Low ph question

reb

Member
I have a 28 gallon nano with mainly softies and a few frags of frogspawn and a hammer. I have been fighting with low ph. I only use ro water from culligans and reef crystals salt. I do a 20% water change every 3 weeks minimum. The ph test said I was about 7.8-8.0. Why is this happening?
 

reb

Member
I was worried because I read that my ph for coral tank should be about 8.4. Sometimes it drops as low as 7.6. I have a complete cover and have only lately started dosing with some calcium.
 

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Reb http:///t/393306/low-ph-question#post_3498034
I was worried because I read that my ph for coral tank should be about 8.4. Sometimes it drops as low as 7.6. I have a complete cover and have only lately started dosing with some calcium.
Don't let everything you read bother you.
It's actually closer to 8.2
Take the cover off... wait a couple of days and then re-test your pH. point a powerhead to blow across the top of the water - and measure your pH just before your lights go off. You will get a drastically different reading, and it will be much more stable.
Don't dose anything you don't test for. If you dose calcium, you also have to know how to balance alkalinity and magnesium with it. Get a test kit for each of the "top three" chemicals for your tank, test it, and then figure out what is high or low and then you will have to figure out how much of the supplement you will have to dose to reach that level. .... or
You could just keep up with regular 10% weekly water changes until that doesn't keep up with your ca/alk/mg demands.
 

reb

Member
Thanks. Where can I find some good info on how and when to dose or use buffers for a nano. Also can you have too much water flow in a tank? The tank has 2 returns that put about a little bit of flow, and 2 small aquoen power heads on a wave maker. I thought about adding 2 more small power heads on the wave maker.
 

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
How big is this nano?
Nano's rarely need supplementation unless you have a very, very high stony coral load.
Salt is a lot cheaper then supplements.
 

reb

Member
28 gallons. I think I will keep doing water changes then instead of dosing. Do you think 4 small power heads in the tank is too much?
 

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
It's not how much flow you have, but flow patterns.
flow should gently break the top of the water, gently blow over the corals and through the rocks - and be able to kick up some detritus off the sandbed. Sometimes this is accomplished with one powerhead, sometimes six. It just depends... and it takes time and experience to know what is best. I can't really advise you on it unless I really look at the tank and experiment with it.
You should always maintain your sandbed, either biologically or mechanically... You should also have methods and equipment in place to take care of built up dissolved organics and particulate organic matter. The only reason I mention this is because flow rates is not necessarily what keeps a tank clean. water flow helps carry O2 and CO2 into and out of the tank, as well as other dissolved gasses - which regulate pH. (There are other things that do this, but gas exchange is a major reason for low pH.) Flow also helps carry food to corals, and waste away from corals. Another reason to have some flow is to keep detritus from building up to dangerous levels in dead spots in the tank (only in spots that aren't maintained.). There is a great importance in flow and flow rates, however, there is no magical formula that will create a healthy tank - there is only experience in knowing what to look for and the reasons/concept behind WHY you have to have a powerhead or two in the first place.
 

reb

Member
Makes sense. When I do my 10% weekly water changes from now on should I use my gravel siphon to vac up the sand bottom, or just water. I have about a 1-1 1/2 inch sand bottom. I have been vacuuming up the sand and water at the same time?
Also I have my power heads on a wave maker changing back and forth every 45 seconds. Does that seem like a decent amount of time?
Thanks for all the great help.
 
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