pH buffers

As some of you may now from my other threads, I have been having an issue with my pH and kH. I use coralife saltmix and it holds a steady pH of 7.8. I just finished up using a bottle of seachem reef buffer and it seems no matter how much I added, the pH kept dropping back down to 7.8. To keep it at 8.0 or higher I had to add so much that my kH went up to 16+.

Currently no hard corals and very little corraline algae growth since the tank is only 1.5 months old. I want to add some soft corals and am not sure what to do about my pH kH balance since the buffer seems to not affect the pH to much. Is there another buffer out there that works better? Is 7.8 too low for softies? I know with my cichlids people always said a stable pH is better than an optimal pH that fluctuates all the time.

 

I've heard many people with successful reefs at PH 7.9-8.0, I'm not an expert but i would not say by any means the low PH is good for them, it may not be awful acclimating new frags to it may be rough on them also. Have you tested your source water ? If its tap water try doing a WC with some RO/DI water from your LFS and test their water against what your making and you may find a big difference! Hope this helps and good luck!

 

How much surface agitation do you have on your tank? Do you have a sump?

 

That is really strange Reef Buffer worked for me. What is your magnesium and alk? - the coralline comment has me wondering about your big 3.

 

My reef is mostly sps and ph hovers around 7.8/7.9 and haven't really had a problem other than some macro algae. I have tried seachem reef buffer to bring it up but it always goes right back. I went to far as to run the air intake for my Skimmer like 12 feet to a window to bring in fresh air and that actually brought it up .1. After that I gave up and everything seems to be fine. I wouldn't worry as long as its stable.

 

Almost always pH issue has to do with co2. Trying to fix it with a buffer is a waste of time and money. Buffer is for alk level.
To address your pH issue you need to address co2 levels in your water. First make sure you have good water circulation at the surface for gas exchange. Remove lids open cabinets etc. If there is no change it's probably because co2 levels in your house are high. Co2 is very soluble and will get into your system a lot easier than it gets out. With a skimmer and good circulation it generally reaches and equilibrium with the levels in your house.
To change the levels in your house let some fresh air in. Open doors, and windows. Some people even run the airline to the skimmer to the outside. And some use a co2 absorbent to and run air through it to the skimmer.
Another choice is to use kw in your auto top off. KW has a high pH and that raises the pH of your tank. Also it uses co2 in the water to form carbonates. By using co2 it also raises the pH.

 

Good stuff.
pH is always a pain with nanos (certainly in my experience ) - how big is this tank?

 

What r u measuring PH with? Often times the liquid test kits arent very accurate too...

 

Sorry I was out all day. The tank does not have a sump or fuge or skimmer yet. Only has 2 small clowns so I am not sure how much CO2 they could make. I have very good surface agitation, do have a glass top but that is not the issue. I left it off for 24hours with a powerhead pointed right at the surface with no change in CO2 levels. I have a HOB filter and 3 powerheads in the tank, 46 gallon. I do use liquid test kits for pH and alk what would be more accurate? Not sure what my Ca or Mag are have not purchased thsoe kits yet since the tank is new and I do not yet have any corals

 

All the previous replies have it covered in my opinion PghSteeler

Just wanted to add, if it is a new set up, then I would not worry about PH
there are lots of chemical changes occuring in a new tank, and you will not get stable readings for a while

7.8 is not terrible by any means, PH rises and falls over the course of a 24 hour period
and is normally at its highest at the end of the light up period , so do your testing at same time of day each time you test

mine typically starts the day at 7.78 (PH probe) and finishes the day at 8.26 or 8.27
if I used liquid test kit and I tested in the morning, then I may also believe my PH was a problem