Help with low potassium, and low ph

[Joeganja]

So I'm checking my potassium with my Red Sea test kit and noticing that I have very low potassium way below 300. And I have about 20 1-2 inch Acros and some other mixed corals. In a 90 gallon. What I'm also noticing is that my top off water somehow is brining my ph below 8.0 like the 7.5 range but my alkalinity is staying up at 10-11dkh. I use Aquavitro balance but that's not working and if I use ph buffer that brings up both ph and alkalinity.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Before making that big of a potassium correction based on a kit reading, I'd double check it. One way is to test some new salt water with the same kit.

How and where are you measuring the pH? If by meter, is it recently calibrated?
The top off water (assuming it is pure water, RO/DI at 0-1 ppm TDS or distilled) won't be the cause of the low pH (no matter what's it's apparent pH is).

Aquavitro Balance also raises alkalinity, like the buffer, but it does have a higher alk boost per unit of pH rise. In that sense, it is exactly the same pH/alk ingredient as limewater (kalkwasser). Aquavitro does an exceptionally poor job explaining this.

Low pH is driven by the CO2 level in the water and the alk. Since your alk is fine, there is excess CO2 in the water, and that most often comes from elevated CO2 in your home air.

Options include opening windows, bringing in fresher air to a skimmer inlet, using a CO2 scrubber for a skimmer inlet, using limewtaer for all alk and calcium additions (or the Aquavitro Balance for all alk needs), or growing macroalgae in a skimmer.

This has more:

Low pH: Causes and Cures by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/index.htm

 

[Joeganja]

Before making that big of a potassium correction based on a kit reading, I'd double check it. One way is to test some new salt water with the same kit.

How and where are you measuring the pH? If by meter, is it recently calibrated?
The top off water (assuming it is pure water, RO/DI at 0-1 ppm TDS or distilled) won't be the cause of the low pH (no matter what's it's apparent pH is).

Aquavitro Balance also raises alkalinity, like the buffer, but it does have a higher alk boost per unit of pH rise. In that sense, it is exactly the same pH/alk ingredient as limewater (kalkwasser). Aquavitro does an exceptionally poor job explaining this.

Low pH is driven by the CO2 level in the water and the alk. Since your alk is fine, there is excess CO2 in the water, and that most often comes from elevated CO2 in your home air.

Options include opening windows, bringing in fresher air to a skimmer inlet, using a CO2 scrubber for a skimmer inlet, using limewtaer for all alk and calcium additions (or the Aquavitro Balance for all alk needs), or growing macroalgae in a skimmer.

This has more:

Low pH: Causes and Cures by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/index.htm

What do you mean bringing co2 scrubber for skimmer inlet?

 

[Joeganja]

Before making that big of a potassium correction based on a kit reading, I'd double check it. One way is to test some new salt water with the same kit.

How and where are you measuring the pH? If by meter, is it recently calibrated?
The top off water (assuming it is pure water, RO/DI at 0-1 ppm TDS or distilled) won't be the cause of the low pH (no matter what's it's apparent pH is).

Aquavitro Balance also raises alkalinity, like the buffer, but it does have a higher alk boost per unit of pH rise. In that sense, it is exactly the same pH/alk ingredient as limewater (kalkwasser). Aquavitro does an exceptionally poor job explaining this.

Low pH is driven by the CO2 level in the water and the alk. Since your alk is fine, there is excess CO2 in the water, and that most often comes from elevated CO2 in your home air.

Options include opening windows, bringing in fresher air to a skimmer inlet, using a CO2 scrubber for a skimmer inlet, using limewtaer for all alk and calcium additions (or the Aquavitro Balance for all alk needs), or growing macroalgae in a skimmer.

This has more:

Low pH: Causes and Cures by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/index.htm

I use rodi water when I mixed the brs 2 part dosing.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

A CO2 scrubber is a device that air flows through and it has special media in it that binds and removes some of the CO2 from the air. Usually, folks drive air through it with a pump, and the other end goes into a skimmer.

This is the type of media:
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-color-changing-medical-grade-co2-absorbent.html
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=24984

Here's a thread on it:

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/an-easy-way-to-increase-your-tanks-ph-with-a-co2-scrubber.57609/

 

[Joeganja]

Before making that big of a potassium correction based on a kit reading, I'd double check it. One way is to test some new salt water with the same kit.

How and where are you measuring the pH? If by meter, is it recently calibrated?
The top off water (assuming it is pure water, RO/DI at 0-1 ppm TDS or distilled) won't be the cause of the low pH (no matter what's it's apparent pH is).

Aquavitro Balance also raises alkalinity, like the buffer, but it does have a higher alk boost per unit of pH rise. In that sense, it is exactly the same pH/alk ingredient as limewater (kalkwasser). Aquavitro does an exceptionally poor job explaining this.

