pH ;how to manage it; how not to manage it

[Gary Majchrzak]

in reviewing this thread...

in reviewing this thread...

I was being playful in my earlier posts at the beginning here.
Several people have questioned me on the pH of my aquarium and the honest answer is I don't know because I haven't checked it in years.

I monitor pH of Ca reactor effluent, not system pH

The only things I check regularly for are temp, SG and alkalinity.
Once in a great while I check PO4 and Mg

The last time I checked pH of my system it was in the winter (closed up house) and pH was around 8.0 at noon

Priority test target values are SG 1.026 @ 80F with an alkalinity of 9dKH

 

[tmz]

8.0 is good for a tank with a calcium reactor. Many tanks with calcium reactors run around 7.8. PH; lower than that can have serious consequences as calcium carbonate including skeletal mass may begin to dissolve, in effect turning the tank itself into a calcium reactor. The recommended acceptable ranges for pH are 7.8 to 8.5 with and advantage to 8.2 to 8.4 given the need for corals to calcify and maintain extra cellular fluids higher than that around 9,IIRC. Nsw averages around 8.2 on reefs.

Although house air high in CO2 is often the cause of low PH it's not the only thing sourcing or deleting CO2 s ;obviously a calcium reactor adds CO2/ limewater reduces it ; biological activity effects it too ,photosynthesis reduces it , many metabolic activities add it.