Alkalinity at 8.6 with Hanna checker

[bxclent]

Hello , new to Hanna checker so ran the test twice. my Hanna alkalinity checker is readings were 8.6 and 8.5 respectively. Great, good or bad ? I've read people have theirs anywhere from 7 to 11 ! What is the gold standard in reef keeping according to pros ? And not just opinions, but hard facts. I have fish, LPS and SPS.
Tank is 3 months old and I use boxed ocean water that is 1.026 salinity.
a stock 30 gallon Coralife Biocube
I use ceramic porous bioballs, chempur blue, activated charcoal in my filter chamber..
Temperature set at 78 °
2 clowns and a baby Royal Gramma, pepperment shrimp and various snails..
all other parameters are good..
Thanks

 

[A Young Reefer]

I like to keep my alkalinity to be anywhere from the 7 to 9 range. Alkalinity of 8.6 is perfect, it’s where I aim for my alkalinity to be at.

 

[3429810]

There is no gold standard. Everyone that is considered a big name in reefing will give you different numbers to run their system at. Stability is long and hopefully your at that point if your throwing sps in there. What are your nitrate and phosphate levels?

 

[bxclent]

There is no gold standard. Everyone that is considered a big name in reefing will give you different numbers to run their system at. Stability is long and hopefully your at that point if your throwing sps in there. What are your nitrate and phosphate levels?

Phosphates 0.25
Nitrates 5.0
And the number has been steady since the tank cycled.
I also do a 20% water change every other Saturday

 

[Miami Reef]

Gold standard in what regard?

It’s definitely safer to keep alk around 7-8 dkh. I don’t think anyone can say that keeping parameters at natural sea water where corals evolved to is stressful to them.

Keeping elevated alk does increase calcification (thus, growth) but it does come at a risk of burnt tips if nutrients aren’t also elevated. Some say that elevated alk increases the chance of STN/RTN.

 

[bxclent]

There is no gold standard. Everyone that is considered a big name in reefing will give you different numbers to run their system at. Stability is long and hopefully your at that point if your throwing sps in there. What are your nitrate and phosphate levels?

Phosphates 0.25
Nitrates 5.0
And the number has been steady since the tank cycled.
I also do a 20% water change every other Saturda

Gold standard in what regard?

It’s definitely safer to keep alk around 7-8 dkh. I don’t think anyone can say that keeping parameters at natural sea water where corals evolved to is stressful to them.

Keeping elevated alk does increase calcification (thus, growth) but it does come at a risk of burnt tips if nutrients aren’t also elevated. Some say that elevated alk increases the chance of STN/RTN.

Gold Stadard as in a happy mixed reef tank.

 

[Miami Reef]

Gold Stadard as in a happy mixed reef tank.

You can have a happy mixed reef tank with either alkalinity, but most people do keep alkalinity at around natural sea levels.

Stability is more important than anything though. Corals don’t adapted to major swings.

 

[Duffer]

I keep mine around that parameter also, i like it there for the sake if it goes up or down I’m pretty safe…

do you have corals, reason I ask is those phosphates are pretty high

 

[3429810]

Phosphates 0.25
Nitrates 5.0
And the number has been steady since the tank cycled.
I also do a 20% water change every other Saturda

Gold Stadard as in a happy mixed reef tank.

That’s good. I have seen a lot of people say parameters are good without saying numbers then come back with bottomed out nutrients.

Again there is no gold standard in reefing. Alk between 7-9 is probably the most common i see but some people run their tank at crazy high alk, calc and mag with great success. I would honestly say the gold standard for you should be what ever your salt mixes to for the big three and then for nutrients just keep them stable around where you are and you shouldn’t have any problems related to parameters. Stability is key and keeping your tank around what your salt mixes at will prevent massive swings when you do big water changes.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Hello , new to Hanna checker so ran the test twice. my Hanna alkalinity checker is readings were 8.6 and 8.5 respectively. Great, good or bad ? I've read people have theirs anywhere from 7 to 11 ! What is the gold standard in reef keeping according to pros ? And not just opinions, but hard facts. I have fish, LPS and SPS.
Tank is 3 months old and I use boxed ocean water that is 1.026 salinity.
a stock 30 gallon Coralife Biocube
I use ceramic porous bioballs, chempur blue, activated charcoal in my filter chamber..
Temperature set at 78 °
2 clowns and a baby Royal Gramma, pepperment shrimp and various snails..
all other parameters are good..
Thanks

7-11 dKh is my recommendation, and the 8.5 dKH is perfectly fine.

