation test with a test sample to see if co2 was a problem. I had no drop in PH in the test sample after 24 hrs of arriation outside.

Any ideas?

[Damasta5]

when was your last water change? Try and do a 10 gallons and see if that fixes it.

[scottwhitson]

First off that isn't that bad of a PH reading. My PH used to hover around 7.8 as a high and down to 7.7 at night. You also state that you didn't have a drop of PH with the aeration test, did it change at all? I started using Kalk as top off and my PH is now around 8-8.2 and that is the best I can get.

[reefgeezer]

Your pH is fine. You ORP indicates that you don't have a dissolved organic problem, so the SLIGHTLY low pH is probably due to excessive CO2 build-up in your house, or you just don't have adequate circulation in the tank. Open the windows and/or add an airstone for a few hours while the lights are on and see what happens.

[thatguy559]

do you have a sump? do you have a canopy. if you have a conopy or sump open all the doors up and let the tank breathe for a couple hours your ph will go back up. i had this issue on my 225g tank. i just put a fan pointing across the back of the stand and left a door open

[bertoni]

That pH is fine, and I wouldn't do anything to change it. I agree that if the measurement is correct, there's probably a bit more carbon dioxide in the air around the tank, compared to an outdoor level.

[gcutting]

The reply make me feel better about it. I will try and aerate and ventilate the area around the tank, but I see that it is nothing to worry about.

[bertoni]

You're welcome!

You're actually lucky. A lot of people run a lot lower than that.

[Machupicchu]

That ph is fine. Mine hovered around 7.8-8.0 but if your anal retentive like myself i would try checking mag and calcium levels and see if your deficient in either one. I was deficient in mag for my calcium level, around 1000, when i raised it to 1300 my ph stabilized at 8.2 and hasn't budged.

[oscar.millan]

Low Ph in my book starts at Ph 7.8, 8.0 is perfectly fine. If you want it higher, aeration as everything has said will help if you have a C02 problem. My Ph was always low until I started dripping kalk.

If you want it higher, dripping kalk would help get you from 8.1 to 8.3 no problem. Just make sure you are aware of your calcium levels and alk.

[L8ndeb]

Run your intake for your skimmer to outside. Will raise Ph a few points.

[Boomer]

You do not have low pH. @ std NSW equilibrated with atm it is like 8.2. The addition of more things may have lost that 0.1 pH giving a very slight CO2 issue. And as Mach pointed out what is your Mg++

430 ORP

Is this from ozone ? If not you can not get an ORP that high or even close to that. That means you probe has Algae growing on it which raises the reading of the probe.

[gcutting]

Can you explain at little more what you mean by

"You do not have low pH. @ std NSW equilibrated with atm it is like 8.2"

I like the result of your statement, but do not understand what NSW and ATM is.

And I am not using OZONE. Funny I only recalibrate probes when they give reading I do not like
I'll check it out tonight.

I ran carbon in a reactor for 3 days and my ORP when up 30 points-Is this normal.

It cleared up the water, but I checked the PAR reading before and after and there was no change.

Also what is the maximum believable reading of ORP w/o ozone?

Thanks Boomer

[Boomer]

"You do not have low pH. @ std NSW equilibrated with atm it is like 8.2"

I like the result of your statement, but do not understand what NSW and ATM is.

When STD NSW @ 25 C, 35 ppt. 2.25 meq / l @ 1 atm of pressure is equilibrated with atmospheric CO2 at 350 ppm = pH ~ 8.2. When any of these change the pH changes to other than 8.2.



I ran carbon in a reactor for 3 days and my ORP when up 30 points-Is this normal.

Many things effect ORP. For example when the pH goes down the ORP goes up and when the pH goes up the ORP goes down. Feeding lowers the ORP, ozone raises the ORP, as does things like bleach or hydrogen peroxide.



Also what is the maximum believable reading of ORP w/o ozone?

In a very well run reef tank with no ozone ~ 400 mV and most are below that. So, you have a reading/error isle of some kind

[reefgeezer]

Allow me to interpret... Forgive me Boomer and correct me if I've misread your post.

NSW= Natural Sea Water - This is really an average of NSW where reefs exist.

ATM = Atmosphere - Here the CO2 level. The CO2 in the water will be in equalibrium with the CO2 in the atmosphere. If CO2 levels rise in the atmosphere it will rise in the water and pH will fall and vice versa.

[tmz]

I agree 8.0 is fine. FYI and future reference if you need it CO2 scrubbers employing soda lime work pretty well.

[Boomer]

Yes reef that is correct, to include if the alk changes even at those same given parameters that pH will change.

NSW is really a international std at those levels even though it is not the same through out the ocean or on many reefs. Also take note that if a weather front comes in or you live at a higher elevation that CO2 will change in the atm also. And there can be a big deference for some who have high room air CO2, even if that atm was 350 ppm.


The point here was his pH is fine which is about the normal for most reefs or the ocean.