wait, if you areusing R/O then your ph comes out at around 6.0 or lower, right. You need to use r/o right, that buffers the ph. that right there may be the first solution to get that ph up. I tried using nuetral buffers when I used the R/O on my freshwater tanks. The ph would never stabilize, that was before I found R/O right.
venturing in to saltwater (PH help!!!)
- Thread starter OhNoBarracuda
- Start date
Oh and I would suggest using Aquarium Pharmecueticals test kit for salt water. The freshwater kit form them also includes a high range ph tester for salt also, but I trust that kit, I have one kit for freshwater that I have had for almost 2 years and it is still accurate, i bought a new one just in case it went bad but all is still good.
Are you buffering and aerating you top off water b4 you add it??? You could be getting ph drops if not, R/O is alot lower then your tank ph, and you would be effectively lowering the ph. Also what type of lighting do you have, NO, HO, VHO, PC, or MH? The more intense the lighting The more plant and algae growht you get, they add O2 during the daay, and CO2 at night, hence a reverse cycle refugium.
i came into saltwater by reading up on the usual sites grimreefer.com , reefcentral, and all the others. i decided that salt would just be a new challenge. So where im going with this, is i splurged i got a whole set up from oceanic(yet to be used) and all the essentials and then some. this is pretty much a test system to let mysef get the hang of it. i have MH on the 20 and there really bright (way to much wattage i assume?)i think i may sell it to get some PCs. any beginer tips are also welcome and thanks for all of your imput guys
Well, you didn't say what the wattage is on the MH, but the MH are just very intense lights, and depending on the spectrum, how the tank will look. The more intense the light, the faster the growth. I have seen 70 watt MH on 12 gal nanos, so the only thing I see that could be a problem with it, is temperature control. If it comes with good fans, you are good to go. Go to www.wetwebmedia.com I have found this site most helpful in the reef and salt water world, not so much tropical FW though. This site will give all the answers you seek about everything you could probably think of.
