ph at 8.5...is that ok?

macawmagic

In Memoriam
I've noticed for the past couple days that my ph is reading at 8.5 during the day. I've seen it as high as 8.53 Just wondering if that's ok or should I be taking any measures to make sure it doesn't go above 8.3? Ph read on Pinpoint meter. probe calibrated about 2-3 months ago.
 
Fish Only tank can tolerate a fairly wide range of pH levels for periods of time with no major harm, now a reef that's another story.

pH level in saltwater systems is between 7.6 and 8.4, but reef tanks are a bit more sensitive to pH.

"tried and true" method for stabilizing pH is still performing regular partial water changes.
 
yea i just did a water change and I've got to get back into the everyweekend water change method. it usually goes from 8.5 daytime to abnout 8.0 nighttime. so it's not a huge swing, but i didn't know if 8.5 was "too high". thanks manny. heard u love those ppe's!
 
Actually, 8.0 to 8.5 is a huge swing. Most tanks change by half that of less daily. 8.5 is at the high end of what's considered acceptable. My first question would be whether you trust you measurement (test kit? meter?), and what's your alkalinity? Most tanks battle against low pH, caused by low alk and/or high indoor CO2. High pH is rare unless you are dosing high pH additives. If that's what's driving your pH up, you might want to think about a different supplementation scheme.
 
all my topoff water is kalkwasser...basically i get ro and put about 1 teas. per gallon of water...and then thats in a bucket with a floatvalve connected in the sump. I do need to go check my alk and calcium so let me go do that, but I've got cheap testkits so we'll see how they come out.
 
alright...well i've got the redsea test kit...which blows, but...

alk 1.7-2.8 somewhere in between. I'm going to guess by the color about 2.2-2.3ish but it's hard because the test blows! lol

calc is somewhere between 400-450.

and my ph after the waterchange is at 8.31

does everything seem ok? I mean my corals are growing good so I'm not too worried about it, but I do want to start taking care of my params more!
 
Assuming your test kit is accurate, 3.0 meg/dl (8.4 dkh) is the range that you are looking for. I use to think you wanted something higher, like 10dkh, but lately it seems most people are having luck between 8-9 dkh.
 
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