pH Low? Params in Check? Open a Window!

[thewackyreefer]

I know this has been discussed many times before but I just wanted to share my experience with everyone.

I've had my 60g display set up since about June this year in the second bedroom of my apartment. Up until this weekend I've always had a problem getting my pH above 8.0 even when my parameters were in check. Typically it would fall to ~7.75 at night and rise back up to ~7.95 during the day time. I also have a small fuge with Chaeto and a couple other maco algae's running on a reverse light cycle.

This past weekend I happened to have a visitor in town who was staying in the second room and woke up to an alert from my RKE because the pH dropped down to 7.59. I immediately expected that the probe itself was the issue so I recalibrated, checked again and it was indeed ~7.6. Double checked the rest of my parameters, all were where I expected them to be so I wasn't too concerned. While my guest was in town the bedroom door was closed, windows were closed (as usual) and the room was getting very little to no fresh air. Sunday once my visitor left I immediately opened up the door and put a fan in the window pulling in air from outside. Thankfully, I live in California so I can do this even in the middle of November without freezing the apartment.

Within hours of opening the window I started to notice the pH rising, no dosing, nothing, just some fresh air. I've had the window open since (just over two days now) and my pH is currently sitting at 8.25 and dropped down to 8.09 last night. I was NOT expecting this big of a change, pretty amazing I'd say. I'm not quite sure how I'm going to support this long term as I don't want to have a fan in the window 24/7 but I found the results very interesting and look forward to seeing how this affects my system in the short/long term.

Has anyone else been through this? What have you done to ensure your tank receives fresh air?

 

[Paul_N]

I have the same issue in the winter with the doors closed. But my ph only goes down to 7.8 at the lowest. I had my tank in my first floor den and it's about 12 feet away from the door to the back porch. I opened the door to test the theory in the past and my ph went up to 8.0. I have been giving thought to running a 1 inch dia pvc pipe through the wall into my stand and then attach my skimmer air intake to it with an air tight fitting. I just wasn't sure how much or even if any it would restrict the air intake on the skimmer pumps.

 

[Sasquatch]

running your skimmer air intake outdoors will do wonders provided its a protected area, if its picking up car exhaust not so good, maybe stick a heppa filter on the end to keep the bugs out?

 

[beaslbob]

Sure it is carbon dioxide. Sure opening windows helps.

But to me the best means is to have the tank itself consume the carbon dioxide and produce oxygen. So to me the small fuge was the problem. expanded macro algaes (larger fuge) would result in the tank becoming a net consumer of carbon dioxide and producer of oxygen each 24 hour period. regardless of the environment around that tank.

just my .02

 

[thewackyreefer]

Sure it is carbon dioxide. Sure opening windows helps.

But to me the best means is to have the tank itself consume the carbon dioxide and produce oxygen. So to me the small fuge was the problem. expanded macro algaes (larger fuge) would result in the tank becoming a net consumer of carbon dioxide and producer of oxygen each 24 hour period. regardless of the environment around that tank.

just my .02

Interesting, never really thought of that. I do have a section to expand my fuge but I started using the EcoBak pellets about a month ago and am curious to see the effects they will have on my macros before I decide which way to go with it. My chaeto really never grows so I never thought it was really that beneficial.

 

[beaslbob]

Interesting, never really thought of that. I do have a section to expand my fuge but I started using the EcoBak pellets about a month ago and am curious to see the effects they will have on my macros before I decide which way to go with it. My chaeto really never grows so I never thought it was really that beneficial.

IMHO get the chaeto growing and the ph will rise.

 

[Guerry]

Hi, I'm one of those who is always trying something new or dreaming up some gagget anyway I made this little sealed box to pump outside air to an air stone in my exchange tank

 

[PR_Reefers]

Hi, I'm one of those who is always trying something new or dreaming up some gagget anyway I made this little sealed box to pump outside air to an air stone in my exchange tank

Nice... wondering if you could give us some feedback on how this has worked regarding to your tank ph?? do you have a Ca reactor??