Optimal Parameters for a Coral Reef Aquarium: By Randy Holmes-Farley

[note: edited on 5/29/2022 to update the nitrate and phosphate sections with higher recommended levels.] One of the main roles of an aquarist with a coral reef aquarium is to ensure that the conditions are right for their tank inhabitants. There are many different attributes of the aquarium...

www.reef2reef.com

Alkalinity

Like calcium, many corals also use "alkalinity" to form their skeletons, which are composed primarily of calcium carbonate. It is generally believed that corals take up bicarbonate, convert it into carbonate, and then use that carbonate to form calcium carbonate skeletons. That conversion process is shown as:

HCO3- → CO3-- + H+

Bicarbonate → Carbonate + proton (which is released from the coral)

To ensure that corals have an adequate supply of bicarbonate for calcification, aquarists could just measure bicarbonate directly. Designing a test kit for bicarbonate, however, is somewhat more complicated than for alkalinity. Consequently, the use of alkalinity as a surrogate measure for bicarbonate is deeply entrenched in the reef aquarium hobby.

So, what is alkalinity? Alkalinity in a marine aquarium is simply a measure of the amount of acid (H+) required to reduce the pH to about 4.5, where all bicarbonate is converted into carbonic acid as follows:

HCO3- + H+ → H2CO3

The amount of acid needed is equal to the amount of bicarbonate present, so when performing an alkalinity titration with a test kit, you are “counting†the number of bicarbonate ions present. It is not, however, quite that simple since some other ions also take up acid during the titration. Both borate and carbonate also contribute to the measurement of alkalinity, but the bicarbonate dominates these other ions since they are generally lower in concentration than bicarbonate. So knowing the total alkalinity is akin to, but not exactly the same as, knowing how much bicarbonate is available to corals. In any case, total alkalinity is the standard that aquarists use for this purpose.

Unlike the calcium concentration, it is widely believed that certain organisms calcify more quickly at alkalinity levels higher than those in normal seawater. This result has also been demonstrated in the scientific literature, which has shown that adding bicarbonate to seawater increases the rate of calcification in some corals. Uptake of bicarbonate can consequently become rate limiting in many corals. This may be partly due to the fact that the external bicarbonate concentration is not large to begin with (relative to, for example, the calcium concentration, which is effectively about 5 times higher).

For these reasons, alkalinity maintenance is a critical aspect of coral reef aquarium husbandry. In the absence of supplementation, alkalinity will rapidly drop as corals use up much of what is present in seawater. Water changes are not usually sufficient to maintain alkalinity unless there is very little calcification taking place. Most reef aquarists try to maintain alkalinity at levels at or slightly above those of normal seawater, although exactly what levels different aquarists target depends a bit on the goals of their aquaria.

Interestingly, because some corals may calcify faster at higher alkalinity levels, and because the abiotic (nonbiological) precipitation of calcium carbonate on heaters and pumps also rises as alkalinity rises, the demand for alkalinity (and calcium) rises as the alkalinity rises. So an aquarist generally must dose more calcium and alkalinity EVERY DAY to maintain a higher alkalinity (say, 11 dKH) than to maintain 7 dKH. It is not just a one-time boost that is needed to make up that difference. In fact, calcification gets so slow as the alkalinity drops below 6 dKH that reef aquaria rarely get much below that point, even with no dosing: natural calcification has nearly stopped at that level.

In general, I suggest that aquarists maintain alkalinity between about 7-11 dKH (2.5 and 4 meq/L; 125-200 ppm CaCO3 equivalents). Many aquarists growing SPS corals and using Ultra Low Nutrient Systems (ULNS) have found that the corals suffer from “burnt tips†if the alkalinity is too high or changes too much. It is not at all clear why this is the case, but such aquaria are better served by alkalinity in the 7-8 dKH range.
As mentioned above, alkalinity levels above those in natural seawater increase the abiotic precipitation of calcium carbonate on warm objects such as heaters and pump impellers, or sometimes even in sand beds. This precipitation not only wastes calcium and alkalinity that aquarists are carefully adding, but it also increases equipment maintenance requirements and can “damage†a sand bed, hardening it into a chunk of limestone. When elevated alkalinity is driving this precipitation, it can also depress the calcium level. An excessively high alkalinity level can therefore create undesirable consequences.

I suggest that aquarists use a balanced calcium and alkalinity additive system of some sort for routine maintenance. The most popular of these balanced methods include limewater (kalkwasser), calcium carbonate/carbon dioxide reactors, and the two-part/three part additive systems.

