[Tango29]

So what is the best way to raise ph safely? Mines low and seems to be afftecting my yellow tang, but none of my other fish. All other tests that I did are good, no ammonia, no nitrites and so on, but I did get a tetra test kit that gave me a chart for CO2 where I had to calc hardness and pH. The chart has a little white box where water CO2 should be, but if you follow up 8.2 or 8.3 pH, the box comes no where near it. Even if I adjusted my carb hardness (kh), it still wouldnt come into range. Whats up with that??? Im thinkin about takin my new test kit back because I get completely different results between this test kit and the one I have now which is a saltwater master kit and Ive had a few people tell me to trust my Saltwater master kit more than my tetra test kit. What would everyone else recommend to be the best kit to trust? I just want to know whats actually going on in my tank. And are these tests better than buying the strips or are the strips better??? soooo confusing
a lil help please :?

tank: 55 gal
been up for a little less than a year
lots of live rock
2 tangs
2 clowns
10 damsels
2 choc chip starfish
5 herm crabs
4 emerald crabs
4 peppermint shrimp
4 camel shrimp
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
0 nitrate
spec grav: 1.021
Temp: 80
kh: 7
ph: its low... :roll:

 

[Lupin]

Hi Tango.:wave:

Liquid test kits are often better than test strips. How low is the pH? I may not be a marine enthusiast but I'll still be willing to help you.:thumbsup:

Crushed oysters will help increase KH thereby increasing the pH. This is a slow process but I find it safer than increasing it almost immediately which can sometimes prove harmful to the fish. Pls don't use chemicals like pH-plus. They can adjust pH temporarily but will never work well.

 

[Lupin]

Sigh..Another post to go with after talking to one of the members.:mrgreen:

Tango, your tank was beyond the overstocking level. As I had mentioned above, crushed corals and oysters will help raise the pH gradually and safely. Pls try to double check your nitrates using a different brand of test kit other than the Tetra Kits. Sera kits are one of the good options. If the nitrates reach above 40, do more water changes as this is the only route to eliminate excess nitrates.
The salinity level should be 1.023-1.025. 1.021 is opt to be a level suited mostly for freshwater and brackish water.

Good luck.:thumbsup: I cannot take the credit for this advice. Someone requested me to post this one.

Edit: Your test kits may not be accurate and your nitrates is probably high. High nitrates will result to crashing of pH and it may happen easily overnight or anytime soon.

 

[caferacermike]

You need to buffer your water as well. You can get products like Kent Super buffer or I prefer Seachem products. Regular water changes will include a buffer in the salt mix.

Salifert kits are regarded as the best followed by Seachem.