ph question

evanjah

evanjah

Member
Its is dead of winter here in wisconsin so the lack of oxygen might be the problem. I figure if i open the windows a tad now or then ill c if it helps. Problem is snow and the temp is hovering around 15 degrees. but ill give it a try to see if it helps
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
Don't let your S.O catch you cracking the window open in the dead of a Wisconsin winter... they'll throw you in a snow bank.
 
evanjah

evanjah

Member
ok i may have found the problem my calcium is over 500 and the alkalinity is over 230 what course of action should i take? because shouldnt alkalinity and calcium be in line with each other. Does that mean equal. What should I do? What should my levels be? Perhaps a water change to kinda balance everything out?
 
evanjah

evanjah

Member
so I really went over my levels and also found that my salinity was 1.025. CAn someone tell me if this could be what was affecting my coralline growth/ph problem. Also a list of what all my levels should be at
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
In an ideal world, all things equil,
Salinity: 1.024 to 1.026
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: 0ppm
Phosphate: 0ppm
pH: 8.3
Alk: 8-12 dKH
Ca: 420 to 480ppm
Magn.: 1300ppm
Stop dosing iodide. You don't need it unless you are keeping up with water changes.
Do you have glass tops on your aquarium? If you do, take them off and replace them with egg crate.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
To grow coralline, you should search the forums to find some good tips. Keep your ca, alk, medium light levels and magnesium high
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Ca = 500 - this is only slightly high, it's not a problem.
ALK = 230 - If this is 230ppm then this is also high but it's actually pretty much in line with your Calcium. This isn't your low PH problem either unless you've been adding buffer lately (?).
 
bcollett

bcollett

Member
IMO your S.G is fine at 1.025. I Run my tank at that SG all the time. Have you ever seen a pH in the 8 range since setting up the tank? When you started the tank was it just tap water that you used to fill it? the pH of tap water is about 7.2 in my area. and RO water is the same unless you add some kind of buffer. It took quite a bit of time and dkH to raise my alkalinity and pH to proper reef levels. Try just adding the recommended amounts of Buffer to your tank at the recommended intervals until everything is where its supposed to be. Your calcium isn't too bad. 400-450 is recommended. with calcium up there that means alkalinity is up and now your pH should start to come up with the addition of buffer. When i started my tank i didn't know much better and used tap water. so my pH test showed 7.2 or so. I added dkH day after day and it never seemed to make a difference. my alk slowly raised and when it was about 3.5 milli's my pH finally started to increase and maintain a steady level. Good luck
 
evanjah

evanjah

Member
when i first started I did everything half rear-ended. I used tap water never checked for ph or calcium or any levels other than ammonia, salinity, and nitrate. Now Recently I decided im gonna give it a real go. Bought a ph tester(battery operated). Bought test kits for alkalinity, calcium, phosphate, nitrate. I am now using ro water. I have done 4 water changes with ro water. DOing 10percent water changes a week. Not sure what my ph was in the past. lol, now its up to 7.8 or so. I am using kent marine buffer, but 4 days later i have only seen ph go up .3-4 or so. I added buffer a few days ago but now i stopped to see where everything is at. I wanna have coralline spreading. could never get it to spread. I have red and green algae on rocks. Not cyano though. I have coralline in tank but it never spreads. any ideas
 
evanjah

evanjah

Member
also i have a fowlr tank not a reef so is my calcium and alkalinity high? with the parameters specified should corraline be growing?
 
bcollett

bcollett

Member
Good lighting is a must for Coraline growth, Alk and calcium should be high and stable, and phosphates should be low. This isn't from personal experience though. My lighting is so terrible i would rather not mention it and my phophates are around 1.5ppm since i filled my tank with tap water too initially. I've only recently bought a phosphate test kit to know what that level was too.
 
masterhobbyist

masterhobbyist

New Member
People think I am crazy, but I use purple up. My purple coralline algae is spreading like wildfire. Just watch your phosphate levels.
 
masterhobbyist

masterhobbyist

New Member
that is not something that is going to happen over night. How long did you use it? I put it in every day for a few weeks and it seemed to work great. Or maybe I am just lucky with the growth I have seen.
 
oceansidefish

oceansidefish

Active Member
What kind of lighting do you have on the tank. I would also not be so worried about your PH. As long as everything else is in line, PH changes throughout the day and will depend on when you are testing and several other factors. I would up your water changes to 15% a week just to get all of the tap crap out.
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
I wouldn't take fast measures to correct a pH of 7.8 or greater.... but I would indeed work to solve a pH of 7.3 in the afternoon.
 
evanjah

evanjah

Member
i have 2- 96 watt power compacts 10k day and true actinic at night. However i am sure its good enough for coralline. i finally realized i had a minute ammount of phosphate so i bought some phos-ban. I guess we will give this a try. Ok but heres the problem. why is ph not going up with buffer. I have top of aquarium open for air transfer if that is the problem i dunno. Did anyone ever have this happen what do I do? Where do i go from here?
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
Originally Posted by evanjah
http:///forum/post/2893567
why is ph not going up with buffer.
Because it is not a buffer issue..... don't keep adding or your alkalinity will be through the roof.
Originally Posted by evanjah
http:///forum/post/2893567
I have top of aquarium open for air transfer if that is the problem i dunno.
The surrounding air is the problem so lifting the lid won't help. Cracking a window (for long periods at regular intervals) and bringing air in from the outside is what will help. Keep as many pets and people out of the room as you can.... they're exhaling CO2.
Originally Posted by evanjah
http:///forum/post/2893567
Did anyone ever have this happen what do I do?
This happens all the time when houses are closed up.
 
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