what should the temp & ph be in my saltwater tank?

when i set up my 40 gal marine tank next week what should i set the temp at?

also what should the ph be at?


also is shall i get my water at the correct temp before in mix in the salt?
or can i add it to luke warm water the heat it up to the corrct temp?

 

depends, do you plan on keeping any corals or just Fish Only?

 

Fish and invert only

 

I believe with FO tank you can run a pH of around 8.0 temp would be best between 76-78 depends on the fish. If you research the fish you want, generally it will tell you what pH and temp they naturally are used to.

 

if the ph is not right can i buy something to higher it or lower it?

 

I like to keep my PH at 8.2 and try to maintain my temp taking into consideration seasonal fluctuation. So if I did not have a chiller or other method of cooling the tank I would set higher (79-80) to try and maintain a constant temp year around. When I do water changes I do the following:

1) Mix my RO/DI water with salt for 24 hours in a 5 gallon bucket using a power head.
2) Heat the mixed water the night before with an extra heater to 79 degrees.
3) Add water slowly using a smaller power head to pull water from bucket to tank. I feel like this does two things A) Adds water slowly so it does not stress fish with dramatic water condition changes and B) Keeps the floor from getting water everywhere.

Good luck, nice to see you asking all the right questions up front. As to one of your other posts, I would invest in RO for fowlr, it really does cut down on algae growth which is worth it alone.

 

They make buffers for that. CO2 will lower it, people have used baking soda to raise it but you can go to the LFS and purchase buffers that will either raise, lower, or put the pH at an exact number.

 

IMO since you are filling the tank for the first time temp isn't that important. But it's a good idea to get into the habit of premixing your water, heat it to within +/- 2* of your tank water and use a pump or powerhead to circulate it to get a good oxygen mix. Do this for 24 hours prior to w/c and never add fresh mixed saltwater to your tank when there is life in it.
Using a quality saltmix and regular waterchanges will keep your pH @ a level of 8.2-8.4. Keep your calcium, alkalinity and magnesium balanced and you'll almost never need to even test pH.
Google 'Randy Holmes Farley' and read some of his reef chemistry articles. His information has helped me immensely.

 

I always ran my fish only salt tanks at. 1.023 salinity, 8.2 ph (+/-.1), and temp 76-79 is good. I dont use heaters as my house temps stay between 73-78 degrees all year around. my tank is always 75-80 .. 75 = lowest during winter, 80 = highest during summer time.