Ph and Kh...spec??

Colin

Colin

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hey guy's,been struggeling to get my ph & kh reading to preferd reading of 8.4 and 8 dkh,been testing for a week now and keep geting a reading of 8.2 and 7 dkh...!!been useing tropic marine tripple buffer with my top up water but cant get it up.....:banghead: !!!!!!!
Is that reading still in spec or iam i using the tripple buffer wrong??????:stupid:
 
What test kit are you using? Test the water with another kit before you add anything else
 
also test your Mg. Alk, Ca and Mg work together. If one is low then it will affect another parameter
 
using tropic marine testkit,will test them now,but its been reading the same every time...???after water change and top ups..,is that 8.2 ph and 7 dkh aceptable?
 
yes its good, but Im pretty sure the test kit is reading wrong. Try someone else's kit before you add anything, your ALk could be sitting on 11
 
Tremayn said:
yes its good, but Im pretty sure the test kit is reading wrong. Try someone else's kit before you add anything, your ALk could be sitting on 11
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Agreed, but 7 dkh is great, i wish mine would come down to that. Test Ca, Mg and Alk. I have come to understand that Sg must also be considered: 1.025 and temp at 26 degrees. Alk is the key, must be stable. Mg should be 3 x Ca, as a guide. Hey I am stugling to get my Alk down, but the above is how I understand it. Your Ph is fine.

Best of luck.

dHK: check it out, might help.
Dkh - Marine Aquariums of South Africa
 
just tested Ca -380 - 420 +-,Po4 - 0.25 mg/l, ammo - 0.05 ppm,tested my Ph with a sera testkit 8.0,with my tropic 8.2,Kh still 7.....donthave a Mg testkit,but can that be a reason for this...??AM DOSING Mg like 1ml every odd week or so....here's FTS!!!
43404e42cae7a6894.jpg
 
Tank has been running for 3 weeks now......................ha ha ha,just kidding,no,its in its 9week now.....added the hammer on the weekend,and its look amazing...was thow skepptic about them or any corals....
 
Colin said:
oye,its high due to a big water change,1.026 and temp at 27 degs
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Not bad at all. The triple buffer is it suppose to increase dKH? If so I would suggest you up you normal dosage, not by much and see if it does not start to increase dkh over a week or so.

Testing alk, cal and mg often during this process.

By the way if possible dose triple buffer in the morning and ca in the evening. Not at the same time. Mg to be dosed before the other 2, do it first then an hour or so after add triple buffer if dosing dkh in the morning, or if you dosing mg in the evening then 1 hour later add ca suppliment.

Also check this out: Reef Chemistry Calculator

I know it does not refer to your triple buffer but can be of assistance. Google other reef dose calculators.
 
There's nothing wrong with your Alk and pH levels.

In fact, your pH SHOULD change every day, ranging from around 8.0 - 8.2 in the morning just before "lights on" to around 8.2 - 8.4 just after your main lights switch off in the evening... so, when did you do your testing?

Also, did you do the water change before or after the tests that you are quoting were done - if before, then what was the SG of the water at the time of testing?

Oh, and stop stressing - it's never wise to just chase numbers :whistling:

Hennie
 
hennie,was before water change,dit the water change thinking it will bring my parremeters up.....SG was at 1.024 before water change,i leave my sump light on 24 hours due to Ph drop,though Ph drops at night when lights go out.....????????
My real consern is,is PH 8.0 - 8.2 and KH 7 still acceptible....???
thanks for the advise
 
yes,its doing good even thou its a new tank,been making sure water is at its best and feeding well,i had to put in because i sutdown my old tank for spares......coswecantfly.....:eek:!!!!!
 
SG was at 1.024 before water change
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OK, that would not have made a major difference, but would still have lowered your alkalinity reading somewhat.

leave my sump light on 24 hours due to Ph drop,though Ph drops at night when lights go out.....????????
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Do you leave your display tank's lights on 24/7 as well? Keep in mind that the pH change is caused by algae (and also those inside your corals and anemone) using up CO2 whilst photosynthesising, but producing CO2 during the dark. If you have more photosynthetic life forms (again, including cnidarians) in your display tank than in your sump, the pH will still be affected. (By the way, it's NOT a good idea to keep the sump lights on 24/7...)

My real consern is,is PH 8.0 - 8.2 and KH 7 still acceptible....???
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Totally :thumbup:

As I'm typing this, my tank's pH is 8.25, and my alkalinity is somewhere between 5 and 6 :eek: (my calcium reactor has been off for a while, and with my rather large coral load demanding calcium and alkalinity, I battle to keep it above 6 with dripping kalk and adding additives...). As stated previously, don't stress - your current pH and Alk. levels are really nothing to worry about. (But I would be concerned about your haste to add a tang and a lion fish (large bio-load) and an anemone to such an immature system...)

Hennie
 
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