fishmanmike01 Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 So i havent had a ph probe in a while(old one broke) and i got my new one yesterday.It is reading the tank at 7.8 to 8.1 and just for $hits and giggles i decided to test my ATO water with it and it is reading at 6.51 so my questions are: 1. Do you think the tank ph is a little low? I would like 8.1-8.4 2. Do you think its low because of the ATO water? 3. Should i buff the ATO water to the 8.1-8.4 range Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smann Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 7.8 at night is at the low end but not a problem, I also went thru the low ph problem after hooking up my controller. I believe(i could be wrong) it is difficult to test ro/di water. it can be buffered with a supplement or with a little baking soda. I found with my tank it was several things, running calcium reactor 24/7, overcrowing, waterchanges, etc. my final solution was a DIY kalk reactor at night that my ATO runs thru. my tank has now balanced out at 8-8.2, even if I dont refresh my kalk or turn it off for a day it doesnt drop below 7.95 or so. I did adjust my calcium reacto to only run during the light cycle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted January 2, 2009 Author Share Posted January 2, 2009 Why do you believe it is dificult to test RODI water? If i do buff it will that help bring it up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smann Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 I remember reading about it on WWM and also a post here. for example I just checked mine with a pen and it read 9.5. Yes buffering will bring it in line depending how many gallons your resevoir is, I added a few teaspoons at a time to 30gal. Check WWM there is alot of info on this, I spent hrs there when I went looking for answers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted January 2, 2009 Author Share Posted January 2, 2009 My resevoir is about 12 gal and i go through it in about 6 days, I just figured putting in water with that low of a ph has to slowly bring it down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smann Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 I dont remember everything as I went thru this last Feb, but I tried aereating and buffering my TO water as reccomended and it didnt do much. Mine was a bit more than yours 7.6-7.8 and it took several small steps and the final was the addition of kalk. I tried the kalk slurry and the drip both were a hassle and a mess, the slurry only raised the ph for a few minutes. I have added a 50 gal refugium with reverse lighting this summer and I think it helped alot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smann Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 Just checking, and I'm sure you did, calibrate the probe beforte putting it back in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted January 2, 2009 Author Share Posted January 2, 2009 Yes i did. I really would like to dose kalk but to be honest i know squat about it and what i have read it seems pretty confusing to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madmike Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 kalk is really easy, especially if you use some sort of a reactor. Instead of your ATO freshwater going into the tank directly, you can pass it into a kalk reactor and then into the tank. Really helps with ph...sometimes too much...I have my controller monitor my ph and shut it off if the ph gets above 8.4 which it has been lately, but I evap about 5gallons/day. You just have to dump some of the kalk powder in the reactor every once in awhile and you're all set. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted January 2, 2009 Author Share Posted January 2, 2009 So what happens when your ph is high but you still need to compensate for evaporation? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smann Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 Kalk is intended to supplement calcium, the high ph is just a benefit if the tank is low and you dose it continusely in small amounts. High ph is a different problem altogether, you would just continue to top off with ro/di and use a different calcium supplement if needed It is easy to setup a kalk reactor as stated above, when the kalk is stirred its more concentrated going into the sump, to compensate for rising ph I just dont have the stir pump come on during the day, only a few times at night. you can tell when to add more kalk, your daytime ph will slowly begin to fall say from 8.2-8.3 down to 8.1-8.2 in a few weeks, then just replenish the kalk a cup or so at a time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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