Need help getting pH up!!!

[L2]

I have a JBJ 12 gallon Nano Cube and the tank has been up and running for 36 days now. I have three very small fish and some coral. Live rock and sand. Lots of water movemenet - 230 GPH from the return pump and 100 GPH from the power head inside the tank for additional current. No Amonia or NO2 or NO3. The water is crystal clear BUT I've always had a low and very stable pH of 7.9, if not 7.8 even.

Yesterday, under the advice of the marine aquarium store I go to I tried using Scheme's Marine Buffer 8.3. It boosted the pH to 8.3 instantly. And the fish seemed to be swimming around more. Though this morning my I tested the pH again and it went right back down again to 7.9.

Anyhow, I use Tropic Marine seasalt and I do 10-20% water changes every week. And I do have some water aggitation at the top of the tank. I even have a tiny nano protein skimmer that gets a lot of air into the water.

How can I safely get my pH up and stable above 7.9? Thoughts? Advice? Should I continue to use Marine Buffer or? What do you guys use?

Also, I tested my Alk this morning at it was 2.86. The guys at the store say it should be at 3.5. How do you get Alk up?

 

[tecwzrd]

Any ph changes should be done slowly over days! Never instantly since doing so can cause a lot of stress/death to your fish/inverts.

Your ph of 7.8 is not drastically low for SW. Fish/inverts will do fine at that ph and since your tank is new it will take time to balance out.

What is the ph/sg of your newly mixed salt water? Are you mixing your saltwater for 24+ hours and bringing up to the temp/sg/ph of the main tank?

Seachem Marine Buffer is a good product that I have used as well. To increase your ph only add it to your PWC water so the increase is gradual and over the course of 4+ weeks.

 

[L2]

My SG is at 1.025.

I am mixing my saltwater for 24+ hours before doing my PWC.

About the Seachem Marine Buffer though. My pH was at 7.9/8.0. Then I did a PWC and put in less than half a teaspoon of Marine Buffer (as per their directions)... After the PWC my pH was instally 8.3. Then this morning I did another pH test and my pH was 7.9.

Anyhow, I know Seachem recommends you continue to use the product DAILY until the pH stabalizes at 8.3 but ummmmmm isn't it bad for the pH to be going up and down daily until it stabalizes? It sort of freaked me out.

Should I just leave the tank alone and let it be at 7.9 or continue to use the buffer?

And lastly... What about my Alk? It's at 2.86... Isn't that low? How do I get that up?

 

[tecwzrd]

Best to leave your ph where it is now and let it balance out over time. I would never use a buffer daily do to the risk of it messing with alk/ph to drastically and possibly crashing. At the most I’d use it once a week and only add it to the PWC water when mixing if needed at all.

As for alk I’d read Chemistry and the Aquarium: What is Alkalinity? for a more in-depth understanding.

Then this morning I did another pH test and my pH was 7.9

Your ph will always be at the highest when testing at night before you turn off the lights and at the lowest point first thing in the morning.

PH always drops slightly during the night unless you have a lighted fuge and these small drops are nothing to worry about.

 

[L2]

Ok, so I'll leave the tank is. One last question though. Doesn't pH decline over time?

And also, should I look at Kent Marines Carbinate Hardiner 2 Part Buffer or just leave the tank as is?

I guess I'll just leave it as is. Should I get an airstone? My protein skimmer pumps so many micro bubbles into the water already. I can't imagine it being an air problem. It does turn off at night though.

 

[roka64]

I maybe incorrect on this, but, doesn't the tank take a little while to circulate the PH and stabalize? That might be why the Ph is 8.3 when you first put it in and then lowers as it filters through the rest of the system.....(depending when you measure it)...

I do have a question, some one asked my once if I measured my Ph at night or in the morning....should there be a difference?

 

[tecwzrd]

I would just keep up with your PWC each week. Most additives will end up hurting more then helping. Air stones are useless in SW tank. Have you tried using a bubble trap or sponge to reduce the air bubbles from the skimmer?

 

[tecwzrd]

I do have a question, some one asked my once if I measured my Ph at night or in the morning....should there be a difference?

Your ph will always be at the highest when testing at night before you turn off the lights and at the lowest point first thing in the morning.

PH always drops slightly during the night unless you have a lighted fuge and these small drops are nothing to worry about.

 

[L2]

thank you tecwzrd!!!

ai yai yai

fish drama

my little babies

LOL

 

[jasno999]

Odd can you test the water before you add it to your tank??? Try testign the SW mix that you add to the tank to see what it measures at.


I would also suggest addign crushed coral or some type of substrate that can go along with the sand in yoru tank to help keep PH high. I have crushed coral and sand in my tank and I really think it helps keep my PH and ALk levels good. I can't say my Alk levels are good for sure cause I don't test for them but my PH is fine.

 

[Hara]

Adding Crushed coral to the substrate will become a problem in the long run by becoming a nitrate issue.

As far as the ph, you say you have a jbj nano cube, I am assuming it is covered? If it is, that could be a big part of the problem. Surface agitation is also something to consider. If the powerheads are placed low, there isnt alot of surface water movement. Water movement throughout the tank does not help the gas exchange, that takes place at the surface. I don't know if this describes your set up or not. If it does, then more agitation at the surface will increase your ph.

 

[tecwzrd]

I should have mentioned his other post (or he could have) and that L2’s ph problem wasn’t because of covering the tank causing the CO2 to rise and ph to fall.

 

[L2]

Yup, I have a JBJ Nano Cube but I keep the front of the canopy open and the return pump creates quite a bit of surface agitation seeing as I upgraded the pump. What about using a small fan to blow accross the surface?

Anyhow, my Alk is only 2.86 so I think I'm going to try using B-IONIC calcium buffer to get my Alk up slowly... So my pH will naturally rise. My pH will never rise if my Alk is so low...

http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=EV1111

What do you guys think?

 

[steve-s]

What do you guys think?

Stop messing with the chemistry and start looking at ways to impove gas exchange in the tank. Until that's addressed, your pH will continue to be a problem. The fan is a good idea, just make sure it's pointed towards the opening you posted about earlier and watch the evap.

Cheers
Steve

 

[L2]

Ok, but can someone explain to me how my Alk is supposed to go up by itself? A fan will effect the pH slightly but how do people get their Alkalinity where it should be? Right now mine is 2.86. It should be closer to 3.5... Something tells me that if I had a higher Alk I'd automatically have a higher pH. So how do people generally go about achieving that without any supplements?

 

[steve-s]

LOL.. chill!

You where asking about pH, not alkalinity. You cannot control the pH by increasing the alk anyway. All alkalinity does is help keep pH stable.

Buffers are used for alkainity when needed, of course. 2.86 mE/ql alk is not bad at all. 3.0-3.25 is actually the highest it needs to be, 3.5 is excessive.

To get from 2.86 to 3.0, you'll need about 1/8th of a teaspoon if that.

http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/chem_calc3.html

Cheers
Steve

 

[L2]

Wow!

That calculator is Awesome!!! Thanks!