lewisriverfisherman Posted February 14, 2018 Share Posted February 14, 2018 (edited) I'm using instant ocean for water changes and the parameters for alk are 11. I feel that this is to high for a reef tank, in my experience it should be around 9. Is there a way to lower my alk without having to buy new salt with the paramertrs to my liking around 9. Do you guys feel that 11 is to high and should be brought down? Or will it be alright if it's stable? Any corals that would be more sensitive to high alk? The reason I ask this is because I have a few zoas that haven't opened up in a week and before I get my zoas from rudy i want to make sure im good. Thanks in advance for your advise. Now the stress begins!! Edited February 14, 2018 by lewisriverfisherman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
503reefland Posted February 14, 2018 Share Posted February 14, 2018 What did you test with my last 600 gallons worth of IO reef crystals has been 9-9.8 testing with Hannah alk, and Red Sea Tritation at 35 ppt. What salinity are you mixing up and what do you check that with? I remember I got a bucket from pet smart that was like 11.5dkh that had slot of dust on it, but I order the 35 dollar box off amazon so maybe an old batch you got or it settled and needs to be shaken up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald525 Posted February 14, 2018 Share Posted February 14, 2018 I tend to run my alk on the higher side like 10 or 11 and have no issues at all and I know others do as well. In fact some of my zoas (the blondies tend to like a higher alk) Right now you just started up you tank and it is still maturing and there is not a lot of growing maturing frags that are using up the alk for growth. You should ask these guys like Bill how quickly his alk levels can drop. I wouldn't worry about lowering it if things are fine. I would check the parameters of the IO when you first mix it simply because there can be bad batches of salt where the alk is not where it is supposed to be at the salinity you want. Just with simple evaporation and water changes with the alk at the lower level it will eventually even out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisriverfisherman Posted February 14, 2018 Author Share Posted February 14, 2018 26 minutes ago, 503reefland said: What did you test with my last 600 gallons worth of IO reef crystals has been 9-9.8 testing with Hannah alk, and Red Sea Tritation at 35 ppt. What salinity are you mixing up and what do you check that with? I remember I got a bucket from pet smart that was like 11.5dkh that had slot of dust on it, but I order the 35 dollar box off amazon so maybe an old batch you got or it settled and needs to be shaken up. I didnt test before i did water change. 1.025 Salinity and I checked with brand new salfert test kit. I got a bag at petsmart in Longview. Maybe i will shake it up. My parameters 1.025 salinity 11.2 alk 440 cal Don't know mag yet as I haven't got my test kit yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisriverfisherman Posted February 14, 2018 Author Share Posted February 14, 2018 13 minutes ago, Emerald525 said: I tend to run my alk on the higher side like 10 or 11 and have no issues at all and I know others do as well. In fact some of my zoas (the blondies tend to like a higher alk) Right now you just started up you tank and it is still maturing and there is not a lot of growing maturing frags that are using up the alk for growth. You should ask these guys like Bill how quickly his alk levels can drop. I wouldn't worry about lowering it if things are fine. I would check the parameters of the IO when you first mix it simply because there can be bad batches of salt where the alk is not where it is supposed to be at the salinity you want. Just with simple evaporation and water changes with the alk at the lower level it will eventually even out. Thanks kim this makes me feel better knowing that others are running a higher alk. Im going to test next water change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdxmonkeyboy Posted April 24, 2018 Share Posted April 24, 2018 FYI... muriatic acid will lower your alk instantly. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Exodus Posted April 24, 2018 Share Posted April 24, 2018 (edited) On 2/14/2018 at 11:15 AM, lewisriverfisherman said: My parameters 1.025 salinity 11.2 alk 440 cal Don't know mag yet as I haven't got my test kit yet. Alk looks Fine, Cal looks Fine, Make sure to test the Mag just to ensure everything is in proper balance. 11 is higher than the typically recommended range but as long as Cal & Mag are within range and things are holding stable you should have no issues. In fact Dana Riddle suggests in his studies that a higher Alk = Faster Growing Corals, Something Ryan & the BRS team decided to follow through with as of recently with an Investigates Series most likely due to Dana's '17 Macna Presentation. I would be more concerned if you were planning on lowering that number, how exactly you intended on doing that in a 20 Gallon slowly without causing a massive Alk Swing. Edited April 24, 2018 by Exodus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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