Severe Overnight PH Drop?

[vetteguy53081]

My Ph drops from 7.8 to 7.2 at night daily. I just added ventilation which should help. Ventilate under your stand even with a 4" fan exhausting the air out underneath

 

[HOOPDEEZ]

I would not trust api test kits, I always read .25 ammonia with mine, testing my dt and fresh mixed water... I never tried their ph kit. CO2 can build up in your house and lower Ph, if you have a gas stove, and not good enough (or thorough enough) venting, then your Ph will plummet. I would not do water changes to fight it, as the new water will quickly absorb the CO2 in the room and go back to equilibrium. You can open or crack a window (it’s nice and warm out lol) or if you have a skimmer you can hook a hose to the intake and draw in fresh outside air. Or you can do nothing if there aren’t any issues!

 

[MnFish1]

any idea what would cause a tank ph to drop from 8.3 to 7.4 in one day? The absolute lowest it has been since set up was 8.0. All I did was add a small amount of Macroalgae last night to my 16G Biocube. Any ideas are appreciated!

Btw. maybe you answeeed this but what’s your alkalinity and are you measuring ph at the same time of day. It’s normal to drop some overnight just not that much. If your alkalinity is low it can make ph changes more pronounced

 

[LaraLouM]

Btw. maybe you answeeed this but what’s your alkalinity and are you measuring ph at the same time of day. It’s normal to drop some overnight just not that much. If your alkalinity is low it can make ph changes more pronounced

My all has been between 9-10 every time I have checked. This was the first time I have checked the ph in the am, usually I test in the evening.

 

[Katrina71]

How's the tank?

 

[LaraLouM]

How's the tank?

It’s doing well, I’m going to test numbers tonight, haven’t had a chance during the week, and I’m getting a little bit of algae. Can’t find my hermit crabs, maybe they died? But I think I need more/some snails as all I have are the two clowns and the one tiger conch now

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

My Ph drops from 7.8 to 7.2 at night daily. I just added ventilation which should help. Ventilate under your stand even with a 4" fan exhausting the air out underneath

I don't believe the 7.2 is accurate. It would imply either very, very low aeration in the tank, or hugely excessive CO2 in your home air (unhealthy for you).

I wouldn't do anything about it except measure pH another way (if at all).

 

[vetteguy53081]

I don't believe the 7.2 is accurate. It would imply either very, very low aeration in the tank, or hugely excessive CO2 in your home air (unhealthy for you).

I wouldn't do anything about it except measure pH another way (if at all).

This of course is via Apex probe which reminds me to check with my pinpoint unit to see how close or far apart my reading is