Cant raise ph to save my life.

[REEFer86]

So every since I started my tank my ph has sat at 7.8 no matter what I do it will not go up. I have a protein skimmer, air stone, refugium, tried open windows and a fan blowing on the tank but even with just one person home (lower co2 production) the ph stays sitting at 7.8
What are other methods to easilly raise the ph? This is my only perameter that is giving me issues all the other ones are in a good range and stable.
I am also using api test for this and salifert/hanna for the rest. Could this be why?
Thank you for tips!

Sounds like me!!!!! Until I started dosing Alkalinity then it rose.

 

[REEFer86]

Yes, all the way outside is best. I’ve seen people use covered plastic electrical boxes, for a nice looking installation, a little filter floss and activated carbon as a air filter can’t hurt.

I did this and this too did not help. It’s gotta be something else. What’s your Alkalinity like? And how old is your tank?

 

[REEFer86]

I was struggling with low PH at one time. A good friend taught me how to run two separate air lines outside. One for a air feed to my skimmer. The second line I use for micro bubbling through a limewood airstone. Next to no surface agitation, and I’m sitting steady at 8.4

Edit: At a dKh of 8

I tried using this .... but water kept siphoning back.

 

[REEFer86]

I did this and this too did not help. It’s gotta be something else. What’s your Alkalinity like? And how old is your tank?

@Jake_the_reefer

 

[REEFer86]

Before you go raising your alkalinity to raise PH. See this chart, you want to be near the blue curve. The blue curve is a balanced system

So an alkalinity of 5 is ok?

 

[Mortie31]

I've never bothered with ph but had a buddy of mine stress that I needed to get it up, so I assumed a ph of 7.8 was an issue.

If your not having issues don’t chase it, yes you may get more coral growth with it higher, but that’s not a given... and has never really been proven either. As long as ALK, Ca and Mg and salinity are in range you fine...

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

If your not having issues don’t chase it, yes you may get more coral growth with it higher, but that’s not a given... and has never really been proven either. As long as ALK, Ca and Mg and salinity are in range you fine...

Yeah all my other perameters are good.

 

[Mortie31]

Yeah all my other perameters are good.

I really wouldn’t worry about it, if everything is in line 7.8 isn’t bad anyway, the airline outside if easy to do and would raise it if you can’t help fiddling (all reefers suffer from this) or add a CO2 scrubber if an airline isn’t an option..

 

[REEFer86]

I really wouldn’t worry about it, if everything is in line 7.8 isn’t bad anyway, the airline outside if easy to do and would raise it if you can’t help fiddling (all reefers suffer from this) or add a CO2 scrubber if an airline isn’t an option..
[/QUOT

Don’t mean to butt in the thread but this is an issue I have been having and I have a line coming from outside and it’s still did not help connected to the skimmer or a air stone no changes slight but would still fluctuate between 7.9 - 8.06.

@Jake_the_reefer whats your alkalinity at? I’ve been having issues with my Alk so I’m trying to figure this out. Thanks for everyone’s help.

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

I really wouldn’t worry about it, if everything is in line 7.8 isn’t bad anyway, the airline outside if easy to do and would raise it if you can’t help fiddling (all reefers suffer from this) or add a CO2 scrubber if an airline isn’t an option..

The fiddling is a bad habit lol. Also I was considering co2 scrubbing in the future.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I've never bothered with ph but had a buddy of mine stress that I needed to get it up, so I assumed a ph of 7.8 was an issue.

At that pH you do not “need” to raise it, but hard corals may grow faster if you do.

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

At that pH you do not “need” to raise it, but hard corals may grow faster if you do.

I'd like my hard corals to grow faster lol

 

[Mortie31]

I'd like my hard corals to grow faster lol

May is the important word in both mine and Randys reply lol...

 

[Sumbub]

As long as the tank looks happy and healthy, don't chase it. It'd cause more problems than it's worth if you can't keep up the PH or you have massive swings.

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

May is the important word in both mine and Randys reply lol...

Of course lol I'm not going to obsess. Just run 2 feet of airline to the hole where my router leads outside and call it good from there

 

[mefisto]

Have had my pH swinging for many years between 7,8 - 8,1.
Now it is swinging somewhere above 8.

All I have done is changing the compositionele of my KH solution.
It used to be solely NaHCO (which has a pH around 7,8 if I’m correct). Now it is a combination of Na2CO3 and NaHCO.
Na2HCO has a much higher pH which balances out with the lower pH of NaHCO.

 

[Rubblereefer]

Kalkwasser in the ato will definitely raise your ph. Like others said if the tank is happy I’d leave it alone.

 

[CS Reefer]

So an alkalinity of 5 is ok?

Here’s a link to a conversion chart

Alkalinity Conversion Chart

Coral Reef Tank Help & Information and Aquarium Classifieds

www.captivereefs.com

5 meq/l, you’d need to be at a PH of 8.5...to sit on the blue curve

 

[W1ngz]

So an alkalinity of 5 is ok?

Be careful with this. Throwing out numbers without units is a bad habit we all have, but alkalinity can be measured in at least 3 different units that I know of. That means 3 different numbers can mean the exact same thing. 5 dkh is extremely low. 5 meq/l is pretty high, and about where test kits max out.

You're also giving me flashbacks to my high school chem teacher and later my chemistry 101 prof who got super angry about numbers without units... lol

 

[CS Reefer]

Be careful with this. Throwing out numbers without units is a bad habit we all have, but alkalinity can be measured in at least 3 different units that I know of. That means 3 different numbers can mean the exact same thing. 5 dkh is extremely low. 5 meq/l is pretty high, and about where test kits max out.

You're also giving me flashbacks to my high school chem teacher and later my chemistry 101 prof who got super angry about numbers without units... lol

Lmbo, your instructors, sound my like mine