Cannot get my ORP above 128

[Gabaghoul]

Just setup my new 300 gallon Reef Savvy tank. Total system is 420 gallons of water, 60 in the sump and 60 in a frag tank. As part of my setup I have chosen to use Ozone to achieve crystal clear water consistently. My setup consists of an OR150 Ozone Reactor, an Ozotech Poseiden 200 mg/hr. Generator, an Alita air pump, an Ozotech IQ-20 Air Dryer and it is fed by my systems Reeflo Hammerhead Hybrid Gold return pump thru a manifold connection.

Anyway, I think I have the thing working perfectly but I have one problem. I cannot get my ORP to rise above 128. Is there something I'm not getting here? I have the unit cranked to max output and still cannot get the ORP to break the 128 mark.

I should mention, I just set the tank up last week and the unit has only been running for 3 days. I have not added salt to the tank yet because I was checking all my plumbing for leaks before adding it. Other than that that's all I have.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. It's really painful when you spend almost $1000 on a system to do just one thing and it doesn't do it. :-(

John

 

[choff]

Give it time.

I tend to not chase numbers, especially orp. I use orp as a trending tool. Its a complex number and does not specifically translate into a measure of tank health.

 

[zoomonster]

I have an ozotech 2oomg that I only run at about 20% feeding into my in sump skimmer (controlled by apex orp probe) and no issue keeping orp in my range of 360-375 in a 200g tank. No chemist so not quite sure the exact explanationn but I suspect lack of salinity has something to do with it. There's a reason why skimmers don't work in freshwater tanks and never heard of ozone being used in freshwater either (other than spa). Get the tank salty and then see what it does.

 

[Gabaghoul]

Thanks guys. BTW, I do suspect salt has something to do with it although I did do some reading and supposedly people use ozone in Discus tanks. Their ideal readings are from 125-200 - sounds very similar to the numbers I'm getting. I think I may have to dump the salt in at this point.

The only thing I don't dig if that is the case is that my water has not cleared up and if it is used to achieve crystal clear water ,regardless of the number, I was hoping to see that happen. My real goal would be to avoid replacing carbon every 2 or 3 weeks. That was my main driver. Crystal clear always.

 

[Gabaghoul]

So interesting. My ORP jumped up to 329 in the middle of the night last night. I kicked up the amount of water going through the reactor. Now my Hammerhead pump is wide open. That seemed to have helped. Didn't even add any salt yet.

Of course, it is starting to come down a bit. Since it's peak of 329 at about 5am this morning, it has dropped to 321. Not entirely sure why but I will keep an eye on it.

 

[Gabaghoul]

ORP hit 400 last night and dropped to 360 this morning. Still fresh water. Apparently, you can achieve the same ORP numbers in fresh and salt water.

Just added about half the salt I need a few minutes ago.

 

[Gabaghoul]

OK. So i have salt in the tank now and 4 fish for about 1 week. ORP is hovering around 280 for the week. I would like to keep that number around 375 - 380 if possible. I figure with and Ozone generator that should be achievable.

Does anyone have any suggestions? My Poseiden(200 mg/hr) generator is at maximum and it has been for 2 weeks. Do you think I may need more flow through the reactor to achieve those numbers or possibly a larger generator?

 

[Flipside]

My ORP for the past several days:

It's very common to not hold steady. Everything that touches the water column, or builds up in the tank (free floating), will negatively impact your ORP readings.

Either way, just let it run and you'll be fine. 280 is not that bad (especially with a new tank). The bigger numbers come with maturity. Just my experience. I don't "science" much.

 

[Gabaghoul]

Thanks. You might be right.

I did hit 300 tonight. So maybe my Ozone generator is enough for the tank. Just takes time.

 

[McGee]

I am wondering if the ozone is working, those readings look line normal reading without ozone.

 

[Flipside]

I am wondering if the ozone is working, those readings look line normal reading without ozone.

Sorry... Are you referring to the graphical I posted?

If so, mine is working fine. I use a bulb-based ozone generator, and it hardly kicks on these days. My UV Sterilizer does most of the work these days. My ORP stays in the area of 450 with little effort these days.

Wouldn't own a tank without one or the other. [emoji4]

 

[McGee]

Sorry... Are you referring to the graphical I posted?

If so, mine is working fine. I use a bulb-based ozone generator, and it hardly kicks on these days. My UV Sterilizer does most of the work these days. My ORP stays in the area of 450 with little effort these days.

Wouldn't own a tank without one or the other. [emoji4]

No sorry for the confusion it was meant for Gabaghoul.