Low Alkalinity. Salt? Testing? Me?...

[Schmidty]

Hellow R2R community! Long time reader and first time poster. I'm currently approaching the 3 month mark on my Cade s2 1500 and things have been cruising along just fine.

However I have been battling low Alkalinity and in an effort to keep things consistent I have resisted the urge to do anything drastic. I figured everything would level out through water changes. Nothing has changed.....I guess on a positive note the alkalinity has remained very consistent, but always very low. I tested the freshly mixed water and it measured 5.5 dkh at 1.025 sg. I thought the box may have been bad so I purchased another and tested this one came in at 6.4 dkh. To triple check I bought new reagent for my Hannah alkalinity checker and nothing changed...still 5.5-6.5 dkh.

Fritz advertises the alkalinity to be between 10-12 dkh and I have been measuring half that very consistently over the last few months. I have purchased multible boxes, tried fresh reagent, calibrated my milkwaukee MA887 multiple times and I am consistently getting the same low results. Am I screwing something up? Is the salt just not cutting it? Should I switch salts and test the results?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers!

 

[DanyL]

Did you try measuring with a different test kit?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Or get a different salt mix and test that.

 

[Schmidty]

I will most likely give both a shot.

What other alkalinity test kits do you guys like? It seems like Hannah is the only one that gets decent reviews.

 

[Fishy Guy]

I will most likely give both a shot.

What other alkalinity test kits do you guys like? It seems like Hannah is the only one that gets decent reviews.

The Salifert kit is cheap, easy, and seems to get favorable reviews. I may eventually upgrade to the Hanna but have no issues with Salifert.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I will most likely give both a shot.

What other alkalinity test kits do you guys like? It seems like Hannah is the only one that gets decent reviews.

I’d measure alk by diy, not a kit:

A DIY Alkalinity Test: By Randy Holmes-Farley - REEFEDITION

Alkalinity is one of the most important measurements that a reef aquarist can make. It can become rapidly depleted in many aquaria, requiring frequent measurement in order to maintain stable levels.

www.reefedition.com

 

[Schmidty]

Just to circle around on this. After multiple test kits the Fritz salt is coming in very low at 6 dkh. I'm definitely going to be moving on to another salt. Cheers!

 

[Dave-T]

Not an expert, but I think it would be really weird if the salt was actually that much lower than what they claim. That would be a major boo-boo by Fritz.

 

[Schmidty]

Not an expert, but I think it would be really weird if the salt was actually that much lower than what they claim. That would be a major boo-boo by Fritz.

My thoughts exactly. I have compared multiple test kits and tested salinity with multiple as well. When I get some water mixed up with a new salt and test it ill provide an update.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Any deposits of calcium carbonate on the bottom of the mixing container? Precipitation of calcium carbonate is common in high alk mixes, and that lowers alk.

 

[dangles]

Maybe also take a water sample in to your lfs and see if they’ll test it for you

 

[danimal1211]

I would suggest taking a water sample to LFS and have them test it. How are you measuring the regent in the syringe? How are you determining you accurately have 10ml of water in cuvette?