Accidentally raised Alkalinity way too high (newbie mistake)

[miloreif]

Hi everyone. I’m brand new to the reef hobby and made a mistake recently that I need some advice on. I’m on week 5 of cycling my tank and I finally saw some nitrite after over a month of waiting. During that month, I noticed I had really low pH (7.6) so I added enough Alkalin8.3 (from Brightwell Aquatics) to raise the pH to 8.2. In doing so I accidentally skyrocketed my alkalinity. My Salifert Alkalinity test took almost 2ml of buffer to change color, meaning my readings were literally off the chart (30 dKH or more). I did a water change but it still required about 1.4ml of buffer to change color. Should I do another water change again? I don’t want to slow my down my cycle anymore and remove beneficial bacteria. I’m dosing bacteria with Microbacter7. It’s a 30 gallon tank with plenty of live rock and all the proper equipment. My proteins skimmer is turned off rn. Advice?

 

[KrisReef]

If you are still cycling let it ride until the cycle is finished and then do a huge water change (100%?) and get the parameters where they need to be.

Then quit chasing numbers. Trying to use additives from a bottle to adjust pH is going to be an impossible task, ime. You don't need to start dosing Alk or Ca until you have corals that will take them up.

The extra alk in the tank right now may go down on its own, something common in new tanks. Monitor it and see as the cycle continues.

 

[miloreif]

If you are still cycling let it ride until the cycle is finished and then do a huge water change (100%?) and get the parameters where they need to be.

Then quit chasing numbers. Trying to use additives from a bottle to adjust pH is going to be an impossible task, ime. You don't need to start dosing Alk or Ca until you have corals that will take them up.

The extra alk in the tank right now may go down on its own, something common in new tanks. Monitor it and see as the cycle continues.

Makes sense. I hope I don’t have to do a 100% water change because that means two trips to the water store but if that’s what necessary then so be it. My ammonia is almost zero and nitrite is high so cycle should be done soon. Thanks!

 

[radfly]

Invest your next two hundred dollars in an RO/DI unit…

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[miloreif]

Invest your next two hundred dollars in an RO/DI unit…

Aquarium/Reef RO/DI Reverse Osmosis Deionization Systems

The best configurations of RO DI systems with Color Changing DI

fountainheadwatersystems.com

I don’t have the space. I’m a college student in one bedroom apartment unfortunately haha

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

At 30 dKH, you almost certainly will get abotic precipitation of calcium carbonate that will bring down the alk (and calcium).