So I noticed the ph on my tank has been trending low. The past few days, checked alk and its in line with my normal levels so wasnt sure what was going... I did some reading and found some articles about the effects of high co2 levels in your homes air dissolcing into the tank and causing a drop in ph. So being that its been getting a little cooler I opened up a window in my basement thats about 20 ft from my tank, and the changes i saw on my apex were incredible.
My tank hit a low point in ph yesterday morning at around 4am when it dropped to 7.84. I opened up the window yesterday evening at around 6pm at which point the ph was at 8.0 on the daily rise. Last night the ph peaked at around 8.15. The overnight down swing was very much blunted only bringing the ph down to 8.05 and today its already made its way up to 8.27 with the windows still open.
I never would have immagined just opening a window can have that much of an impact on the ph of the tank, but if you think about it, co2 levels in your house skyrocket compared to whats outside and all of that extra co2 is able to dissolve right into your aquarium allowing your ph to fall.
My tank hit a low point in ph yesterday morning at around 4am when it dropped to 7.84. I opened up the window yesterday evening at around 6pm at which point the ph was at 8.0 on the daily rise. Last night the ph peaked at around 8.15. The overnight down swing was very much blunted only bringing the ph down to 8.05 and today its already made its way up to 8.27 with the windows still open.
I never would have immagined just opening a window can have that much of an impact on the ph of the tank, but if you think about it, co2 levels in your house skyrocket compared to whats outside and all of that extra co2 is able to dissolve right into your aquarium allowing your ph to fall.