We have a 36 gallon tank and the test strip says my Alkalinity and PH are high. I topped the tank off with RO water and rechecked. It was still high. We are pretty new to saltwater tanks so any advice on how to lower them is appreciated.
Advice how to low Alkalinity and PH
- Thread starter Crystal08
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Test strips?
For starters, most of those test strips work for freshwater tanks and not salt water, and even then they aren't very reliable. I wouldn't go topping off RO unless you know salinity, since you don't want to dip that down chasing all or PH. As a matter of fact, don't chase PH at all in a young tank.
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Test strip said the alkalinity was 180 ish and the oh was between 8-8.4. Honestly it was hard to tell because none of the colors were exact.
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What is your salinity now? If it was high that can also elevate your alk. That PH number is fine but you need to get some decent test kits. Salt tanks require strict parameters to maintain a healthy environment and proper weekly testing is critical.
That ph is fine for a saltwater aquarium and the alkalinity dkh of 10ish (180 x .056) is a little high but not a huge concern. Just let that tank continue aging, you’ll be fine.
To start with, pH 8-8.4 is normal in saltwater tank and alkalinity 180 ppm is also acceptable by many reefers. I do recommend though getting some beter tests than test strips.
I use the salifert test kit. Its pretty good and not overly hard to use. I keep my dkh at 10 which is high but it stays stable at that which i think is more important. PH of 8.3 consistently is more important IMO
Oh and keep in mind as you begin to add corals, the corals will consume your alkalinity. Eventually this will require that you add alk to maintain stability. Adding alk can be accomplished in many ways, most commonly through water changes.
And the recommendations for some good test kits will really help you.
And the recommendations for some good test kits will really help you.
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We have a few soft corals because we wer upgrading from a 13 gallon yo a 36 gallon. But we have only had them for 5 months or so
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1.025 for salinity is good , your alkalinity issue probably is from adding too much salt to your RO water depending which salt your using . You really need to take care in making and testing your make up water before you add it ,That and like everyone else here has stated that getting more accurate test kits . In your tank stability is key . Changing parameters quickly is not healthy to coral and or fish .
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