Raising pH

barry cuda

barry cuda

Member
The pH in my 100g display and my nano-cube are both holding right at 7.8, and have been since I've had them. I'm concerned this is lower than I'd like, especially since I have a couple LPS in the cube. My makeup water tends to be at 8.2 if I aerate the R/O output for 24 hours before mixing, but my 5% weekly changes just aren't enough to have any real effect on pH.
So, I'm left (I guess) with doing some kind of buffering if I want to raise pH. I'm thinking B-Ionic? And I definitely should be testing alk and Ca along with pH if I'm dosing anything, correct?
 
barry cuda

barry cuda

Member
Hmm, more money flowing to the LFS...the wife is going to be SO pleased :D
Has anybody seen low pH like this (7.8) affect zoanthids? I have a few in the display that haven't opened for several days. I'm running a polyfilter in case I've gotten anything into the water, and the levels are good (ammo 0 nitrite 0 nitrates about 5), so I'm not sure why these guys are staying closed.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
A steady PH of 7.8 is not going to harm even the most delicate animals. In my opinion modifying the PH using a buffer isn't going to fix the problem. The problem isn't the PH, it's the condition that's causing the low PH.
Look for detritus buildup, a dead deep sand bed, or inadequate waterflow are the most common problems.
What time of day are you testing the PH?
If you're running a CaCO3 reactor then the 7.8 PH is harmless and normal.
 
barry cuda

barry cuda

Member
No reactor - and the time I'm testing doesn't seem to matter...I get 7.8 whether it's after lights out, in the middle of the day, or whatever.
I think I can eliminate low water flow for the moment. I'm running about 12-15x turnover per hour, and the water gets nicely oxygenated between the skimmer and crashing into the sump from the overflow line.
Detritus buildup is a possible contributor. The cleanup crew in there right now is barely sufficient and I plan to add more ASAP. I especially need some sand-shifters to keep it all turned over, as I don't have any right now. I can see lots of tracks & tunnels under the surface against the glass, so there's definitely life in the sandbed, but it could be better.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
It has been my experience that keeping a sand bed live isn't all that difficult. It does require the addition of high quality live sand once a year or so but that's it.
The typical scenario is someone with a live deep sand bed adds a sifting starfish or a Horseshoe Crab and then a month or so the PH drops because the sand bed is dead.
 
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