Help.....Low PH.....high Alk......high Calcium...what to do?

[jhiltabiddle]

I have a 15 gallon reef tank with 22# of live rock, 80 watts of PC, seaclone protien skimmer, and small chiller. Here is my problem...my pH is low (about 7.9)....my alkalinity is high (about 7 meq/L=19.6 KH)...and my calcium is very high (about 600 mg/L).

Will it hurt to add more buffer?

What can I do to get my water chemistry back in check?

Please help......xenia no look so good !

 

[randy holmes-farley]

How are you measuring ph?

If the alkalinity value and the pH value are right, and you are not using Seachem salt with excess borate, then the tank has a big excess of CO2 in the water keeping the pH down.

DO NOT ADD BUFFER. You are already overdosed on it.

Put an air stone in a cup of water using outside air for an hour and see if the pH rises. If so (it should) do the same with indoor air. Depending on what you get, the tank may need more aeration (outside and inside rise) or more outside air in the house (only outside rises).

 

[jhiltabiddle]

thanks for your reply.....I'll give that a shot...

 

[randy holmes-farley]

You're welcome.

Good luck.

 

[Klyde Krashkop]

I am not the one that started this thread, but this is EXACTLY what my problem has been, my PH dropped below the scale on a red sea kit and I was stressing as much as my corals about it. Low end of the scale on teh kit is 7.4. I opened a window and put on a sweater (its about 25F here) and in 1 1/2 hours the PH has climbed to 7.8 and the tank doesnt look quite as milky, hopefully my elegant will survive this, it isnt looking happy at all. Shrooms look a little less than happy but everything else seem OK. My green stars are fully extended and happy.

I fault the Kerosene heater we have been using to supliment the heat, it will be used much more sparingly from now on.

Luckily I can open the windows and shut the door to the room the tank is in to keep from freezing out the rest of the house, I have more than sufficient heaters on it to keep the temp in it stable.

 

[randy holmes-farley]

I fault the Kerosene heater we have been using to supliment the heat,

An unvented kerosene heater will certainly boost the CO2 tremendously.

 

[darkblade]

I have a similar problem.

low pH 8.0
moderate dKH 11
high Ca 700 !

I have not added any calcium supplements for 2 weeks now. I have added SeaChem Reef Buffer at the recommended dosage to maintain my dKh and attempt to raise my pH.

Livestock in my 30gal tank consists of:
3 Monti. cap. - good growth
1 acro frag. - moderate growth
2 open brains - good growth
colt - running rampant
4 types of mushrooms - excellent growth
GSP, Bali Xenia, Xenia elongata, yellow polyps - all running rampant..
Blastomussa - good growth
Caulestra - fair growth

I have three small fish, 2 percs, yellow watchman...

I will try the airstone procedure to see if my low pH is related to CO2 (i have a strong suspicion it is), however it's baffling why my Ca is so high.
One would think, with the good growth of the corals, I would see a drop in measured Ca

 

[randy holmes-farley]

It will take quite a while to deplete calcium from 700 ppm. Assuming that you believe the value (for example, you test your salt mix and it is more normal), then I'd suggest just maintianing alkalinity when it drops. Eventually calcium will come down.

Water changes will hasten the process.

This article describes the options for such a situation:

Solving Calcium and Alkalinity Problems
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/nov2002/chem.htm

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Randy,
I think I have the same problem.
29 g w/ softies and dersa clam
Hagen test
Kh 150mg/L
Ca 500mg/L
pH 8.02 - Pinpoint monitor

I did the airstone in a quart of water and watched pH rise to 8.12. So I put an airstone in the tank (as a quick fix) and the pH dropped to 7.83! What up with that?

I have make up water ready to go for a water change, but Kh there is 140 mg/L and pH at 7.78. Didn't measure Ca. I just don't know what to do

Any advise for me?

 

[randy holmes-farley]

I don't know what might have caused that, except that the air that was being added to the tank that way must have had an elevated CO2 level in it. Were you cooking with gas or something like that? Lots of people around?