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Moneymaks24

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I read I can use soda water but I'm not sure what kind or how much.

My ph peaks at 8.55 I would like to lower it to peak at 8.4

Thanks in advance.
 

Dan_P

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I read I can use soda water but I'm not sure what kind or how much.

My ph peaks at 8.55 I would like to lower it to peak at 8.4

Thanks in advance.

Since I added algae to my sump, my pH has been climbing and peaking above 8.50. The aquarium hosts only clean up crew from Long Island Sound. I assume the algae is growing and absorbing CO2 faster than the system is equilibrating with the air.

Seeing your post I decided to measure the pH with a new probe and then with the old probe after it sat in a cleaning solution (from Foster&Smith, dilute hydrochloric acid solution) for an hour, rinsed for two hours and recalibrated. The pH reading from both probes is 8.36. Reading from the old probe pre-cleaning 8.44.

So, I join the others and cast a suspicious eye on your pH reading and refrain from adding anything to the aquarium.

Soda water is plain sparkling water, no sugar or minerals added. I need to do a quick calculation to answer your how much question.
 

Dan_P

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I read I can use soda water but I'm not sure what kind or how much.

My ph peaks at 8.55 I would like to lower it to peak at 8.4

Thanks in advance.

A few more items.

What is your alkalinity? You can impact pH a small amount, the range you are concerned about, with a high alkalinity.

If your system is in equilibrium with the air, any CO2 you add will escape from the tank, just like soda going flat.

I estimate (though my confidence is not very high in it) that you would need 7 liters or about two gallons of club soda (assuming 5 g CO2 per liter) to push the pH from 8.5 to 8.4 in a 50 gallon system. If I had any club soda I would have tested my estimate on a liter of my tank water.

If you feel strongly about adding club soda to your aquarium, first try it with a liter of tank water. Monitor the one liter sample with your pH probe while you add small amounts of club soda by syringe or with a teaspoon.

Let us know what happens!
 
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Moneymaks24

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You guys were right as usual, after calibrating probe my PH is 8.30, right where I want it. Thanks again
 
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Moneymaks24

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Yea it's been 8 months since last calibration, I'll try to do it 2x a year from now on.
 

Reef Lobster

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Hah its always a probe! i was about to tell you that your alkalinity is fine but if you insist on a lower PH to gradually increase ALK to 10/11. Keep ALK CALC and MAG levels stable to keep PH in check. Read up on how MAG Binds to CALC to avoid fast uptake
 

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