How to raise and maintain a higher pH without a skimmer?

[blazedmasta]

Hello everybody? I've been trying to stabilize my SPS dominant reef. I set up a doser to maintain stable parameters since my tank was starting to use a lot of alkalinity and wanted to avoid alkalinity swings. It now stays at steady 8.2 - 8.5 dkh when I started dosing at night. I have a refugium that's on the opposite lighting schedule of the tank. Just did a ph test after the lights was off for a while. I'm getting 7.4 at night and 8.0 tops during the day. Wanted to minimize swings and maybe get in the 8.3 - 8.5 range. Thinking that it might be co2 I have started opening the windings more but hardly see any difference. Any suggestions?

 

[Brew12]

Hello everybody? I've been trying to stabilize my SPS dominant reef. I set up a doser to maintain stable parameters since my tank was starting to use a lot of alkalinity and wanted to avoid alkalinity swings. It now stays at steady 8.2 - 8.5 dkh when I started dosing at night. I have a refugium that's on the opposite lighting schedule of the tank. Just did a ph test after the lights was off for a while. I'm getting 7.4 at night and 8.0 tops during the day. Wanted to minimize swings and maybe get in the 8.3 - 8.5 range. Thinking that it might be co2 I have started opening the windings more but hardly see any difference. Any suggestions?

I would try running an air pump/stone in your refugium to get better aeration.

 

[blazedmasta]

I would try running an air pump/stone in your refugium to get better aeration.

I'm also doing that currently and its not really making a difference.

 

[Brew12]

I'm also doing that currently and its not really making a difference.

Those pH swings sound very extreme. Have you tried using a different test kit for pH?

 

[blazedmasta]

Those pH swings sound very extreme. Have you tried using a different test kit for pH?

No just the salifert

 

[Brew12]

pH is a logarithmic scale so that could be why the swings are so high but I need to give that more thought. You may want to pick up a cheap API kit to see if the numbers are matching.

Are you getting good algae growth in your fuge?

 

[BlueCursor]

I would check carbon dioxide levels in your house. I bought one of these and it's a huge help because now I see that my pH swing is also a CO2 swing in house air. I open a window.

https://www.amazon.com/CO2Meter-AZ-.../B001PDGFR8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1492631985

You can find less expensive models. After I bought this I saw that my CO2 was high and would have swings of 300 ppm. My pH would swing 0.4 with it.

 

[2una]

Co2 scrubber onto the skimmer air intake otherwise run your lights longer will raise it.Also if your skimmers on the small side it can help with a bigger one.
oops read thread title properly - no skimmer imo biggest problem - even if you run one & don't use the cup it will help

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

IMO, don't get to hung up on the PH. esp in a sumpless skimmerless.

Other stuff you can do. Increase the lighting in the DT.
Increase the lighting in the fuge.
Buy more coral!! and Macros!
Dose kalk in the ato. it maks for a 24hr dosing, thats better too. dose the 2 part a few hours after lights out, as that seems to be where uptake is most noted. (see rick 45cal alk monitoring as well as many other articles.)
keep above 8 (a bird told me he'd prefer 8.3) ok not a bird, a chemist.

 

[Mr_Banana_Pants]

I'm also doing that currently and its not really making a difference.

Buy a air filter canister and co2 scrubbing media from bulkreefsupply... run your air pump through the filter into the air stone in your fuge... I did that when I set up a temporary frag tank without a skimmer... kept my pH at 8.3

 

[Nurse.Reef.Reapeat]

Buy a air filter canister and co2 scrubbing media from bulkreefsupply... run your air pump through the filter into the air stone in your fuge... I did that when I set up a temporary frag tank without a skimmer... kept my pH at 8.3

what do you mean air filter cannister?