Low pH is driven by the CO2 level in the water and the alk. Since your alk is fine, there is excess CO2 in the water, and that most often comes from elevated CO2 in your home air.

Options include opening windows, bringing in fresher air to a skimmer inlet, using a CO2 scrubber for a skimmer inlet, using limewtaer for all alk and calcium additions (or the Aquavitro Balance for all alk needs), or growing macroalgae in a skimmer.

This has more:

Low pH: Causes and Cures by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/index.htm

I will add I use the rox .8 carbon from brs recently for the past few months can that be the reason?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

No, the ROX shouldn't be any problem. It is a good choice for GAC.

 

[Joeganja]

No, the ROX shouldn't be any problem. It is a good choice for GAC.

I test ph with the Hagen ph test kit. Works great but working on getting the monitor. So the thoughts that occur to me was for about 4-5 months I had algae scrubber and I just removed that. I don't have a lot of fish in the 90. My skimmer works well and seems to do the job. So maybe excessive co2 is probably the issue. I have an mp10 and a rw4 and my return is 1000gph so I think I have enough aeration. I have a little bit of algae growing in the skimmer. Um I do water changes once every week or two weeks. 20 gallons. My auto top off tops about gallons of water every week. No idea what a GAC Is um but yeah idk. My ph is killing me. All the other parameters are good expect for potassium. But I use seachem reef salt but I'll try to switch to Red Sea. No disappointment in seachem at all just wonder if that's the reason for low potassium maybe it doesn't have enough or maybe my corals eat it up.

 

[Bob O]

As Randy said earlier mix a fresh batch of salt water and test it. GAC is granular activated carbon

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

OK, I wouldn't stress over the pH when measured with a kit.

The article shows how to do an aeration test to evaluate whehter the CO2 is just in the tnak or in your home air too.

Most salts should have plenty of potassium, so if a mix is low, I'd suspect the kit before the mix (as long as you are just taking a small bit of salt from a bucket since it can settle with some chemicals more at the top and some more at the bottom).

 

[Joeganja]

OK, I wouldn't stress over the pH when measured with a kit.

The article shows how to do an aeration test to evaluate whehter the CO2 is just in the tnak or in your home air too.

Most salts should have plenty of potassium, so if a mix is low, I'd suspect the kit before the mix (as long as you are just taking a small bit of salt from a bucket since it can settle with some chemicals more at the top and some more at the bottom).

Thank you.

 

[Joeganja]

OK, I wouldn't stress over the pH when measured with a kit.

The article shows how to do an aeration test to evaluate whehter the CO2 is just in the tnak or in your home air too.

Most salts should have plenty of potassium, so if a mix is low, I'd suspect the kit before the mix (as long as you are just taking a small bit of salt from a bucket since it can settle with some chemicals more at the top and some more at the bottom).

Quick question. Ordered that two little fishies Carbon dioxide media. Since I'm dosing Aqua vitro balance to the tank for now until I get it when I add the absorbent will it bring the ph really high?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Quick question. Ordered that two little fishies Carbon dioxide media. Since I'm dosing Aqua vitro balance to the tank for now until I get it when I add the absorbent will it bring the ph really high?

It is unlikely to make the pH too high, but it possibly could if you need to add a lot of the balance to maintain alkalinity. There's no need for concern at pH 8.55 and lower, but you're wasting media if it gets that high.

 

[Joeganja]

It is unlikely to make the pH too high, but it possibly could if you need to add a lot of the balance to maintain alkalinity. There's no need for concern at pH 8.55 and lower, but you're wasting media if it gets that high.

I got the cdx two little fishies co2 absorption media but I'm confused on the instructions.

So I have the reactor and confused where the intake is. Would I just remove the air silencer on my skimmer?

 

[Joeganja]

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Yes, wherever your skimmer takes in air. Somehow attach a tube to that inlet if you can, and not too small in diameter because you do not want to reduce the air flow. Connect from the air inlet on the skimmer to the outlet of that media reactor. You may even want to use an air pump to push air through the media to prevent a reduced air flow to the skimmer.

 

[Joeganja]

I

Yes, wherever your skimmer takes in air. Somehow attach a tube to that inlet if you can, and not too small in diameter because you do not want to reduce the air flow. Connect from the air inlet on the skimmer to the outlet of that media reactor. You may even want to use an air pump to push air through the media to prevent a reduced air flow to the skimmer.

I added an air pump but it's been 3 days and no difference in ph. How long does it usually take to take affect?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I I added an air pump but it's been 3 days and no difference in ph. How long does it usually take to take affect?

1 day is enough. Are you using outside air?

 

[Joeganja]

1 day is enough. Are you using outside air?

No it's just air that's a tube in the sump should I extend the tube to outside the sump. The problem is that the tank isn't near any windows.

 

[Joeganja]

1 day is enough. Are you using outside air?

The I installed it correctly. I think.