sea horse Posted July 23, 2006 Share Posted July 23, 2006 I don't think that I should add buffer because the Alklinity is where it is supposed to be. Could low flow be the culprit? I only have 3x turnover in my 25 gallon. dontknow.gif Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hammondegge Posted July 23, 2006 Share Posted July 23, 2006 I have the same 'problem'. what time of day to you test your PH. if it is 7.8 in the morning, then no worries. if it is that at the end of the day then you may want to add some kalk daily. either in your top off water or directly to the sump. do it slowly if you do. what is your alk, calcium, and magnesium? do you have a sump? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sea horse Posted July 23, 2006 Author Share Posted July 23, 2006 I test it around noon. What is kalk? Is that buffer? Don't know my other paramaters yet. (only bought the PH test kit) but a while back I whent to Aquatek and they said my Alklinity was good but my PH was too low, and it still is. Nope, don't have a sump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hammondegge Posted July 23, 2006 Share Posted July 23, 2006 kalk is kalkwasser or calcium hydroxide (lime). kalk will raise ph and calcium without affecting alk. you probably dont need it. depends on what you are keeping. i jumped the gun a little. are you testing for nitrate? the flow in the tank is low. is it a seahorse tank. do you have coral or macroalgaes? when the lights are off at night the ph will drop. in the morning before the lights are on it will be at the lowest all day. try testing immed. after lights come on and again before they go off at night. you should see a swing of a couple points, ie 7.8-8.0. you really dont want it below 7.8. if it is dropping too low in the AM it may be an indirect product of low flow if nutrients are collecting on the bottom and decaying, but we really need to know more about the tank. what do you test for and what are the results? what kind of lighting are you using? what is in the tank? filtration? skimmer? sandbed? algae problems? etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dhayden Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 I have battled that from time to time as well. How do you "top off" the tank each day? Kalk, Kalkwasser can be used to help top off the tank, keep your Calcium high, and buff up your PH. The ph out of my RO unit comes out pretty high with no Alk. Gues that is a good problem for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sea horse Posted July 25, 2006 Author Share Posted July 25, 2006 This is not a sea horse tank but I think why it has such low flow is because it is a Jebo and I think it is supposed to be used for fresh water. The only coral I have right now is a tiny pink mushroom and a zoo rock. I tested the water right after I turned on the lights and right before I turned them off for the night and PH was just as low both times! I think I would have an algey problem if I didn't have so many algey eating critters, but I think that is because I have old PC bulbs. (need to replace them soon) I only top off the water when it looks low. Usualy about once a week. I am adding Kent Marine Liquid Calcium along with some other minerals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hobogato Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 try adding an airstone on a pump very high in the tank. if the tank is overloaded (because of the low flow), the airstone will increase dissolvede oxygen and that is supposed to help with pH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcreonx Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Actually kalk does raise alkalinity as well as calcium, that's what makes it so useful, instead of the 2-part additives. It also has a dramatic effect on ph. I would suggest checking this calculator on the different products and methods: http://jdieck1.home.comcast.net/chemcalc.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hammondegge Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 i will have to watch it then with the kalk. does calcium hydroxide (kalk/lime) have a lesser effect on alk then sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) or calcium carbonate? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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