Lune2Moon2 June 25, 2015 Share June 25, 2015 Hello Fellow Reefers, I have a calcium reactor set up in my reef tank. I am having slight difficulties (as most people have with a Ca reactor) with my pH staying on the lower end of the acceptable scale. The pH swing is from 7.75 at night before the day lights cut on to 8.00 just before the day lights go off in the evening. I currently have a lighted fuge with exorbitant amounts of Chaeto growth set up to turn on opposite the DT photo period, a smaller second chamber with small grain aragonite, and I have the effluent from the Reactor plumed in from the top of my skimmer. When I plumbed the effluent in the top of the skimmer, it helped the pH to raise to 8.00. Before it could go no higher than 7.78. Crazy right! I also aded some Jeabo power heads that give some nice waves and slight agitation at the air and water interface of the DT. I must mention that I turn off all of my ca system and components during the night to mitigate the pH drop and run it a little harder during the day. Alk fluctuates between 9.30 - 10.50 and Ca flux is between 440 - 500 all throughout a 24 hour cycle. In other articles it states plumbing the effluent into the skimmer will help to blow off excess CO2 thus raising overall tank pH. However in doing so, some alk and cal from the reactor are also precipitated or collected with the organic waste from the skimmer. Any word/experience regarding this? I have a DIY 3 gal calk reactor that is pretty effective at raising the pH as long as there is fresh limewater inside. It is plumbed inline between my automated top off reservoir and my sump tank. I have not employed it just yet because I wanted to get an understanding/measure of my water chemistry throughout a 24 hour cycle first. My main inquiry is about the fluctuation in pH, alk and Ca and any insight on changes I can make to my existing setup to bring the pH up before I incorporate my kalk reactor. Im sure the flux in my water chemistry daily is not the best scenario for the coral in my tank (by the way I have my tank jam packed with SPS, LPS and these stupid Xenia all healthy and growing). Any information pertaining to my alk and Ca levels fluctuating? Any info on the struggle with the pH? If i could just get it to stay between 8.1-8.3. I love this forum. You guys are so freaking helpful and I know I ll get some great responses! Cheers!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RW09903 June 25, 2015 Share June 25, 2015 Tagging along b/c I am also curious about the affects of daily fluctuations with the various parameters we monitor. Any good articles or personal studies? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ridetheducati June 25, 2015 Share June 25, 2015 The CaRx is designed to provide a constant flow of alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium (for those that include dolomite). I don't recommend turning off the reactor at night. The daily alk changes you are experiencing may cause more harm that low tank pH. Also, don't chase tank pH when using a CaRx. Just know that your tank pH is low because of excess CO2 and not another issue. Ways to increase tank pH: (1) Add a second chamber to the CaRx, (2) open a window, (3) add a CO2 scrubber, or (4) supplement with kalk, which I don't recommend for the inexperienced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lune2Moon2 June 25, 2015 Author Share June 25, 2015 Thanks Ducati, I'm just hesitant about keeping the cal reactor on 24/7. I just think my pH would drop very low at night if I did keep it on 24/7. Wouldnt the Ca and Alk still flux because there is a 90% decrease in cal and Alk uptake by coral at night as opposed to during the day? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ridetheducati June 25, 2015 Share June 25, 2015 If the reactor is properly setup, tank alkalinity will not change over a 24 hour period. If corals are shutting down at night, something else may be an issue. Are you dosing any chemicals or additives that may affect your alkalinity test results? Some hobbyist report a drop in alk when first introducing GFO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miggs76 June 28, 2015 Share June 28, 2015 I have a basement tank and run a co2 scrubber in the summer. It keeps my pH from 8.0 to 8.2 consistently everyday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k June 28, 2015 Share June 28, 2015 couldn't you also run the air intake on the skimmer to the outside to bring in fresh air? In some large commercial systems that I have worked on, there was a degasser to blow off excess C02 by way of running water down a tube filled with bioballs and letting it fall into the sump. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lune2Moon2 June 30, 2015 Author Share June 30, 2015 Thanks for the Input miggs, what does the CO2 scrubber consist of? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lune2Moon2 June 30, 2015 Author Share June 30, 2015 I could run the air intake outside, I have read about doing this.. The question is how. I don't think I should drill a hole in the wall or in the window pane! My dad would not like it ha! But I'm really intrigued about the bio ball idea. That seems like a more practical option for me at the moment! Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cliff Puckstable July 27, 2015 Share July 27, 2015 What do you all-in-one tank guys do to prevent ph swings at night time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami July 27, 2015 Share July 27, 2015 Lune2Moon2: Your 0.25 pH swing is fine. It's actually very good - probably half of what a lot of tanks experience. The base level is not unexpected for a person using a calcium reactor. Run the calcium reactor normally. That is, without interruption. If you're turning it off at night, then you'll probably adjust your dosage lower to account for the longer run-time. Don't chase pH. (And, yes, I realize that Lune2Moon2's post is from a month ago.) Cliff P: When I ran an AIO, I didn't worry about pH swings. They're a natural part of running a tank. Unless the pH is 7.5 or lower in a tank, I wouldn't be too concerned. Swings of 0.5 to 0.75 pH points are not unheard of. For background: Tank pH is largely driven by the levels of dissolved CO2 in our tank water. The more CO2, the lower the pH. The less CO2, the higher the pH. Animals, like fish, respire: That is, they breath in oxygen and they breathe out carbon dioxide (CO2). Plants photosynthesize during the daylight hours: That is, they take in CO2 and expel Oxygen. On top of that, plants, algae, and photosynthetic corals respire at night (Oxygen in, CO2 out). When the lights go out at night, photosynthesis in algae and corals stops and respiration starts. So CO2 uptake stops and CO2 output peaks. That's why tank pH drops overnight and increases during the day. It's the diurnal pH cycle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cliff Puckstable July 27, 2015 Share July 27, 2015 Thanks, Tom. I'm running an aio at the moment and have all my eggs in one basket so to speak. Just making sure I'm going to be okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s2nhle July 28, 2015 Share July 28, 2015 Very interesting. Tagging along. thank you for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wangspeed July 28, 2015 Share July 28, 2015 Grow more coral to increase PH I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just dump the effluent into the fuge section and let the photosynthesis help get rid of the CO2. I used to run a CO2 scrubber when my tank was young. The PH would crash when the stove was on. Now it dips, but there is enough photosynthesis to combat it. -- Warren Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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