Soda ash

[renato120]

Hi, I started to dose soda ash to raise my PH. It was 7.8 and now its at 8.3
What should I check wile Im dosing it?
Im dosing one drip every 4 seconds.
My Alk is at 9 now.

 

[renato120]

I just checked my Alk and its at 10.
Im droping every 13seconds now...
Is this right? Im not sure if im doing the right thing here.
@Randy Holmes-Farley What do you think? Thank you.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Use that product to raise your alkalinity and it will help raise pH, but you should not use it to try to maintain a particular pH because the alkalinity will often get too high. I would not raise the alkalinity much more. I recommend 7-11 dKH for most aquaria, and only 7-8 dKH for a ULNS (ultra low nutrient) SPS aquarium.

 

[renato120]

Use that product to raise your alkalinity and it will help raise pH, but you should not use it to try to maintain a particular pH because the alkalinity will often get too high. I would not raise the alkalinity much more. I recommend 7-11 dKH for most aquaria, and only 7-8 dKH for a ULNS (ultra low nutrient) SPS aquarium.

I already stopped dosing. My ALK got up to 10dkh... Im trying to figure out a way to raise my PH.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I already stopped dosing. My ALK got up to 10dkh... Im trying to figure out a way to raise my PH.

There's nothing you can dose that will boost pH and not alkalinity. Limewater (kalkwasser) has about twice the pH raising effect as soda ash per unit of alkalinity.

The cause of low pH at normal alkalinity is elevated CO2 in the water, which most often comes from your home air having elevated CO2.

Other ways to raise pH all involve reducing the CO2 in the air getting to the aquarium, either by opening home windows, using a CO2 scrubber on a skimmer inlet, or running an airline from outside to a skimmer inlet.

This has more:

Low pH: Causes and Cures by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/index.htm

 

[renato120]

There's nothing you can dose that will boost pH and not alkalinity. Limewater (kalkwasser) has about twice the pH raising effect as soda ash per unit of alkalinity.

The cause of low pH at normal alkalinity is elevated CO2 in the water, which most often comes from your home air having elevated CO2.

Other ways to raise pH all involve reducing the CO2 in the air getting to the aquarium, either by opening home windows, using a CO2 scrubber on a skimmer inlet, or running an airline from outside to a skimmer inlet.

This has more:

Low pH: Causes and Cures by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-09/rhf/index.htm

Tank is in my basement. Small window there, but its cold now, due to the winter coming. Im already doing the CO2 scrubber on a skimmer inlet

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Tank is in my basement. Small window there, but its cold now, due to the winter coming. Im already doing the CO2 scrubber on a skimmer inlet

Then switching from soda ash to limewater will be about all you can do within reasonable cost (high cost would be something like an air exchanger).

 

[renato120]

Ok thank you Randy!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

You're welcome.

Happy Reefing.