Poll: Alkalinity

Z3speed4me · Aug 27, 2018

USED to run like 8.6-8.8ish.. now I am more around 7.9-8.2. Things seem to like these levels a lot more over the last year.

UCF Alum · Aug 27, 2018

Since the topic of pH came up, here is an interesting thread that I started where a lot of you chimed in on your pH. I chase mine because my house is new and airtight and would dip below 7.6 without my skimmer plumbed outside.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/ph-poll-what-does-yours-top-out-at.339663/#post-4221223

Gareth elliott · Aug 27, 2018

9.1-9.3 is the average range i run. I have thought about attempting to lower but this also the approximate range of my salt mix and in case i need to do a 50% water change its not a hassle attempting to match parameters.

panic · Aug 27, 2018

This is a good read covering the need to find that balance. Any extreme will be hard to maintain and not necessarily good chemistry

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/

UCF Alum · Aug 27, 2018

panic said:
This is a good read covering the need to find that balance. Any extreme will be hard to maintain and not necessarily good chemistry

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/

Randy's the best!

CherBear811 · Aug 27, 2018

Huff747 said:
Both tanks run Kalkwasser in the ATO. I don't test Ca as often as Alk but here's a summary from my Apex.

Tank 1 - 6ft 125 gallon
Ca for the last month
-Min 428
-Max 465
-Avg 440

Alk for the last month
-Min 6.89
-Max 7.78
-Avg 7.44

pH for the last week
-Min 8.02
-Max 8.27
-Avg 8.15

Lights - 3x Radion XR15 Gen 4 Pro
Flow - 1x MP40 on one side, 2x MP10 on the back

Tank 2 - 40 gallon breeder
Ca for the last month
-Min 447
-Max 452
-Avg 448

Alk for the last month
-Min 8.4
-Max 9.02
-Avg 8.67

pH for the last week
-Min 7.66
-Max 7.88
-Avg 7.77

Lights - 2x Kessil 360
Flow - 2x MP10, one on each side

I suppose it could be pH. Tank 2 is on the main floor and I can't keep the pH up while running the air conditioner. And this year we started having to run the air in probably April and it hasn't stopped since. When the weather is nice and I can open the windows and all of last winter while running the furnace the pH was generally closer to 8, but even last winter when pH was higher it didn't seem to grow as fast as the basement tank seems to be. Tank 1 is in the basement and the pH runs higher which doesn't make a lot of sense to me. That tank has only been up since April/May so don't know what the pH looks like with the furnace running yet.

I would lean towards the pH being the factor, since 7 or greater does provide enough carbonate in the water, but the higher pH allows for more efficient utilization of ca and alk in the water. Have you tried putting a CO2 scrubber on the lower pH tank? You can buy them for cheap at BRS or DIY one pretty easily.

trido · Aug 27, 2018

I used to run my Dkh at 10-12 back in 2005-2010. Since then, I keep it between 8-9. High alk and low nutrients will cause burned tips in SPS corals. In the last year, my DKH has been as high as 16 and as low a 6 due to a case or LARS (Lazy butt Reefer Syndrome).. If the changes are made slowly one way or the other corals can adapt without rapid death. Its when your Dkh bounces around daily or weekly that your corals start showing stress and dying.

Mark Gray · Aug 27, 2018

My tank is still in the new faze too. here is what happened in my tank
90 gallon tank started with 8 cheap SPS to see what would happen thank is almost 5 months now. Started with ALK at 10, it dropped about a month after I put the SPS in, I was not dosing anything at first, I sort of let it go my ALK droped all the way to 7.3 then I started dosing Triton. well I sort of increased it to fast it didn't hurt anything and I am seeing growth but ALK is 9.9 tonight. CAL is 426 so I am backing down on the Triton but I also just received some new frags mostly for a grow out contest. I hope I do not jinx myself but I am getting groth and it's only been in the tank 7 days

vetteguy53081 · Aug 27, 2018

Test ...test ....and test before any adjustments. Concerning lately, I have noticed a few aquarists with established tanks overdosing/high Alk and losing especially SPS. Avoidable mistake if properly tested and monitored although it is important to keep up with this compound

Gary Inwood · Aug 28, 2018

my alk is at 7.7, i have just changed from using red sea foundation B liquid to using red sea foundation B powder so i am making adjustment to get the level back up around 8.5 to 9.5.

question for all you guys here i am having a problem keeping SPS alive, am tank as got good flow and parameters are spot on (when i get alk back up)

there seem to last a few weeks and then just die a slow death for some reason. all my softie and my hammer are doing great and my fish are healthy too.

so please if you have advice please tell me, thank you

gary

SashimiTurtle · Aug 29, 2018

Just started dosing on my tank. I was shooting for 8.0dKH, as this is close to what my red sea blue bucket mixes at. This week I think I've locked it in at 8.2 with a 4ml a day dose of the BRS pharma soda ash. I need to retest Ca and get it on a dose as well.

