Hi All, I am trouble with low PH 7.6, I have increased water movement on the tanks surface, KH is running steady at 9.5, I also have a CO2 scrubber attached to my skimmer but i cannot get any improvement, i have also tested the PH with a Pin Point meter and recalibrated the Apex PH probe, my question is, i am running a UV 24/7 will this have an effect on the PH in my 500ltr / 120G system ?
UV effect on PH ?
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Check co2 levels in your house. I have no idea how uv could effect ph, why would you think it could? Whether your co2 scrubber is effective with depend on a bunch of factors, size of skimmer/air draw relative to tank size, amount of ambient co2, how well you plumbed it into your skimmer, is your media container humid but not so much so that it is soaking the media? If your ambient levels are very high increasing surface agitation will actually work against your scrubber.
Thank you for reply, I must also mention that i have a second tank same size and in the same room 1mtr apart and the Ph is running between 8.0 to 8.3 as the day progresses in that one. My skimmer is over size (not much) for the system, there is moisture in the scrubber contained in a sponge at the bottom and no RO water is resting on top of it, and i have just changed the media, i question the UV as i cannot think what else is causing it, it is only recently that the PH has remained low as it was running around 8. 0 and the UV has been running approx: 3 months, all seems well with the coral and fish.
I'd still say the best bet is to test ambient co2 levels, you can buy a monitor for it on amazon. It is strange having the second tank run higher, but I don't enough about either system to know what's the causing the difference, besides saying I'm extremely skeptical that it's a uv sterilizer.Thank you for reply, I must also mention that i have a second tank same size and in the same room 1mtr apart and the Ph is running between 8.0 to 8.3 as the day progresses in that one. My skimmer is over size (not much) for the system, there is moisture in the scrubber contained in a sponge at the bottom and no RO water is resting on top of it, and i have just changed the media, i question the UV as i cannot think what else is causing it, it is only recently that the PH has remained low as it was running around 8. 0 and the UV has been running approx: 3 months, all seems well with the coral and fish.
Randy Holmes-Farley
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The uv isn’t contributing noticeably to pH.
is the second system being measured with the same device?
is the second system being measured with the same device?
yes both systems have Apex PH probes and up to date calibration and also I have put the probes in PH solution 7 to check if the readings are true after a couple of hours, as stated earlier no problem with the tank with the low PH, I will leave a window open tomorrow in the room and close the door as it is pretty cold here to see if that alters the reading
vanpire
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There are some tests you can run.
1. Turn off the UV for a few days and see if your pH rises. I use UV and don’t notice any difference. But good to test.
2. Switch the pH probe and see if you get the same readings. Are you using true same Apex brain?
CO2 scrubber didn’t work that well for me. Reduced CO2 by only 0.1 and media was used up pretty quickly.
1. Turn off the UV for a few days and see if your pH rises. I use UV and don’t notice any difference. But good to test.
2. Switch the pH probe and see if you get the same readings. Are you using true same Apex brain?
CO2 scrubber didn’t work that well for me. Reduced CO2 by only 0.1 and media was used up pretty quickly.
Randy Holmes-Farley
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Same Apex probe and controller, or different? For some reason, a surprising number of people have substantial pH and salinity measurement issues with controllers.
try measuring pH of both tanks in a cup.
try measuring pH of both tanks in a cup.
Randy Holmes-Farley
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pH 7 is not a suitable test of pH measurement for a while bunch of reasons. The two biggest are you are not measuring in the tank water itself (which may have temp/electrical interference/ground loop) issues and it does not evaluate the slope calibration of the probe.
gbroadbridge
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Ground loop is my bet
Measure the pH for both tanks with a cheap API test kit and see how they correlate.
Measure the pH for both tanks with a cheap API test kit and see how they correlate.
