help with alk

[currentking]

I am using a hagen test kit and the kh guide says that you dont want your kh to go over 125mg/l . mine is a 130 and when I convert this to dkh it converts to 7.26. all the websites say you want your dkh between 8 and 12. What is going on here? Who is correct? and between 8 and 12 is very broad. Can anyone give me any specifics?

 

[aquarius77]

I shoot for 10 -11.
7.26 is low in my opinion, whats the rest of your parameters?

 

[currentking]

nitrates 20
nitrites 0
phosphates .25 or less
ph 7.9
calcium 460
alk 7.26
salt 1.025

 

[Azurel]

IS this in the new tank James? Not sure why you would have any nitrites unless you have had a small re-cycle in your established tank. Has there been any mass death like a fish or anything? I shoot for my alk to be around 9-11dkh.....Zoas and palys, rics seem to thrive better in this range. Fi you raise your alk a bit higher then your PH will be better as well, when did you measure your PH? 7.9 is acceptable when the lights first come on or at night but should be much higher during the day more like 8.1-8.4 range. At least that is what I shoot for....

 

[currentking]

I corrected the nitrites. Its at zero. What's the best way to get my alk up? Everything else is good

 

[b0bby1]

buffer or water change, i add buffer every other day. that is the only thing in my tank that ever changes.

 

[fishes2889]

kalk drip

 

[currentking]

i got a alk buffer today and I will start getting it in line. Dam, my corals could have been doing much better, there Igo listening to a stupid test kit telling me to have my alk at 7.....grrrrrr

 

[aquarius77]

Baking soda will raise alk but it has a slight lowering effect on pH. Your ph is on the lower end already so your storebought buffer is most likely a better choice for you right now. If you bake baking soda in the oven and then use it it will raise alk and pH.

I dont know if you have seen this before but here ya go, a very handy chemical calculator.
http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/chemcalc.html

Kalk should not be used to raise alk, altho it can. Kalkwasser is a balanced additive (alk/cal) best suited to maintain levels, not achieve them. The reason for this is its pH is so high that adding enough kalk to boost a parameter will also skyrocket the pH.
High pH is not so horrible on the animals (imo) but it will play hell with your ability to achieve and maintain parameters such as alk and cal. When you make a alk or calcium addition and you have a pH of 8.5, the supplemnt you add to the tank will precipitate and basically do nothing at all except gunk up your powerheads and heaters. It might even cause a snowstorm.