Dosing Question

Agreed on the sg. I have been bringing it up slowly over the last week. It had dropped to 1.022 at one point. My PH is a constant at 8.4. It never moves from there even at night (I have a large 24 lighting fuge so this might be helping that). I believe this is due to the coral buillder and reef buffer i use. I can test for iodine but I believe the tests are not very accurate and are hard to use. As I said before I was following the advice of a hardcore reefer. How do I lower the alk? I dont dose anything for it. It has always hanged right about 12. All of my corals seem to be healthy and happy. Ive been hanging at this level for a long time.

 

12 is considered to be high by most folks, but my thinking has always been, if it is stable then go with it. It will drop on it's own normally, but one of those products that you are dosing now is keeping it that high. So obviously it will not come down if you keep dosing the way you have been. And that is the other reason your ph is on the high side as well. It seems you are happy with your tank, but I would suggest dosing just a little less and you might see the ph and alk drop a bit.

 

I believe the coral builder is the culprit for keeping the ALK at that level. I can cut back the amount I throw in my ATO every week and see what happens. I do however, like using that stuff. I have absolutley no PH swings even at night. The reef buffer is what raises the ph. So maybe if I cut back on both just a bit I will lower these numbers. But to be totally honest I never thought there was a problem with having a steady ph at 8.4 and a alk level of 12. It is within the standard guidlines of marine aquariums. All of my corals seem happy. Some of them are really fast growers. Is this wrong? Before I decided to start using these two supplements I had a ph of 7.9 during the day and small drop at night with a alk level in the range of 7-8. Calcium was higher before I started using these two supplements. However, I didnt have many corals at that time. Since I have added many corals which is why I think my cal levels are getting low. A lot of it being used.

 

Thoughts?

 

here is some info on your Reef builder this is the reason why your ALK is high.

Reef Builder™ raises carbonate alkalinity without immediately impacting on pH. With long term use there will be a tendency to stabilize at pH 8.3. Carbonates and calcium are essential to all coral growth. If either becomes deficient, coral growth will cease, followed by a rapid decline in coral health. Used as directed, Reef Builder™ will not deplete calcium, magnesium, or strontium which usually tend to precipitate with increasing alkalinity. Reef Builder™ and Reef Buffer™ may be used together. Use Reef Builder™ to raise carbonate alkalinity without affecting pH. Use Reef Buffer™ to raise carbonate alkalinity and pH.

Seachem. Reef Builder

The other product you are using dose the same thing so i would use one or the other. Now as for your pH it shouldnt be reading at 8.4 because both of those products will not raise your pH above 8.3.

I would continue to bring your SG up, what kind of salt are you using? Also how often do you do water changes and how large? You may find that the BRS products will work better as they can be mixed to suit your needs. Like i only dose 1mL a day at a very slow drip one every 30sec of Ca and ALK.

 

I am glad you brought this up about the reef builder and reef buffer doing essentially the same thing. That was my suspicions when I read about them but I wasnt sure. Another person mentioned this to me while at MACNA last weekend. So I bought the Reef Prime and left the Reef Builder on the counter. I will stop the Reef Builder and use only the Reef Prime and see how things level out. I use Reef Crystals. I do 15 gallons every 1-2 weeks. Sometimes every week and other times once every two weeks. Just depends on the time I have. I am shooting for 1.025 sg so I think I am just about there. Or would you recommend higher? I just bought the Reef Calcium. It says on it that it mimics natural calcium, mag, and stront levels in the wild. I gives specific dosing instructions. I will follow them to a T. I want to try to reach at least 425 for my Cal. Over time as my cal levels have steadily lowered Ive notice my SPS corals have slowed their growth and also coloration is less vivid. This is what has moved me towards a cal supplement. If I were to use the Cal and alk 2 part system from BRS do I need to continue with the PH buffer? Thanks

 

Your Alk is a touch high because your Ca is low. Bring that Ca up, and your Alk will come down some.

 

Thank you. The instructions on the bottle state it will not adversly affect ph or alk. I am going to dose just a small amount each day until I reach my desired levels. I will adjust up or down depending on my results each day to reach my desired levels. I am hoping once I hit the 400-425 mark on CA then my alk and ph will drop just slightly. Then I will only dose the exact amount needed to maintain CA levels. This sound right to you guys? BTW if I switch to the BRS two part dose system for alk and ca will this also maintain my ph? Or will I need to continue a ph buffer? Before I ever started dosing anything my ph would hold at 7.9 during the day and drop slightly at night. I felt it was too low due to my ATO. So I started dosing my ATO.

 

Question. If I start using BRS two part dosing system of ca and alk will this also maintain my ph so I can discontinue the ph buffer? Thank you

 

Yes with a SG of 1.026 NS and dosing of ALK 8-9dKH and Ca of 400-420 you will have a stable pH.