Resolved i need major help( see last page!) solved it!!!

Many of you may already seen my thread about ph flucuating. I thought it was the probe. So i bought another. Same thing. So i assumed it was the sl1. So i trashed the reef keeper and bought myself a apex jr. Installes and ready to use. Next day i looked on my graph and it was the same thing! What can actually cause my ph to drop from 7.8 at night to 8.5 before lights turning off?? My ca.alk.mg is all perfect in line. My room is well ventilated. Also can a bad batch if salt mess up my ph? Thats the only thing i changed when i moved.

All od my sps coral are retracting and getting dull .

Can there be elecrtical that causes ph to do this?
I know co2 plays a part in this. But my skimmer is rated for 60g and i have it for a 30g. And its also vented in my room.
and no i cannot put a fuge. Help is needed please..

 

Also is there a chance that i dont have enough bacteria to break down the co2??

 

Low pH: Causes and Cures by Randy Holmes-Farley - Reefkeeping.com

Maybe this will help.

 

run a reverse light schedule fuge. It is very common for the ph to fall during the night when the lights are off, and to go up again once the ligths come back on. It is very normal.

If you have a sump, put a light over that. Have that come on when the main display lights go off and have the sump light go off when the main lights go back on. Through some chaeto in there.............there you go!

The sump light can be a cheap light........I used a clamp on reflector light from Home Depot'


never mind just re-read your post about no fuge.......disregard above!

 

This portion of the article Lady J linked should make it possible for you to see exactly whats going on or at least let you narrow down the possibilities.

Some of the possibilities listed above require some effort to diagnose. Problems 3 and 4 are quite common, and here is a way to distinguish them. Remove a cup of tank water and measure the pH. Then aerate it for an hour with an airstone using outside air. The pH should rise if the pH is unusually low for the measured alkalinity, as in Figure 3 (if it does not rise, most likely one of the measurements (pH or alkalinity) is in error). Then repeat the same experiment on a new cup of water using inside air. If the pH rises there too, then the aquarium pH will rise with more aeration because it is only the aquarium that contains excess carbon dioxide. If the pH does not rise inside (or rises very little), then the inside air contains excess CO[SIZE=-1]2[/SIZE], and more aeration with that same air will not solve the low pH problem (although aeration with fresher air should).

 

Dr. Holmes-Farley wrote two articles and I wish I had linked both. One discusses low pH and the other high.

Truthfully I can't think of any more answers. The more I considered your using new salt, well, that still doesn't really explain the pH swing; the new salt could have a different alk. level which would affect the pH, but again, not the swing.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong about this.

I've also read the affect ammonia has on pH but again, that has nothing do with a swing. At first I thought maybe it did, but after rereading I was wrong about that.

vinnie's suggestion is a good idea because it seems that it's got to be an excess of co2. By testing this you might be able to ascertain this is exactly what's going on. However, if it's excess co2 (which it almost seems it has to be), then where is it coming from (you are opening windows). One thing Dr. Holmes-Farley did state is that good turbulence at the water surface may not be enough to drive off the co2.

Some other random ideas (simply because I'm running out of more): is your new home heated with a different type of heat than your old one? Different kind of ac? Is it possible for one of these to "create" or release more co2? I don't even know what I'm talking about here---just trying to think of what the hell this could be. I think one of the things I mentioned in your first post is the energy efficiency of your new home. Maybe it's so well insulated that even with opening windows it's still not enough to equalize the gas exchange. This part has been added: this is the same thing that vinnie is saying: if the pH is swinging and you have good aeration in your tank, the problem is not the co2 in the tank, it's the co2 in your house which in turn leads us right back to what I was discussing earlier. UGH, sorry if I'm not explaining this clearly.

 

The airconditioner part is an interesting point.While A.C. units do not produce CO2 Window or wall units tend to draw in fresh air(most have fresh air vents that can be opened or closed) while Central A.C. just recirculates the air.:-/

 

Ok, so maybe different kinds of AC; what about a gas stove vs. an electric one? I have a gas furnace--are there electric furnaces? However, then the question is whether or not these are emitting enough co2 to make a noticeable difference in air quality. IDK, I'm stumped and it's bugging the heck out of me.

 

Ok, I spoke with a chemistry person and he said your swing isn't that unusual, especially if your home is energy efficient. This goes on the assumption that your calcium, magnesium, and alkalinity levels are staying within acceptable ranges.

I'm wondering if the corals are retracting because they aren't used to the changes in pH. However, are you showing any traces of ammonia? If so you might want to dose some Amquel sooner rather than later. A trace of ammonia can impact pH, but nothing too significant.

Stray current could definitely affect your corals and/or fish but I doubt that has anything to do with pH swings.

I'm out of ideas.

 

What are your alk and magnesium levels?

Are you using a dosing pump?