How To Raise pH?

[cccharliecc]

The pH in my tank is always on the low side, 7.95 - 8.02 and I would like to see it in the 8.2 range.
Those are my current readings. I had the Apex Gold and the pH readings were 8.00-8.15, but I just installed the new Apex WiFi model and calibrated the pH probe 3 times and the readings are now what I posted, and here is a pic also.

I have fresh outside air piped into my skimmer already, I open the windows every couple of days, but that is not a long term solution or option I like really and we have all tried to not breathe as much.

What is the best way to raise the pH in my tank and keep it there?

 

[cccharliecc]

Oh, I also dose BRS 2 part

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

That pH is perfectly fine. If you want it higher, you can switch to a higher pH two part using sodium hydroxide instead of the sodium carbonate, you can bring fresher air into the room, or you can put a CO2 scrubber on the skimmer or run an airline from it to the outside:

pH And The Reef Aquarium
http://www.reefedition.com/ph-and-the-reef-aquarium/

 

[griff500]

I've just added a CO2 scrubber (Fauna Marin) for the same 'issue' and it is very effective.

 

[cccharliecc]

I always thought 8.2 is ideal. I just feel like 7.95 all the time and hitting 8 every so often is too low.

 

[cccharliecc]

Isn’t a co2 scrubber an expensive solution long term though?

 

[griff500]

I don't know yet but it works. Cost will depend on how long the media lasts.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Yes, scrubbers are expensive.

Many great tanks have pH down to 7.8

 

[griff500]

Yes, scrubbers are expensive.

£60 including media or make one for less. I have seen reports of media lasting from 2 weeks to 12 weeks.

Are we talking about the same thing?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

£60 including media or make one for less. I have seen reports of media lasting from 2 weeks to 12 weeks.

Are we talking about the same thing?

Yes. [emoji3]

 

[griff500]

One person's "too expensive" is another person's "don't care", although if the media needs changing every two weeks I'll probably agree with you.

My usual nightly low of 7.8 has immediately increased to 8, so it certainly works immediately if it's a 'problem' that you want to fix.

I'm aware that there are a lot of great tanks with 7.8 but perhaps, given that all tanks seem to be somewhat individual, increasing pH might be a factor in the success of one tank and irrelevant in another?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

FWIW, I didn't make the judgement of whether they were "too" expensive.

 

[griff500]

I know that Randy - you would never state opinion as fact.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

One person's "too expensive" is another person's "don't care", although if the media needs changing every two weeks I'll probably agree with you.

My usual nightly low of 7.8 has immediately increased to 8, so it certainly works immediately if it's a 'problem' that you want to fix.

I'm aware that there are a lot of great tanks with 7.8 but perhaps, given that all tanks seem to be somewhat individual, increasing pH might be a factor in the success of one tank and irrelevant in another?

The main thin that pH is likely to change, int eh range above pH 7.8 is hard coral growth rate. Higher gives higher growth.

Are other things improved? Healthier corals more resistant to other problems, like heat shock, chemical stress, etc.? That may be true, but probably lacks clear evidence.

 

[griff500]

I would presume that better growth is a consequence of better conditions for the corals and thus I assume that their health is better, which should have associated benefits such as the ones you have outlined. It is a presumption, of course, but it seems reasonable.

I can't see any reason why 8.2 instead of 7.8 would have any negative consequences. I'm sure corals can survive in a wide variety of conditions but I think they will tend to thrive within tighter parameters?

Anything I say can be taken with a pinch of salt as I only have a few years of making mistakes to learn from. Thank goodness for the internet or I'd have made a lot more mistakes!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Well, hard coral growth relates directly to a number of factors that may or may not really reflect "health" as opposed to making the specific calcification processes (that often limit growth) more readily accomplished.

For example, calcification involves pumping out H+ that remains when a coral takes bicarbonate, uses the carbonate for skeleton formation, and is left with excess H+.

HCO3- ---> H+ + CO3-- ---> H+ + skeleton formation

Lower pH means higher H+ outside the coral, that the coral has to pump out the H+ against a higher chemical gradient (i.e., is harder). That is a likely reason that lower pH (higher H+ outside) slows hard coral growth.

Does that otherwise mean the coral is less healthy at lower pH? That may be harder to pin down.

 

[griff500]

I had a master scoly a couple of years ago - 'had' being the painful word in that sentence - and the coral looked healthy, was feeding, had great colour and kept growing. The skeleton appeared not to keep pace and eventually the coral detached from it's skeleton. I always wondered if slightly low pH contributed to that.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Hard to know with certainty.

 

[rkpetersen]

I have a heavy bioload of mostly stony corals combined with high ambient CO2 levels. I finally managed to achieve a stable pH of 8.2-8.3 and alk of 8.4-8.6 using a combination of two-part, kalkwasser, and CO2 scrubbing. Using just any two of the three, it was a struggle.

 

[SteadyC]

Same for me, takes multiple things to get PH where I want it, just 1 or 2 things was never enough. Right now I use kalk, dose a little extra sodium carbonate from 2 part (to maintain alk, where kalk covers calcium by itself), CO2 scrubbing on protein skimmer input, and macroalgae. In summer, when the house is open, I can pause the CO2 scrubbing media.