 

[MyLady]

So basically a bigger ball of cheato will help raise the pH on a tank? What if there is bubble calipura in the fuge as well? Our sump/fuge is small and there really isnt a whole bunch of room for the macros to grow.

 

[Captain Nemo]

WOW really awesome on the whole discovering that opening a window will raise the PH. +100 for you Luvmyacans!

 

[m and m]

I thought it was common knowlage, I always new if I added a fan with some fresh air this would happen, that's why I keep a fan in my sump at night even though I have a led fixture down there between the fixture and the reverse osmoses my ph stays pretty stable.

My question is why did you never try Kalk at night? I'm only asking because I'm on the fence about adding one.

 

[btkrausen]

I've heard a lot of people on other forums keep a small window open in their sump room, or run a tube outside for the skimmer to pull outside air. I've never had a problem with it, as my sump is in the garage, but if I moved it, I'd def try it out if I had pH problems. I run a kalk reactor, so pH and kH are never a problem for me.

 

[beaslbob]

So basically a bigger ball of cheato will help raise the pH on a tank? What if there is bubble calipura in the fuge as well? Our sump/fuge is small and there really isnt a whole bunch of room for the macros to grow.

Well it does depend on your specific tank. But yes.

I had a tank that did fine for about 3-4 months (55g). With lotsa fish but landscape type rocks and no algae except hair type the cleaner crews had cleaned up. so basically your nice pristine clean algae free tank

I basically "hit a wall" where any new fish (angel, tang) would slowly die off. I (finally) tested pH (ammonia/nitrites had been 0 for months) and pH was way low. Like brown (almost yellow) 7.6 or so on the api high range test kit. I would add some baking soda, pH would rise, then drop down the next week.
I finally added a lot of macro algae and pH rose above 8 the next day but that time stayed in the 8.4-8.8 range for years. And a newly added tang overcame white spots tripled in size in a year and lived for years.

So to me all these open windows stuff seems to be over the top. Regardless of how much carbon dioxide is in the air surrounding the tank, the pH will rise because the macros have made the tank a net consumer of carbon dioxide and producer of oxygen each 24 hour period. I also now recommend you measure pH just before lights out. If that is acceptable then pH is ok. If it drops as measured just before lights on then you need to measure alk and dose baking soda.


Just my .02

 

[MyLady]

Hubby might have to figure out how to get more macro into the sump then.

 

[beaslbob]

Hubby might have to figure out how to get more macro into the sump then.

IMHO if nitrates are not unmeasureable and you have low pH (just before lights out) then more chaeto will help both. (plus lower phosphates as well.)

On my 55g I eventually used a eggcrate (1/4" square plastic grid lighting diffuser) about 3" in front of the back glass and added utility lights behind the tank pointing forward. what happened is that 3" formed an in tank refugium and macros and pods thrived. Nitrates dropped from 60ppm (for several months) to unmeasureable in a few weeks, phosphates a few months later, and my tangs were fat from eating the macros that poked through the egg crate. Best $30 (with lights) i ever spent on the tank.


my .02

 

[Michael7979]

Usually the carbon dioxide issue is for people with smaller tanks and smaller sumps/refugiums from what I have seen.
If the sump is small and in an enclosed cabinet fresh air can do wonders for the PH.

That "giant ball of cheato" therory is interesting. I'll watch for more on that.

 

[m and m]

Have you tried adding a fan like I said to add some air across the top of the water surface.

 

[aalvarado87]

my ph tends to drop so iw as thinking that if i moved my sump outside and added a fan to suck air in would i be able to boost up my ph? I was thinking having it on a time and letting it suck air into the room. would this help and does it take a while for the ph to drop back down or would say a few hours of sucking air in the room would stabalize the ph.

 

[raymond]

i have alot of plants in my fish room, ive heard this can help also. ive never had a big drop in ph, i cant say that the plants are the reason, but as long as my ph stays the same the plants stay were they are at, and my cactus loves the skimmate lol

 

[thewackyreefer]

my cactus loves the skimmate lol

whaaaa? really?? do elaborate!