Alkalinity problem !

[bugarte1]

Hey guys just checked my water and my Alk went from 8 to 7 should I be worried ? My BTA does not look good at all. Also my candy cane hasn't opened up in 3 days everything else looks fine. Please help.

 

[AquaRick]

Any idea how long it took for your Alk to did 1 dkh? What is it normally at?

 

[bugarte1]

Normally at 8. Took 3 days I guess.

The Meg dropped too.

 

[bugarte1]

This happened after a water change

 

[bugarte1]

Any help guys? Just did a test alk is still at 7 and now the ammonia is a little high. Going to do a water change in 2 days. Should I be worried ?

 

[AquaRick]

The presence of ammonia is very alarming. Did you cycle your tank prior to adding livestock?

 

[bugarte1]

The presence of ammonia is very alarming. Did you cycle your tank prior to adding livestock?

Yes cycle for about a month. Last night my BTA looked like it was dying no tentacles and it had something coming out it's mouth. Could that be the problem ? This morning the BTA got it's tentacles back and is looking better.

 

[bugarte1]

Can anyone tell me how to rase my Alk ? The rest of my water is back to normal. Just want to get the Alk back now it's at 7. How high should I bring it up have LPS and a shrimp in the tank no fish ?

 

[Sniperhank]

The answer is water changes. This is the solution to almost every problem you can face. I would also assume you are feeding your tank and that this is causing the ammonia readings, since there aren't any fish to provide a constant supply of ammonia to feed the bacteria in the nitrate cycle.