For rapid alkalinity corrections, aquarists can simply use baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) or washing soda (sodium carbonate; baked baking soda) to good effect. The latter raises pH as well as alkalinity while the former has a very small pH lowering effect. Mixtures can also be used, and are what many hobby chemical supply companies sell as “buffersâ€. Most often, sodium carbonate is preferred, however, since most tanks can be helped by a pH boost.

 

[bxclent]

7-11 dKh is my recommendation, and the 8.5 dKH is perfectly fine.

Optimal Parameters for a Coral Reef Aquarium: By Randy Holmes-Farley

[note: edited on 5/29/2022 to update the nitrate and phosphate sections with higher recommended levels.] One of the main roles of an aquarist with a coral reef aquarium is to ensure that the conditions are right for their tank inhabitants. There are many different attributes of the aquarium...

www.reef2reef.com

Alkalinity

Like calcium, many corals also use "alkalinity" to form their skeletons, which are composed primarily of calcium carbonate. It is generally believed that corals take up bicarbonate, convert it into carbonate, and then use that carbonate to form calcium carbonate skeletons. That conversion process is shown as:

HCO3- → CO3-- + H+

Bicarbonate → Carbonate + proton (which is released from the coral)

To ensure that corals have an adequate supply of bicarbonate for calcification, aquarists could just measure bicarbonate directly. Designing a test kit for bicarbonate, however, is somewhat more complicated than for alkalinity. Consequently, the use of alkalinity as a surrogate measure for bicarbonate is deeply entrenched in the reef aquarium hobby.

So, what is alkalinity? Alkalinity in a marine aquarium is simply a measure of the amount of acid (H+) required to reduce the pH to about 4.5, where all bicarbonate is converted into carbonic acid as follows:

HCO3- + H+ → H2CO3

The amount of acid needed is equal to the amount of bicarbonate present, so when performing an alkalinity titration with a test kit, you are “counting†the number of bicarbonate ions present. It is not, however, quite that simple since some other ions also take up acid during the titration. Both borate and carbonate also contribute to the measurement of alkalinity, but the bicarbonate dominates these other ions since they are generally lower in concentration than bicarbonate. So knowing the total alkalinity is akin to, but not exactly the same as, knowing how much bicarbonate is available to corals. In any case, total alkalinity is the standard that aquarists use for this purpose.

Unlike the calcium concentration, it is widely believed that certain organisms calcify more quickly at alkalinity levels higher than those in normal seawater. This result has also been demonstrated in the scientific literature, which has shown that adding bicarbonate to seawater increases the rate of calcification in some corals. Uptake of bicarbonate can consequently become rate limiting in many corals. This may be partly due to the fact that the external bicarbonate concentration is not large to begin with (relative to, for example, the calcium concentration, which is effectively about 5 times higher).

For these reasons, alkalinity maintenance is a critical aspect of coral reef aquarium husbandry. In the absence of supplementation, alkalinity will rapidly drop as corals use up much of what is present in seawater. Water changes are not usually sufficient to maintain alkalinity unless there is very little calcification taking place. Most reef aquarists try to maintain alkalinity at levels at or slightly above those of normal seawater, although exactly what levels different aquarists target depends a bit on the goals of their aquaria.

Interestingly, because some corals may calcify faster at higher alkalinity levels, and because the abiotic (nonbiological) precipitation of calcium carbonate on heaters and pumps also rises as alkalinity rises, the demand for alkalinity (and calcium) rises as the alkalinity rises. So an aquarist generally must dose more calcium and alkalinity EVERY DAY to maintain a higher alkalinity (say, 11 dKH) than to maintain 7 dKH. It is not just a one-time boost that is needed to make up that difference. In fact, calcification gets so slow as the alkalinity drops below 6 dKH that reef aquaria rarely get much below that point, even with no dosing: natural calcification has nearly stopped at that level.

In general, I suggest that aquarists maintain alkalinity between about 7-11 dKH (2.5 and 4 meq/L; 125-200 ppm CaCO3 equivalents). Many aquarists growing SPS corals and using Ultra Low Nutrient Systems (ULNS) have found that the corals suffer from “burnt tips†if the alkalinity is too high or changes too much. It is not at all clear why this is the case, but such aquaria are better served by alkalinity in the 7-8 dKH range.
As mentioned above, alkalinity levels above those in natural seawater increase the abiotic precipitation of calcium carbonate on warm objects such as heaters and pump impellers, or sometimes even in sand beds. This precipitation not only wastes calcium and alkalinity that aquarists are carefully adding, but it also increases equipment maintenance requirements and can “damage†a sand bed, hardening it into a chunk of limestone. When elevated alkalinity is driving this precipitation, it can also depress the calcium level. An excessively high alkalinity level can therefore create undesirable consequences.

