PH Problems

[gordo]

I got my first Salt Water Aquarium setup 2 weeks ago. And ever since then i've been testing my levels. Trying to see where i am in the cycle. I test my PH periodically as well and the readings have all been 8.8-9.0 and i don't understand why it is so high all the time. Originally i thought it was because of the ammonia as it was recycling. (The tank was setup for 5 years before i bought it.) And i kept all the liverock under water during transport. So a few things died hence why some levels spiked. But the cycle shouldn't take that long. I have been getting the same ammonia reading of 0.25 for about a week and a half now. With no signs of Nitrite or Nitrate. I have noticed that the protein skimmer is producing protein in the upper chamber. It is brown in color so i assume thats the right stuff. But doesn't a protein skimmer remove Nitrate? This doesn't make sense. Unless my tank is fully cycled already. Which is could very well be but thats beside the point.

Can anybody tell me why my PH is so high all the time? I am using a Hagen Saltwater test kit. It tests both freshwater and saltwater. I even tested my tank where i age my saltwater and it was giving me the same readings of 8.8-9.0 before it has even entered the saltwater tank. I tested one of my freshwater aquariums and i get normal readings. So maybe its the salt? I have no clue. I am still new to saltwater. Any information would be great.

[bosshog]

Least expensive way to get good tests is to find a LFS that will do water test for you. Have them check it out for you. While you are there buy some Elos or Salifert test kits. The Hagen one's may not be as accurate as they could be. For pH buy an electronic meter. Test strips are notorious for not being accurate. Once you get the meter buy some calibration solution 7 and 10 and calibrate the meter once a month or so. Hanna makes an affordable product that works.

As far as your cycle goes, I'd bet your ammonia is zero too. Ammonia is the first step in the nitrogen cycle, if you have ammonia you should have nitrate and nitrite.

Toss the Hagen stuff and buy some better test kits, even API may be better than Hagen. I started with API and now only use Salifert, been happy with that brand. I've heard good things about Elos too, but never used them.

Ahhh, let the money pit open open up and swallow it's first stack of $100s.

HTH

[gordo]

Thanks for the info. I went to my LFS and purchased a API saltwater test kit. I brought a sample of my water in to get tested and they tested it with a digital tester. It turned out to be 8.6. So it wasn't as bad as i thought. I'm going to toss the Hagen test kit. It just doesn't seem accurate. I did a water change 2 days ago and then added my buffer to get the PH down. I am going to test it today and see if the PH has settled down. I figure my tank is fully cycled. There are no traces of ammonia, nitrite, nitrate. I had a Detritus outbreak not to long ago but it seems to have converted into green algae now. There is quite a bit on the glass on the back of the tank, does green algae indicate that my tank is fully cycled? And is there a preferred PH buffer out there? Or do all of them pretty much do the same thing?

[bosshog]

The green algae just means something is out of whack with your water, could be phosphates leaching out of your rock. Hard to test for very small amounts of phos, but it will still be enough for GHA to thrive. Green hair algae is the scourge of the reef tank, a real pain in the butt. My first tank was solid green for it's first six months, as the tank has matured and I've become smarter the GHA is almost totally gone, took almost a year. Start by picking off the algae, not a fun task but worthwhile. Get some macro algae like chaeto it will out compete the GHA for nutrients. Some critters will eat it, I've got turbo snails, and an emerald crab at the moment.

I'm not sure if you used the word detritus properly. Detritus is usually crap on your rocks and tank bottom. I think you may have meant diatoms. They show up during the cycle, as a reddish slime all over the tank. They are normal and will go away as your water cleans up over time. If a snail or something dies in the future you may get another outbreak of them.

As for pH buffers I have no idea about them. My pH is pretty much stuck on 8.2 in all 4 tanks and doesn't change unless I dose a bit too much alkalinity, which is to be expected.

HTH

[gordo]

The green algae just means something is out of whack with your water, could be phosphates leaching out of your rock. Hard to test for very small amounts of phos, but it will still be enough for GHA to thrive. Green hair algae is the scourge of the reef tank, a real pain in the butt. My first tank was solid green for it's first six months, as the tank has matured and I've become smarter the GHA is almost totally gone, took almost a year. Start by picking off the algae, not a fun task but worthwhile. Get some macro algae like chaeto it will out compete the GHA for nutrients. Some critters will eat it, I've got turbo snails, and an emerald crab at the moment.

I'm not sure if you used the word detritus properly. Detritus is usually crap on your rocks and tank bottom. I think you may have meant diatoms. They show up during the cycle, as a reddish slime all over the tank. They are normal and will go away as your water cleans up over time. If a snail or something dies in the future you may get another outbreak of them.

As for pH buffers I have no idea about them. My pH is pretty much stuck on 8.2 in all 4 tanks and doesn't change unless I dose a bit too much alkalinity, which is to be expected.

HTH

I had some GHA for a few days but now it seems to be dieing off. I was lucky and some of the live rock that came with the tank had some nice macro algae growing on it. I managed to get my PH down to 8.2. It took a few water changes but it seemed to have stabilized now. I think my thought of having Detritus was incorrect and that i did in fact have a diatoms outbreak. (Still new to SW). Lots has grown since my PH has stabilized it seems. The 5 year old live rock is finally paying off. I didn't loose as much life as i thought i would. I do although have a rock anemone outbreak. I read up on it and peppermint shrimp eat this stuff like candy. Only the smaller anemones though. So i purchased 2 and they seem to be doing great. Scurrying all around the tank inspecting every piece of live rock. I heard that iodine supplement is necessary for shrimp to aid in the molting process. I am using all tap water at the moment with plans on using half and half with RO water in the future. Is there enough iodide in tap water to suffice? Or is there even any? Should i be adding iodine?