my ph is 7.44

[collie man]

according to my freshly calibrated ph meter. i also just tested my cal, mag, alk and they are read on the dot! my alk is right at 8.1 so i cant add any ph buffer.

all my corals and fish look happy but in concerned they wont make it much longer. i figure water changes would be best but any other options?

 

[stingythingy45]

You test PH?
Lights on or off make a difference.
Also aeration.

 

[collie man]

yes i test ph....ive been having a ph issue for about two weeks now. this test was about 45 minutes after the lights turned on so i know its at its lowest then but 7.4 is way too low. im nervous about using outside air in my tank ive heard so my nightmares about it.

 

[psusocr]

my PH ranges from 7.6(night) to 7.9(day) as you said everythign else is dead on, Fish are happy and corals look great!! my tank is in the basement so not much fresh O2 etc. etc which all make a difference and IMO as long as your corals are happy PH is just a number..

 

[zachfishman]

Double-check with another test kit. You don't want to start correcting for what may not be wrong.

 

[karlinkelly]

Double-check with another test kit. You don't want to start correcting for what may not be wrong.

+1 I've had this issue with bad test kits before too.

 

[mikeyj28]

I had low pH when i first started and was concerned as well, But If your fish and corals are happy then I wouldnt worry about it.

 

[dan-in-gr]

Hi, If you have a new Hanna ph meter, let it soak in ph 7 solution for a couple of hours then re-calibrate. if that is not the problem, I recommend using kalk as that keeps my ph up, I dose it every night and your problem will go away very soon.

 

[MarkGP]

What pH meter do you have and what did you calibrate it with?

 

[salty joe]

Do you have a ventless gas heater? They create a lot of CO2. Is furnace, water heater, clothes dryer and all gas appliances properly vented? I once had squirrels nesting in the half of my chimney that vented the water heater and caused low PH due to CO2. We have always had a CO detector, and it did not go off. And it was working properly. So I got to tell my wife,"See, the reef tank keeps us safe!" If the water heater would have started burning poorly, and the CO detector failed or came unplugged, we could have been killed. Do you have a calcium reactor?