I suggest that aquarists use a balanced calcium and alkalinity additive system of some sort for routine maintenance. The most popular of these balanced methods include limewater (kalkwasser), calcium carbonate/carbon dioxide reactors, and the two-part/three part additive systems.

For rapid alkalinity corrections, aquarists can simply use baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) or washing soda (sodium carbonate; baked baking soda) to good effect. The latter raises pH as well as alkalinity while the former has a very small pH lowering effect. Mixtures can also be used, and are what many hobby chemical supply companies sell as “buffersâ€. Most often, sodium carbonate is preferred, however, since most tanks can be helped by a pH boost.

 

[bxclent]

7-11 dKh is my recommendation, and the 8.5 dKH is perfectly fine.

Optimal Parameters for a Coral Reef Aquarium: By Randy Holmes-Farley

[note: edited on 5/29/2022 to update the nitrate and phosphate sections with higher recommended levels.] One of the main roles of an aquarist with a coral reef aquarium is to ensure that the conditions are right for their tank inhabitants. There are many different attributes of the aquarium...

www.reef2reef.com

Alkalinity

Like calcium, many corals also use "alkalinity" to form their skeletons, which are composed primarily of calcium carbonate. It is generally believed that corals take up bicarbonate, convert it into carbonate, and then use that carbonate to form calcium carbonate skeletons. That conversion process is shown as:

HCO3- → CO3-- + H+

Bicarbonate → Carbonate + proton (which is released from the coral)

To ensure that corals have an adequate supply of bicarbonate for calcification, aquarists could just measure bicarbonate directly. Designing a test kit for bicarbonate, however, is somewhat more complicated than for alkalinity. Consequently, the use of alkalinity as a surrogate measure for bicarbonate is deeply entrenched in the reef aquarium hobby.

So, what is alkalinity? Alkalinity in a marine aquarium is simply a measure of the amount of acid (H+) required to reduce the pH to about 4.5, where all bicarbonate is converted into carbonic acid as follows:

HCO3- + H+ → H2CO3

The amount of acid needed is equal to the amount of bicarbonate present, so when performing an alkalinity titration with a test kit, you are “counting†the number of bicarbonate ions present. It is not, however, quite that simple since some other ions also take up acid during the titration. Both borate and carbonate also contribute to the measurement of alkalinity, but the bicarbonate dominates these other ions since they are generally lower in concentration than bicarbonate. So knowing the total alkalinity is akin to, but not exactly the same as, knowing how much bicarbonate is available to corals. In any case, total alkalinity is the standard that aquarists use for this purpose.

Unlike the calcium concentration, it is widely believed that certain organisms calcify more quickly at alkalinity levels higher than those in normal seawater. This result has also been demonstrated in the scientific literature, which has shown that adding bicarbonate to seawater increases the rate of calcification in some corals. Uptake of bicarbonate can consequently become rate limiting in many corals. This may be partly due to the fact that the external bicarbonate concentration is not large to begin with (relative to, for example, the calcium concentration, which is effectively about 5 times higher).

For these reasons, alkalinity maintenance is a critical aspect of coral reef aquarium husbandry. In the absence of supplementation, alkalinity will rapidly drop as corals use up much of what is present in seawater. Water changes are not usually sufficient to maintain alkalinity unless there is very little calcification taking place. Most reef aquarists try to maintain alkalinity at levels at or slightly above those of normal seawater, although exactly what levels different aquarists target depends a bit on the goals of their aquaria.

Interestingly, because some corals may calcify faster at higher alkalinity levels, and because the abiotic (nonbiological) precipitation of calcium carbonate on heaters and pumps also rises as alkalinity rises, the demand for alkalinity (and calcium) rises as the alkalinity rises. So an aquarist generally must dose more calcium and alkalinity EVERY DAY to maintain a higher alkalinity (say, 11 dKH) than to maintain 7 dKH. It is not just a one-time boost that is needed to make up that difference. In fact, calcification gets so slow as the alkalinity drops below 6 dKH that reef aquaria rarely get much below that point, even with no dosing: natural calcification has nearly stopped at that level.

