fish unhappy? Snails Dying?

[ryan0292002ca]

I have a 29 Gallon with two clownfish, 3 Crabs, and previously 12 Astrea snails. My tank is 3 months old, and I've had 9 snails die in the last month, and my clownfish just go up and down the side of the tank like they want to get out. I can't figure out whats wrong. My ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are undetectable, salinity of 1.025, temp of 79, pH is a little high over 8.2, Ca is at 400, KH at 100, lights on for 10 hours a day (2 actinic and 2 18000K power glo T-8's), and the clownfish are eating great. The only problem I can see is maybe my pH, which fluctuates from 8.2-8.6, what do you guys think?? and if pH is the problem, how do I lower it, my LFS doesn't sell anything to lower pH, only raise it. The only thing I could think of is acetic acid (vinegar), the only reason I though of that is because I've heard of some people using it to mix with kalkwasser.
Thanks

 

[CBRGuy]

how is your tank setup do you have glass tops? If so that would account for your PH problems.

 

[ryan0292002ca]

I have a partial glass top, but it's not sitting directly on top of the tank, it's just to protect the light bulbs from water splashing on them. I have lots of circulation on the water surface. As for the pH being high, I have no clue how it could get high, the only thing I can think of is maybe the buffers in the aragonite sandbed I'm using???

 

[phases99]

If your KH is 100 ppm then that is a little low. I measure in dKH and 100 ppm would be equal to around 5.5 dKH. You should get that up to the 8-12 dKH range. This could prevent those large PH swings you are getting.

 

[ryan0292002ca]

thanks, I'll try that. What should I use to raise the KH and also balance out calcium and KH?

 

[Atari]

What kind of crabs? I would think they would be the number one suspects in this case.

 

[ryan0292002ca]

red legged crabs, I sorta doubt it was them, cause whenever I see any snails on the bottom, the snails never even bother with them unless they've been dead for at least a day or so

 

[JG]

I have seen my red legs pull snails off of the walls and then pick at them until they get them out of their shells. Also , some snails can't right themselves if they fall "on their backs" , making them easy pickins for the crabs.

 

[phases99]

thanks, I'll try that. What should I use to raise the KH and also balance out calcium and KH?

You can use plain old baking soda or something like Reef Builder by Seachem. Once you get the balance right, start using a 2 part additive or Kalk.

 

[piggybank2005]

astrea snails cannot right themselves