Just about right then
pH traumatizes me
- Thread starter littlehermit0
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OP
OP
littlehermit0
Active Member
Every single parameter is good except nitrate (50ppm) that drives me crazy, I literally tried everything, vodka, 50% water changes, even waste away won't help, it only helped alot in phosphatesJust about right then
OP
OP
littlehermit0
Active Member
Only use once when needed
GlassMunky
2500 Club Member
Nothing at all.this or nothing else
That stuff will not help you in any way. It will
Make things worse
OP
OP
littlehermit0
Active Member
I guess I should start building that big oxygen tube, it will be connected to the window and aerate the aquarium 24/7 to eliminate CO2
lmfbs
Active Member
It's just a CO2 meter. I got one when COVID popped up in 2020 to check places I regularly go. It's a good proxy for "how much air turnover does this place get"
GlassMunky
2500 Club Member
you dont need to do that either.
When you did the test correctly, it showed a ph of 8.0 which is perfectly fine. Nothing is wrong that needs fixing.
A protein skimmer can also help to oxygenate the water. Flow pumps pointed at the water surface also promote oxygen exchange as well.
OP
OP
littlehermit0
Active Member
The pH will fall down to 7.7 again, I need 8.1 at least cause I'm getting corals, also taking extreme care of my coralline algae
How long has your tank been running? I only ask because it sounds like you are making things more complicated than they need to be especially if this is a young tank. Many people, myself included do not even check pH and tanks do just fine.
OP
OP
littlehermit0
Active Member
3 months and I know I have to wait 6 months for anemones but at least the live rock health
GlassMunky
2500 Club Member
still, that doesnt matter. 7.7 at night is fine its not going to kill anything. many people have tanks that hit that at night. while it may not be OPTIMUM, its totally acceptable and will not hurt anything. I had a tank that ran for YEARS at 7.7-8.0 ph night/day and grew massive corals and clams.
Stability is more important, and these "ph buffers" are bad practice as they effect other parameters as well (like alkalinity), that they don't tell you about which can casue worse problems due to the swinging effects caused every time they get dosed.
You're much better off managing your home co2 levels, and trying to oxygenate the tank more through other methods that just dumping in these bad products.
you could also try adding a lighted refugium that runs at night while the tanks lights are off. the photosynthesis of the algae during that time can help offset some of the day/night ph swings.
OP
OP
littlehermit0
Active Member
That's... Great to hear, I guess google tried to scare me, I'd still like to adjust my pH but more slowly cause I actually have 7.7 during the day,7.4 sometimes at night, worse in winter
GlassMunky
2500 Club Member
that may be because the tank is still new and doesnt have alot of life in it photosynthesising creating oxygen.
I would avoid worrying about the ph too much for now and focus more on just keeping the tank stable, which should be able to be done by just water changes using a good quality salt mix at this point.
Do you have any fish or corals at all?
I would just sit back and let the tank do it's thing for a few more months at least. Your too early in the game to start chasing things. The tank is going to go through many changes in the coming year or longer and sometime intervention causes more harm than good.
6 months is just a time frame that people toss around for nems being added. All tanks are different.
OP
OP
littlehermit0
Active Member
I already worry and do like 4 tests a day, so does that mean my tank will get worse and I will have to test more?!??!????!!
No it just means your going to be stressed all the time and this hobby will probably not bring you pleasure
Randy Holmes-Farley
Reef Chemist
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My Tank Thread
I dont believe 7.4 is accurate. For one thing, calcium carbonate rock and sand would dissolve at that pH, pushing up the alk to excessive levels.
OP
OP
littlehermit0
Active Member
The problem is that I'm already stressing more :/No it just means your going to be stressed all the time and this hobby will probably not bring you pleasure
