Alk Crash. Help fast!

[MichaelReefer]

Over night my tank alk crashed from 10 to 6.0. What do I do?

 

[renzema]

Did you test multiple times with same result? Did you try with 2 different kits? If you don’t have another kit take a sample to LFS. That’s a huge drop for such a short time but I don’t know corals or tank size.
Bring it back up slowly I would dose or speed up the CaRx drip and let it rise. Going up fast will cause more problems. Once up above 7 keep it rising but slower.
for example I run at 10.5. Noticed I dropped to 8. Raised to 9 over 24 hrs then 2 more days back to 10.5

 

[ihavecrabs]

Unless you have a massive coral load that decided to takeoff coupled with a salinity issue, I think you might have a test kit problem.

I agree with above, have a buddy or the LFS test your water.

 

[workhz]

How does alk drop that far that fast? Is it even possible assuming test kits aren’t wrong.

 

[MichaelReefer]

I tested with both my apex and hanna. Both showed 6. I thought the same thing

 

[elysics]

What's your tank stocked with, full to the brim with acropora and other SPS? 4dkh in a day doesn't seem realistic otherwise.

Or is your tank cloudy maybe? Did you check salinity?

 

[eag]

Maybe a precipitation event can cause it?

 

[MichaelReefer]

What's your tank stocked with, full to the brim with acropora and other SPS? 4dkh in a day doesn't seem realistic otherwise.

Or is your tank cloudy maybe? Did you check salinity?

Salinity is dead on and tank isn't super stocked at all.

I did add a kalk stirrer yesterday but am running it very low atm.

 

[T-J]

No way that small amount of coral caused a 4dkh drop overnight. Something else is wrong. Maybe the test you did that said 10? Maybe it is actually 6, and has been?
Also, when is the last time you calibrated your Hanna? I calibrate mine monthly because they do drift.
What's your calcium at?

 

[MichaelReefer]

No way that small amount of coral caused a 4dkh drop overnight. Something else is wrong. Maybe the test you did that said 10? Maybe it is actually 6, and has been?
Also, when is the last time you calibrated your Hanna? I calibrate mine monthly because they do drift.
What's your calcium at?

Haven't done by Hanna but I just re calibrated my apex. Came up at 6.12. Dosed some fusion part 2 to try and get it back up. Calcium was a bit low this morning. 375 but got it Bck up to 450 now

 

[elysics]

So alk and calcium were both low? Maybe the Kalk stirrer caused a pH spike and precipitation event, seems awfully coincidental to happen the night after you hooked that up.

Hard clumps in the sand or stuff caked on your heater?

 

[Garf]

So you noticed the Alk drop after you increased calcium?

 

[josephxsxn]

I personally don't think 6 is even that bad, my frag tank has hit 5 before when I was testing it. I think others are right and the question is why did this happen?

Did your doser pumps fail in some way? Can u calibrate them to ensure the correct volume is being dispensed? Another thought is if you recently added Kalk has your avg PH gone up? Corals with consume more with higher PH.

 

[fish farmer]

How do your corals look? If they looked ticked then that is the real cause for panic IMO. Double check tests like has be stated, figure out what happened and adjust slowly.

 

[MichaelReefer]

So you noticed the Alk drop after you increased calcium?

No. My doser and stirrer don't run from 11pm to 10:59am. Also, no precipitation.

I added the kalk stirrer to raise my ph. I recently went from kalk in ato and supplementing 2 part, to full 2 part, then to 2 part with kalk stirrer to get my ph back up.

I am raising ph extremely slowly to dial it in, so no way it has anything to do with ph

 

[MichaelReefer]

How do your corals look? If they looked ticked then that is the real cause for panic IMO. Double check tests like has be stated, figure out what happened and adjust slowly.

They look ok, fish seem ok. I got it up to 7 and will slowly get back up to normal. Just wish I knew why this happened.

 

[Garf]

You only have a low demand tank. How did you achieve this bit;

Calcium was a bit low this morning. 375 but got it Bck up to 450 now

Seems a drastic increase in a short period.

 

[MichaelReefer]

You only have a low demand tank. How did you achieve this bit;



Seems a drastic increase in a short period.

Shot 10ml of fusion part 1 in the tank. Alk I slowly increased to 7 and will now let my stirrer and part 2 slowly get me back to normal.

So confused on how in six hours it dropped that much. My midnight test was normal, and bam 6am was 6dkh. No signs of precipitation and my tank doesn't dose overnight.

 

[Garf]

Shot 10ml of fusion part 1 in the tank. Alk I slowly increased to 7 and will now let my stirrer and part 2 slowly get me back to normal.

So confused on how in six hours it dropped that much. My midnight test was normal, and bam 6am was 6dkh. No signs of precipitation and my tank doesn't dose overnight.

Pretty sure 10mls of that didn’t increase calcium by that much....., in that tank. Perhaps I’m confusing myself, lol

 

[Sean Clark]

I find it funny how nobody test twice when they get the results that they anticipated from the first test. People only react when they get a result that they were not expecting.