PH, CO2, maybe we shouldn't worry

[shornik]

I've been pretty obsesses with my PH levels always being low. It's the one "number" I'm always chasing and never quite conquering. I use Kalk and not much changed. I got a CO2 scrubber and it changed a little but not consistently, some days I measure and my PH is 8.0 and I am happy. Another day I measure and its back down to the 7.6-7.7 range and I'm less happy. All the while I really don't see much difference in my tank, but I know or have been told that PH should be above 8.0. I also hear all the time that low PH is something that plagues many reefers, so I find solace in not being alone.

Well today I read an article in Advanced Aquaraist, Corals can regulate internal PH and I thought maybe I should stop worrying. I'd say everyone should read this but here's the key quote from the article:

"“Our research shows that some corals living in dynamic reef systems (P.cylindrica) have the ability to maintain a nearly constant pH within their calcifying fluid, regardless of the pH of the surrounding environment,” says lead author, Lucy Georgiou."

So maybe despite the low PH measurements I've been getting (and other reefers like me) our corals might be regulating their own internal PH to what they need.

Interesting if nothing else.

 

[Paul B]

I don't worry about pH, or global warming. I have been keeping fish since 1952 and so far have never tweeked the pH. No problems yet but maybe I will have a problem next Tuesday.

 

[ReefMadScientist]

I used to have low PH until I ran the skimmer intake line to outside my home to get fresh air. Never had an issue with PH since.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Thanks for posting that article.

Especially interesting is the original article linked at the end of the Advanced Aquarist summary so folks can see what was actually done (how much pH was reduced, for example, and how) and what the results were.

It will be interesting to see if these open water results extend to other calcifying organisms, some of which have been shown in the lab to have issues at lower pH (referred to in the article) and hence have spurred a lot of the concern oceanographers have with coral reefs and CO2 levels rising.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

FWIW, I have an article on pH set to come out Nov 1 at R2R, so I'm going to incorporate a discussion of this new data. Thanks again for posting it, shornik.