Alk problem

Discussion in 'Water Chemistry' started by Billme, Jul 8, 2015.

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  1. Billme

    Billme Eyelash Blennie

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    Tested from both kits at the same time. New one calibrated right before. Old one calibrated a couple weeks ago. The old kit is only about 8 months old. Both expire in 2019. But as I said, I'll have to repeat and test carefully before I trust those results fully.
     
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  3. DSC reef

    DSC reef Giant Squid

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    Keep an eye on the pH too bill me. I don't chase numbers but if you feel that your having large swings in alk then it might me a good idea to keep a close eye on the ph
     
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  4. Billme

    Billme Eyelash Blennie

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    Glad you reminded me DSC. I've known there has been a problem in that department for a while. I'll start attacking that next.
     
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  5. DSC reef

    DSC reef Giant Squid

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    My tank uses .5 dkh in about 10 hours and unless I get a dosing pump I have to live with that swing in alk since I manually dose day and night. I've been adding 5ml of aquavitro balance when I dose my alk and the ph has been much more stable. I also use salifert for my alk test.
     
  6. Billme

    Billme Eyelash Blennie

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    I'm just holding on till the hanna shows up next week. I don't want to add anything until I'm sure of my tests. Curious what the true value for Alk really is. I'll redo the salifert tests tomorrow and see if they still differ as much.
     
  7. Corailline

    Corailline Super Moderator

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    It is a dry heat, yeah right !
    What are you using as a supplement? I use roughly .2 dkh every 24.
     
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  9. Billme

    Billme Eyelash Blennie

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    I had been adding 30 ml of BRS 2 part for months. Not sure about dkh. Alk was always in the normal range. Skipped testing for a few weeks and found it had jumped to above 12. I suspect it is high but I want to make sure before starting any adjustments. I'll do some water changes to help normalize things.
     
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  10. Billme

    Billme Eyelash Blennie

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    Sorry for the delay folks but here are my latest measurements:
    Older Salifert ALK: 9.5 dKH
    Newer Salifert: 9.8 dKH
    Hanna colorimeter: 9.9 dKH
    All probably reading within the margin of error. I guess I can assume my previous tests were my fault. Man that was not easy to say
     
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  11. mdbostwick

    mdbostwick Vlamingii Tang

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    I am glad you got everything worked out. No one will think less of you for being human.
     
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  12. DSC reef

    DSC reef Giant Squid

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    I've done mag and alk tests wrong that gave me a mini stroke!!! Lol
     
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