ScottB · Aug 29, 2018

Gary Inwood said:
my alk is at 7.7, i have just changed from using red sea foundation B liquid to using red sea foundation B powder so i am making adjustment to get the level back up around 8.5 to 9.5.

question for all you guys here i am having a problem keeping SPS alive, am tank as got good flow and parameters are spot on (when i get alk back up)

there seem to last a few weeks and then just die a slow death for some reason. all my softie and my hammer are doing great and my fish are healthy too.

so please if you have advice please tell me, thank you

gary

Parameters: (temp, salinity, ALK, Ca, NO3, PO4, Mag, PH, PAR...) even SPS are able to acclimate to "imperfect" parameters if they introduced slowly. But quicker parameter swings, or too many little swings can finish them pretty quick. "older" systems and bigger systems are typically much better for smoothing out the changes. How old and what size is your system? Are you measuring the above parameters? What do the swings look like?

Death: What does that death look like? Turns brown? Turns pale/white? Skin shrivels and peels away? Does it start from the bottom or top? DId you ever have decent polyp extension?

As you can guess, there are many potential factors leading to death of SPS. I should also ask about your lighting and placement.

Gary Inwood · Aug 30, 2018

Death is turns pale/white and the skin just peeled away from the top.
temp:27.5c
ph:7.7
alk:8.4
salinity:1.025
cal:480
mag:1490
i do not test anything else
i place the spa frags at the bottom of my tank at first and than work my way up but start to die around half way up.
tank size is 48x24x30 around with a 48x12x18 sump around 679 litres in total volume.
i hope this helps as it is peeing me off

ScottB · Aug 30, 2018

OK. Slightly warm but other numbers look solid. I know it has been unusually warm there this summer.

Based on the dying process, my top three thoughts:
1) A tad to warm.
2) Too strong of light. Please describe your lighting; brand, wattage, how high from water.
3) Nutrient levels too low. Get a Hanna Checker HI 736 for phosphate. Get RedSea Nitrate test kit. Your gonna needs these for SPS at some point anyway.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003UNK3I8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Lastly, if you dipped the frags, what dip? How soon after unpacking / bringing home?

Gary Inwood · Aug 31, 2018

ScottB said:
OK. Slightly warm but other numbers look solid. I know it has been unusually warm there this summer.

Based on the dying process, my top three thoughts:
1) A tad to warm.
2) Too strong of light. Please describe your lighting; brand, wattage, how high from water.
3) Nutrient levels too low. Get a Hanna Checker HI 736 for phosphate. Get RedSea Nitrate test kit. Your gonna needs these for SPS at some point anyway.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003UNK3I8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Lastly, if you dipped the frags, what dip? How soon after unpacking / bringing home?

So should I drop temp to 26/27c
lighting is two mars aqua 165w led around 12 to 13 inches of the water surface, blues at 90% and whites around 60%
when I get paid I will get the test kits

Scott B thank you for your help in my quest to keep my sps i get from dyeing.

Gary

Cabinetman · Aug 31, 2018

Gary Inwood said:
So should I drop temp to 26/27c
lighting is two mars aqua 165w led around 12 to 13 inches of the water surface, blues at 90% and whites around 60%
when I get paid I will get the test kits

Scott B thank you for your help in my quest to keep my sps i get from dyeing.

Gary

Those LEDs are crazy strong and you’ve got them turned up good. If your nutrients are really low that’s probably your problem.

ScottB · Nov 9, 2018

@Gary Inwood are you getting any color back on those frags or did they get too toasted?

Gary Inwood · Nov 12, 2018

ScottB said:
@Gary Inwood are you getting any color back on those frags or did they get too toasted?

there are truly toasted, i do not know what to do

Scrubber_steve · Nov 12, 2018

UCF Alum said:
I’m curious to the 14 who said they run their alk below 7.

If you’re on here reading this, what are you methods and why do you run so low?

I don't, but i measured a sample of GBR water & it was <7

ScottB · Nov 12, 2018

Gary Inwood said:
there are truly toasted, i do not know what to do

Sorry to hear that @Gary Inwood .

Looking back at your numbers again, your Ph is low. I don't do anything to increase mine but APEX tells me my range is 7.95 (at night) to 8.2. I try to keep it smoothed out by dosing ALK during lights out (when Ph falls).

So, I don't have other experience in raising Ph, but google that on reef2reef or reefcentral and you will see a range of corrective measures.