PH reading at over 8.6 on test kit

Joeush123

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 29, 2020
Messages
30
Reaction score
4
Location
Barnsley
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Hi the past 2 weeks my corals have begun to deteriorate, however my carpet anemone, fish and inverts are fine. when testing the PH with salifirt test kits it is reading blue i.e over 8.6 and i have used two different test kits to check this, just a bit stumped on what could cause this.
 

SCReef'n

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Dec 27, 2018
Messages
1,309
Reaction score
6,066
Location
Waponi Woo
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
That seems too high to sustain. I’d suspect the test kit but what additives are you adding to the tank?
 
OP
OP
J

Joeush123

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 29, 2020
Messages
30
Reaction score
4
Location
Barnsley
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
That seems too high to sustain. I’d suspect the test kit but what additives are you adding to the tank?
I have a DD ocean dosing pump that doses the Triton method, and then i feed with reef roids and use vibrant liquid.
 

Randy Holmes-Farley

Reef Chemist
View Badges
Joined
Sep 5, 2014
Messages
66,553
Reaction score
62,858
Location
Arlington, Massachusetts, United States
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
OP
OP
J

Joeush123

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 29, 2020
Messages
30
Reaction score
4
Location
Barnsley
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
You pH is almost certainly not that high unless you are using very high pH additives such as kalkwasser. Kits are not a good way to measure pH.

This has more:

pH And The Reef Aquarium
http://www.reefedition.com/ph-and-the-reef-aquarium/
I’ve done some water changes and the PH is now reading back to 8.3, however none of my coral are still coming out and the rest of my parameters seem fine and no pests are eating them either
 

Randy Holmes-Farley

Reef Chemist
View Badges
Joined
Sep 5, 2014
Messages
66,553
Reaction score
62,858
Location
Arlington, Massachusetts, United States
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I’ve done some water changes and the PH is now reading back to 8.3, however none of my coral are still coming out and the rest of my parameters seem fine and no pests are eating them either

FWIW, water changes are not good way to deal with pH issues, but I expect your issue is something else, perhaps which a water change might help.

pH is determined completely by alkalinity and the CO2 level int eh water, which is often driven by CO2 in your home air. Thus, water changes help little.
 
OP
OP
J

Joeush123

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 29, 2020
Messages
30
Reaction score
4
Location
Barnsley
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
FWIW, water changes are not good way to deal with pH issues, but I expect your issue is something else, perhaps which a water change might help.

pH is determined completely by alkalinity and the CO2 level int eh water, which is often driven by CO2 in your home air. Thus, water changes help little.
yes the issue must be something else as the PH is now stable again, however corals are still dying,kinda stumped on what could be killing them as my green carpet anemone is expanded and healthy. Could a lack of phosphate cause coral death?
 

Randy Holmes-Farley

Reef Chemist
View Badges
Joined
Sep 5, 2014
Messages
66,553
Reaction score
62,858
Location
Arlington, Massachusetts, United States
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
yes the issue must be something else as the PH is now stable again, however corals are still dying,kinda stumped on what could be killing them as my green carpet anemone is expanded and healthy. Could a lack of phosphate cause coral death?

Yes, but it needs to be very low.
 

Mastering the art of locking and unlocking water pathways: What type of valves do you have on your aquarium plumbing?

  • Ball valves.

    Votes: 55 49.5%
  • Gate valves.

    Votes: 61 55.0%
  • Check valves.

    Votes: 25 22.5%
  • None.

    Votes: 28 25.2%
  • Other.

    Votes: 9 8.1%
Back
Top