Alk supplements some myths dispelled

Hello

many of you may have seen comments/ posts indicating the following things

1) alkalinity supplements need to be dosed at night

2) alkalinity supplements should be dosed a long time after calcium supplements (12 hours is an oft quoted post I have seen)

the reasoning behind the above is sound enough

some Alk supplements will increase PH and as such dosing when PH is at it lowest is smart
But - not all Alk supplements increase PH, some do not affect it at all, and some can even lower PH

if Calcium and Alkalinity supplements are dosed at the same time into a small area of the tank, some carbonates may precipitate
But - if they are dosed at the same time at opposite ends of the tank into areas of high flow for example, they tend to get well mixed and avoid precipitation issues
Kalkwasser users for example - how would they deal with the need to dose Alk and Calcium seperately and 12 hours apart, when the media they are using is a balance combination of both?

I am to find out exactly what various Alk supplements do to PH and put figures into the equation rather than just "it raises or it lowers"

10 gallon tank
calibration PH probe
various liquid and dry additives
I will add a qty of the additive and record the reaction of my PH probe

supplements I already have and can thus test are

Seachems reef builder
Seachems reef buffer
Seachems reef fusion - Alkalinity part
Kent,s super buffer DK
Kent Nano part B
Brightwells Code B Alkalinity
Bubble Magus reef free , Alkalinity supplement
Baking powder (Nb I do not have a stove or oven so cannot bake it)
Warner Marine - Kalkwasser powder

that is a few to start with
my aim is to mix a solution that would increase the DHK in the 10 gallon tank by 1 dkh and then monitor the PH probe as I gradually add the chosen supplement

my aim is simply at the end of the experiment, to be able to show people, just how much effect that additive will have on the tanks PH

Steve

 

Good idea Steve , I Can't wait to see the results.

 

I have never dosed 12 hours apart. Pretty much always dose part A in one chamber of the tank and part B in the other, yes you get a small cloud but I would not classify that as precipitate. Recently I have been seeing post regarding dosing Ca at night and Alk in the am, and do not dose within hours of each other. Honestly I thought hmmm guess I have been doing wrong all these years. So after thinking about it I realized that nothing adverse has ever happened as a result of my dosing both at the same time and regardless of time of day. Long story short I just kept doing it the way I have always done it.

I use Kent A/B.

If you are dosing maintenance and not trying to make up for significantly lower values than IMO you should not see swings so significant in ALK that it would stress corals.

Looking forward to the results Steve.