In general, I suggest that aquarists maintain alkalinity between about 7-11 dKH (2.5 and 4 meq/L; 125-200 ppm CaCO3 equivalents). Many aquarists growing SPS corals and using Ultra Low Nutrient Systems (ULNS) have found that the corals suffer from “burnt tips†if the alkalinity is too high or changes too much. It is not at all clear why this is the case, but such aquaria are better served by alkalinity in the 7-8 dKH range.
As mentioned above, alkalinity levels above those in natural seawater increase the abiotic precipitation of calcium carbonate on warm objects such as heaters and pump impellers, or sometimes even in sand beds. This precipitation not only wastes calcium and alkalinity that aquarists are carefully adding, but it also increases equipment maintenance requirements and can “damage†a sand bed, hardening it into a chunk of limestone. When elevated alkalinity is driving this precipitation, it can also depress the calcium level. An excessively high alkalinity level can therefore create undesirable consequences.

I suggest that aquarists use a balanced calcium and alkalinity additive system of some sort for routine maintenance. The most popular of these balanced methods include limewater (kalkwasser), calcium carbonate/carbon dioxide reactors, and the two-part/three part additive systems.

For rapid alkalinity corrections, aquarists can simply use baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) or washing soda (sodium carbonate; baked baking soda) to good effect. The latter raises pH as well as alkalinity while the former has a very small pH lowering effect. Mixtures can also be used, and are what many hobby chemical supply companies sell as “buffersâ€. Most often, sodium carbonate is preferred, however, since most tanks can be helped by a pH boost.

Thank you. One person said my phosphates were very high. Agree or disagree?

 

[bxclent]

I keep mine around that parameter also, i like it there for the sake if it goes up or down I’m pretty safe…

do you have corals, reason I ask is those phosphates are pretty high

Really ? 0.25ppm too high ? The only reading before that is zero. You are the only one who mentioned that.

 

[Duffer]

Really ? 0.25ppm too high ? The only reading before that is zero. You are the only one who mentioned that.

No…the range for phosphates you want is between .03-.1, so saying that I do not know what test kit you are using…if you are using api, throw it out and get a hanna

this quote is fromRandy from many posts

The Redfield ratio is usually misapplied when folks suggest that it indicates appropriate targets for a reef tank. It doesn't.

I'd stick to absolute values, and my suggestions are:

2-10 ppm nitrate
0.02 to 0.1 ppm phosphate.

 

[bxclent]

No…the range for phosphates you want is between .03-.1, so saying that I do not know what test kit you are using…if you are using api, throw it out and get a hanna

this quote is fromRandy from many posts

The Redfield ratio is usually misapplied when folks suggest that it indicates appropriate targets for a reef tank. It doesn't.

I'd stick to absolute values, and my suggestions are:

2-10 ppm nitrate
0.02 to 0.1 ppm phosphate.

I see. My corals all seem healthy but.......
Any recommendations for a phosphate test. Other than Hanna ? I am using an API for phosphates right now. Thanks

 

[olonmv]

I see. My corals all seem healthy but.......
Any recommendations for a phosphate test. Other than Hanna ? I am using an API for phosphates right now. Thanks

Hanna hands down. For me, digital readout is far better than trying to find the right light to decipher the color. I have no regrets goin to Hanna for most all my tests.

 

[Duffer]

I see. My corals all seem healthy but.......
Any recommendations for a phosphate test. Other than Hanna ? I am using an API for phosphates right now.

I only use Hanna, but you can try salifert. If your corals are doing fine than just keep an eye on them, I suspect the phosphates maybe lower than what api is reading…phosphates cause algae problems

 

[Just John]

Hanna hands down. For me, digital readout is far better than trying to find the right light to decipher the color. I have no regrets goin to Hanna for most all my tests.

I only used Salifert before, but figuring out which color is just right, especially comparing them if you're indoors or it's cloudy or a sunny day, etc. can be a bit of a pain. I switched to a Hanna checker and I'm glad I did. You get an exact number.

 

[olonmv]

I only used Salifert before, but figuring out which color is just right, especially comparing them if you're indoors or it's cloudy or a sunny day, etc. can be a bit of a pain. I switched to a Hanna checker and I'm glad I did. You get an exact number.

+1000 on this!!! Also. The whole add this swirl for 30 seconds then add that do the hokiepokie and hold your breath for 15 minutes was getting old. Hanna saves time.
I do temp, salinity, calcium, phos, alkalinity, nitrate all under 15 minutes with cleanup.

 

[mdb_talon]

What is the gold standard in reef keeping according to pros ? And not just opinions, but hard facts.

Use the ranges and and then adjust based off what works in your tank. There is not going to be an unquestioned "gold standard" for almost any parameter in a reef tank.