This is not necessarily an "issue", its more a curiosity about other peoples experiences.
(I'm in the process of upgrading to GHL, so these readings are coming from both Apex and Profilux. Probes recently calibrated)
So when I switch to @Randy Holmes-Farley's recipe #2 (1.5x concentration), I finally got my pH up where I wanted it around 8.45 - 8.55. Its a 160 mixed reef with lots of frags, but nothing too large. My alkalinity consumption, as you would imagine, is pretty high. But with good growth (which was the goal) and everything seems fine. I normally keep the Alk ~9.4 - 9.5. My frag tank lights, fuge lights, skimmer, and dosing schedule are all programmed to balance out the pH fluctuations and keep Alkalinity stable throughout the day and night.
I've never seen much info from people who run 8.6 and above, so I did my best to keep it below that. And for a few months, 8.53 - 8.6 was where the pH stayed. (with Alk continuing ~9.5)
Here is where running such high pH can be a bit of a headache. As I'm trading out GHL/Apex I forget to dose for 2 days. And I traded out the Alkatronic for a reefbot (a HUGE mistake, sigh) So normally 2 days is not a huge deal, but with pH sooo high, the Alk consumption rate is also high. And with my testing becoming inconsistent (ultimately my bad) the Alk dropped. But the pH didn't fluctuate to much (down to 8.5)
Now that I'm back on a normal dose/test schedual. Alk is back up to 9.0 and pH is 8.7 - 8.9!
Corals have had zero side effect from any of this. Unfortunately my fav thing in the tank (long tentacle anemone) is furious. He looks terrible. I'll of course be doing some water changes over the next few days since running pH @ 8.7 for a week seems to be where the downside starts for my tank. Also running with no lights for the next day or so.
AAAAAAnywaaaayy, I guess I just wanted to share my experience so far and, since there isn't a lot of threads talking about this high of pH. I wanted to get some takes from you peeps. Any thoughts or long-term experiences in the 8.6+ range?
(I'm in the process of upgrading to GHL, so these readings are coming from both Apex and Profilux. Probes recently calibrated)
So when I switch to @Randy Holmes-Farley's recipe #2 (1.5x concentration), I finally got my pH up where I wanted it around 8.45 - 8.55. Its a 160 mixed reef with lots of frags, but nothing too large. My alkalinity consumption, as you would imagine, is pretty high. But with good growth (which was the goal) and everything seems fine. I normally keep the Alk ~9.4 - 9.5. My frag tank lights, fuge lights, skimmer, and dosing schedule are all programmed to balance out the pH fluctuations and keep Alkalinity stable throughout the day and night.
I've never seen much info from people who run 8.6 and above, so I did my best to keep it below that. And for a few months, 8.53 - 8.6 was where the pH stayed. (with Alk continuing ~9.5)
Here is where running such high pH can be a bit of a headache. As I'm trading out GHL/Apex I forget to dose for 2 days. And I traded out the Alkatronic for a reefbot (a HUGE mistake, sigh) So normally 2 days is not a huge deal, but with pH sooo high, the Alk consumption rate is also high. And with my testing becoming inconsistent (ultimately my bad) the Alk dropped. But the pH didn't fluctuate to much (down to 8.5)
Now that I'm back on a normal dose/test schedual. Alk is back up to 9.0 and pH is 8.7 - 8.9!
Corals have had zero side effect from any of this. Unfortunately my fav thing in the tank (long tentacle anemone) is furious. He looks terrible. I'll of course be doing some water changes over the next few days since running pH @ 8.7 for a week seems to be where the downside starts for my tank. Also running with no lights for the next day or so.
AAAAAAnywaaaayy, I guess I just wanted to share my experience so far and, since there isn't a lot of threads talking about this high of pH. I wanted to get some takes from you peeps. Any thoughts or long-term experiences in the 8.6+ range?