PH Drop...can someone help? Bang?

[the reef]

Originally Posted by ReefNut
That's not at all what I'm saying... but I don't know how I can say it any clearer.
What you are saying is to add carbonates until the PH is at a certain level which is a VERY bad idea. Adding carbonates adds to your alkalinity... you should not go over 12dkh or so NO MATTER WHAT YOUR PH IS... and at that you have to keep the calcium balanced or your water chemistry will be WAY out of balance.
that is true to go over 12 dkh would be bad but if you simply avoid going over the 12 dkh then why the problem im simply saing add carbonates when the ph and the alk is low this will help stabalize both the ph and alk Im not saying it dosent matter what the dkh is that is why when adding any buffer should always test the alk

 

[reefnut]

Originally Posted by sal713
sounds like I opened up a can of worms...
I tried the test, no change. I ran an air stone all day today and no change..just tested it and its at 7.7 (10:30pm) Also tried 2 different test kits and they are the same.
Any other tests I can do to figure this out?
Did you do it inside or outside?? If inside try doing it outside.

 

[reefnut]

Originally Posted by The reef
that is true to go over 12 dkh would be bad but if you simply avoid going over the 12 dkh then why the problem im simply saing add carbonates when the ph and the alk is low this will help stabalize both the ph and alk Im not saying it dosent matter what the dkh is that is why when adding any buffer should always test the alk
IF the alkalinity is low then a buffers can be used to raise the alkalinity... no one is disagreeing with that... and ideally alkalinity should be added constantly or daily to maintain a constant/stable level.
Ok, so we are making progress... now if the alkalinity is where one wants it... say 9dkh, this is where I keep mine... and they are still having chronic PH problems the solution is not to add more and more alkalinity. Now they could add a buffer high in carbonates to maintain the steady 9dkh... but they do not need to just keep adding carbonates until they get a elevated PH... instead they should stay the course in maintaining the alkalinity as normal and then start looking for the reason the PH is low.
Most common reasons are CO2 or organic acids. Both can be fixed w/o the addition of chemicals.

 

[stonynut]

pH 7.8-8.0 here... i would like to see it higher... but i have a lot of co2 running thru my system (reactor)... my dkh is around 11.. i can run it up to 13 with some carbonate.. but in a day its back to where it was...so doing dosing spikes doesnt help much. i have tons and tons of flow (stony tank). i also have another tank in another room. both tanks are within .1 of each other.
conclusion... its summertime... houses are closed up with the a/c on. co2 is gonna build up and your tank can end up being a sink for it.
opening up the house for a few hours can help a small tank, but a large one will need days on end to see the effects of fresh air.
run your air intake to your skimmer in a protected area outdoors... this has helped many.

 

[bang guy]

Originally Posted by StonyNut
run your air intake to your skimmer in a protected area outdoors... this has helped many.
Outstanding idea.

 

[the reef]

another thing that you can do is take a power head and manualy blow off the rocks some of the waist that is created will get caught in the small crevices but only do a small part per day because if their is to much waist traped on the rock then by blowing all of it off could raise the amonia level so I would say do a small part per day to help get rid of the waist that gets built up on the rocks that is also another problem that many people have

 

[sal713]

thanks guys...
blowing off the rocks wont help...I do that once a week anyway.
Opening up the house wont help...live in Fl.
I guess I'll try a really long air hose out of the house.

 

[reefnut]

Opening up the house wont help...live in Fl.
What do you mean by this?? The idea of opening the house is to allow fresh air in and CO2 out.

 

[escape2thewater]

Originally Posted by ReefNut
Opening up the house wont help...live in Fl.
What do you mean by this?? The idea of opening the house is to allow fresh air in and CO2 out.

He means its way too hot in Florida right now, its in at least the 90's every day with 90% plus humidity & no breeze. The heat from opening up the house would cook the tank and be much worse then a slightly low PH. Its too hot to do anything outside. At least that what I think he means......if not then my bad!

At least thats how the outdoors is where live which is about 2 hours south of him....
Escape
:happyfish

 

[reefnut]

I see... how hot is it at night?? Maybe leaving the windows open through the night will not be as bad??

 

[sal713]

77-80 degrees..cant open the house up all night.

 

[the reef]

Originally Posted by sal713
77-80 degrees..cant open the house up all night.
just open a window closest to the tank as posible
could also set a fan right by the window to get the freash air to blow in more as well

 

[sal713]

I'm not going to debate you about opening a window at night. Thanks but I'm not doing it.
I'm trying the hose on the skimmer.

 

[crzyfshygy]

Get a good breeze through the house....works every time. Keep the windows open for a little while. When the Temp in the tank goes up then close them. This will let old air out and provide some good oxygen to the surface area. Should take the Ph to about 8.2 in a day or so.

 

[crzyfshygy]

Originally Posted by escape2thewater
He means its way too hot in Florida right now, its in at least the 90's every day with 90% plus humidity & no breeze. The heat from opening up the house would cook the tank and be much worse then a slightly low PH. Its too hot to do anything outside. At least that what I think he means......if not then my bad!

At least thats how the outdoors is where live which is about 2 hours south of him....
Escape
:happyfish
Dude I live in Ft. Lauderdale Fl and I leave my windows open in the morning and a t night to get the air flowing. It will keep you ph at a good level. To much carbon dioxide in a closed house. plus other pets as well as humans soak up the oxygen. It will not cook your tank!!!!!! As long as you dont open them and then leave the house for 14hrs. Plus run the ac at the same time

 

[bang guy]

Is there a setting on the AC to pull air from outside?

 

[stonynut]

is this a crawl space house or a slab? (sorry if i missed this info somewhere along the line)

 

[the reef]

the best advice is to open a window or a door for maybe only couple hours a day or 5-6 hours every other day so you cam to the foram for advice and this is the most efective and advisable thing to do to help you so If your looking for another way you may just have to find out what you want to do to handle the exese co2.

 

[sal713]

No Bang, there is no setting for that. Would be nice.
I guess if you dont live down here, you dont realize how hot and damp the house will get... very fast.
Do you guys open up the windows when its 20 degrees outside and run the heat for a few hours every other day? I understand this may be the most effective way Reef but I'll find another way. I have the hose to my skimmer going outside the window for now.

 

[bang guy]

Originally Posted by sal713
No Bang, there is no setting for that. Would be nice.
I guess if you dont live down here, you dont realize how hot and damp the house will get... very fast.
Do you guys open up the windows when its 20 degrees outside and run the heat for a few hours every other day? I understand this may be the most effective way Reef but I'll find another way. I have the hose to my skimmer going outside the window for now.
I understand that opening a window isn't an option. I don't know why people are insisting on it even though you've already said it's not an option.
Try the airline from outside but if the line is too long it's not going to work well.
Somehow you need to find a way to equalize the CO2 faster. An oversized skimmer will help.