And…. a PH high of 7.5 with a recirculating co2 scrubber! Ever since having the dinoflagellates, the days of 8.2 to 8.3, have disappeared. This is including dosing about a gallon of saturated kalkwasser per day. Any ideas?
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Tank load ... how many fish how many gallons?And…. a PH high of 7.5 with a recirculating co2 scrubber! Ever since having the dinoflagellates, the days of 8.2 to 8.3, have disappeared. This is including dosing about a gallon of saturated kalkwasser per day. Any ideas?
Freshly calibrated pH probe?And…. a PH high of 7.5 with a recirculating co2 scrubber! Ever since having the dinoflagellates, the days of 8.2 to 8.3, have disappeared. This is including dosing about a gallon of saturated kalkwasser per day. Any ideas?
Around 150 gallons system volume with around 20 fishTank load ... how many fish how many gallons?
Yes, it’s been calibratedFreshly calibrated pH probe?
That is a high fish load. You have two issues here. First, CO2 from the respiration from the fish. Second, H+ from ammonia conversion.Don’t think it’s too many fish. Before the Dino’s the ph was fine. Same fish load.
It wouldn't be that high because he has a pretty significant fish load. You would need to account for the ammonia conversion and the respiration.To have a pH of 7.5 as a result of your ambient air, your air CO2 would need to be around 2500...well past healthy for humans.
Sounds like a measurement issue to me. You say the high is 7.5, so how low does it read? I suppose your Alkalinity is normal?Yes, it’s been calibrated
My alkalinity is around 9.1. The low ph this morning was 7.67Sounds like a measurement issue to me. You say the high is 7.5, so how low does it read? I suppose your Alkalinity is normal?
Have you recalibrated the pH probe with FRESH buffer solutions?And…. a PH high of 7.5 with a recirculating co2 scrubber! Ever since having the dinoflagellates, the days of 8.2 to 8.3, have disappeared. This is including dosing about a gallon of saturated kalkwasser per day. Any ideas?
Yes! I might add, I have a 20 gallon nano with two small clowns that suffers from low oh as well. It usually runs low around 7.65 and highs around 7.9.
It is easy enough to determine the source of the CO2 causing low pH (high indoor CO2, inadequate aeration with indoor air, or pH measurement issues) by doing this aeration test:
The Aeration Test
Some of the possibilities listed above require some effort to diagnose. Problems 3 and 4 are quite common, and here is a way to distinguish them. Remove a cup of tank water and measure the pH. Then aerate it for an hour with an airstone using outside air. The pH should rise if the pH is unusually low for the measured alkalinity, as in Figure 3 (if it does not rise, most likely one of the measurements (pH or alkalinity) is in error). Then repeat the same experiment on a new cup of water using inside air. If the pH rises there too, then the aquarium pH will rise with more aeration because it is only the aquarium that contains excess carbon dioxide. If the pH does not rise inside (or rises very little), then the inside air contains excess CO2, and more aeration with that same air will not solve the low pH problem (although aeration with fresher air should).
Thanks Randy!It is easy enough to determine the source of the CO2 causing low pH (high indoor CO2, inadequate aeration with indoor air, or pH measurement issues) by doing this aeration test:
The Aeration Test
Some of the possibilities listed above require some effort to diagnose. Problems 3 and 4 are quite common, and here is a way to distinguish them. Remove a cup of tank water and measure the pH. Then aerate it for an hour with an airstone using outside air. The pH should rise if the pH is unusually low for the measured alkalinity, as in Figure 3 (if it does not rise, most likely one of the measurements (pH or alkalinity) is in error). Then repeat the same experiment on a new cup of water using inside air. If the pH rises there too, then the aquarium pH will rise with more aeration because it is only the aquarium that contains excess carbon dioxide. If the pH does not rise inside (or rises very little), then the inside air contains excess CO2, and more aeration with that same air will not solve the low pH problem (although aeration with fresher air should).