So you saying extend the time between bubbles so i get less per minute?
Ive been considering recalibration the probe. Its like 6 months old. Calibrated with 7 and 4 ph fluid. Yes it is CaRx probe not tank probe.
Media is at ~2/3. Last filled 14 months ago.
Well, as many have stated here, there are many ways to run a reactor successfully. Find what works for you and it appears that you had it working well before. You just need to find out how to get it back there.
The way I run mine is this. I have been running my reactor with the reactor internal pH of 6.5-6.7. This gets adjusted based on the level of media in the reactor and DT alkalinity levels. My drip rate is fairly constant at a rate where I can just no longer count them. I target around 6.7 when I change my media and all is full and new. I lower the internal reactor pH as the media in the reactor falls below half or as needed to keep the alkalinity level stable in the DT. I think it wise to monitor the internal reactor pH, to a degree. I know what media I run and what the ideal pH to get the desired Alk levels needed to support my corals. In addition, I perform daily automatic water changes of 1.5%. So there is that. The monitoring of the reactor pH is important to let me know if something is out of whack with the reactor function and have the Apex turn off or on based on values that could be detrimental, either hi or low, to the DT.
If you are getting sufficient calcium levels with a reactor pH as high as you have, then you are running some easily dissolved media and are making a bottle of co2 last a LONG time. I suspect that your on and off levels are out of the range of most media to efficiently dissolve so that would lead to the assumption that your probe is reading wrong, and consequently needs calibration.
As you have stated, you were testing your Alk and it was super high. IF you have changed nothing else THEN I would start to question the efficacy or reliability of the alkalinity test. So my question to you is to reexamine the test kit, your testing procedure or something else that may have caused the precipitous rise in Alk first. I might suggest to get a Hanna or a new Hanna tester and compare the values to see if that is not the root cause.
But, to answer your question, yes, lower the number of bubbles and/or effluent rate and the pH in the reactor will rise and consequently lower the effluent Alk and then in turn will lower the Alk being added to the DT to combat the rise in DT Alk levels. You can test this by testing the effluent of your reactor at different bubble and/or flow rates.
Just my thoughts. Hope to hear more. I suspect there really is a different or combination of factors that may be causing your readings.
