Red Sea Reefer 525 XL Low ph

[reacclimating 2 the hobby]

Okay, so I'm looking for ideas to raise my pH. According to Apex i'm around 7.8, which may be acceptable. I'd like to be around 8.2. If you have a 525 xl you know that there is zero room for extra equipment in the sump cabinet and my third cabinet is full of electronics and cords.

The ATO is gravity fed, which I think would eliminate kalk as a possible solution? Temperatures where I live are currently below zero, so running a line outside from the skimmer would be problematic. Any other ideas or should I start planning to move my electronics to a separate cabinet and move to an upgraded ATO with Kalk?

If you did something with a separate cabinet I'd love to see what you did if you have pictures.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Why would kalk not be an option?

 

[reacclimating 2 the hobby]

From what I've read/watched you don't want the bottom portion of kalk in an ATO to go into the tank because of potency from settling? Gravity fed would put that portion into the tank first?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

From what I've read/watched you don't want the bottom portion of kalk in an ATO to go into the tank because of potency from settling? Gravity fed would put that portion into the tank first?

Mix it in a seperate container first. Use the clear portion. It’s saturated.

 

[reacclimating 2 the hobby]

Mix it in a seperate container first. Use the clear portion. It’s saturated.

Cool, thank you!

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Cool, thank you!

You bet!

 

[SPR1968]

I understand your thinking, because I went through the exact same situation, and although this might not answer your question, it might help.

When i installed Apex I started watching the numbers with fascination, especially pH and decided I wanted to raise it. Why ? Because 8.2 is better? The mathematical % difference is nominal, everything was alive and thriving in my tank.

I looked into CO2 scrubbers, outside airlines etc etc

After weeks of studying and reading I decided ‘if it isn’t broken..........’

So unless you have a valid reason to mess with the pH in your system, personally I would leave it alone. And use the pH graph to just monitor. And also what’s the margin of error on an Apex pH probe ?

 

[VJV]

Is 7,8 your average, low point or high point? Agree with what has been said above however using Kalk with the reefer ato might not be the best option IMO. It is gravity fed and operated by a float valve so I wonder if with time the Kalk deposits on the float can lead to it being stuck either on or off.

If 7,8 is your low I would likely not do anything. If you still want to raise it I would consider getting a proper ATO deposit where you could add Kalk easily and use the reefer ATO box as a refugium operates in an inverted cycle.

Just clean up the electronic mess (there are a number of well organized Ref Sea Reefer tanks in the forums where you could get some ideas from) and make room for the ATO.

 

[reacclimating 2 the hobby]

I plan to buy a separate test prior to making any moves and to check my Apex accuracy.

My pH swings between 7.8 and 7.6 even with my fuge running opposite schedule. May need to lower the light over my chaeto.

I dont have much as far as coral so I'm trying to get things in line prior to them breaking.

My cabinet of electronics isnt really a mess. Running metal halides and the ballasts take up quite a bit of room. All of my cords are wrapped and mounted. There just isnt room for an ATO reservoir big enough to suit my tank. I think I I'll pursue a back up test and order some more calibration fluid. Then either construct something to house the ato or electronics. Thank you all

 

[jda]

Get a second or third opinion on that pH value before you chase it. These are hobby-grade probes and even if you recently calibrated them, they are still not all that accurate. If you have sand and real aragonite rock, then it should buffer and not really let your tank get to true 7.6 (assuming that it is somewhat mature).

Handheld PH pen are reasonably accurate and not expensive on eBay or Amazon.

Wait for a nice day in the 50s and air your house out. This will help as much as anything. The fresh air line will help too. I know that it can be a pain in the cold winter - I live in Colorado now and we keep a window or two open all year if the temp is not in the single digits... the fresh air and the 8.3 pH in my tanks feels great.

 

[VJV]

Did you measure the CO2 in your room? I recently bought a CO2 measuring device on Amazon and realized that my levels range from 500ppm during the day with open windows to over 1500 ppm at night and even close to 1800 in the morning!!!

Running your skimmer air intake outside is a good idea if you have a similar situation. Not sure how much air your skimmer draws but be aware that running a long hose on the air intake will significantly diminish the air intake and mess up your skimmer tuning. Otherwise and considering you are not running a calcium reactor it does seem to be rather low a a second opinion on your pH would be advisable.

 

[jda]

When you do air out your house, put some box fans on the floor in the basement and main level and use an attic fan or other powered device to force air in (or out) unless it is really windy. Just opening a window or two with no breeze cannot really do much. IME, doing the basement does as much good as anything.

 

[VJV]

My house is orientated North South and I leave by the sea (Atlantic) só there is almost always a northern breeze. Everyday the windows are opened on the north and south facades. It takes some 10/15min to lower the CO2 levels from 1500ppm to 500ppm with no fans (tank is on the main living room ground floor).

But we are a family of 6 plus nany plus housekeeper so it is a lot of CO2 so when the windows are closed the levels rise quickly as well. [emoji4]

 

[reacclimating 2 the hobby]

Get a second or third opinion on that pH value before you chase it. These are hobby-grade probes and even if you recently calibrated them, they are still not all that accurate. If you have sand and real aragonite rock, then it should buffer and not really let your tank get to true 7.6 (assuming that it is somewhat mature).

Handheld PH pen are reasonably accurate and not expensive on eBay or Amazon.

Wait for a nice day in the 50s and air your house out. This will help as much as anything. The fresh air line will help too. I know that it can be a pain in the cold winter - I live in Colorado now and we keep a window or two open all year if the temp is not in the single digits... the fresh air and the 8.3 pH in my tanks feels great.

50s wont be where I live until June lol. Its below zero now and for the winter with wind chill.

 

[reacclimating 2 the hobby]

Going to get another ph test. And look into co2 reading. I live alone except when my daughter is here.

 

[VJV]

I must say that for a household with 1/2 people in it (and without a CaRx) the pH seems a normally low.... I would say most likely a probe issue... although if due to sub zero temp you keep the windows closed all the time than CO2 would accumulate.

Difference between max and min is small in your case so it is likely an ongoing factor rather than fluctuation (like in my case where CO2 levels rise by 3x at night and my pH swings from 8.15 down to 7.75).

You could run a CO2 scrubber but if your levels are high you will go through the media very quickly and it gets very expensive very quickly.

 

[saltyhog]

I plan to buy a separate test prior to making any moves and to check my Apex accuracy.

My pH swings between 7.8 and 7.6 even with my fuge running opposite schedule. May need to lower the light over my chaeto.

I dont have much as far as coral so I'm trying to get things in line prior to them breaking.

My cabinet of electronics isnt really a mess. Running metal halides and the ballasts take up quite a bit of room. All of my cords are wrapped and mounted. There just isnt room for an ATO reservoir big enough to suit my tank. I think I I'll pursue a back up test and order some more calibration fluid. Then either construct something to house the ato or electronics. Thank you all

How old is your pH probe? They don't last long unless they are the lab grade version. Order some calibration fluid 7.0 and 10.0 and calibrate. Don't go chasing numbers until you know the numbers are correct and pH probe on an Apex is not a reliable number IME. I use mine to monitor trends and don't take the exact number as fact!

If your tank is doing fine, I wouldn't change anything even if your pH is correct (and I doubt it is).