Hello all, I have been dosing Marine Research buffer for over two weeks in my 75 gallon tank. I started after noticing that the alkylinity was low, but I have not been able to get it any higher than 1.7 mil equivalents. I am using a SeaTest kit, and have been dosing at around 6 table spoons a day. Am I just being impatient? Do I need to add more? Is the test kit crappy? I am also dosing kalkwasser, but only every other day or every three days as I don't have too many hard corals, will this affct the alkylinity? A side note, this buffer does not list any ingredients, is it just sodium bicarb, arm and hammer? Any help is very much appreciated, thanks in advance.
Alkylinity
- Thread starter jdamon
- Start date
Get a second test kit for referance. I can't ever see a reading of zero happening unless you were testing pure RO/DI water and even then you probably would read higher than zero. If you can get a hold of a Salifert Alk test or a Tetra DKH test I would use those for a reliable check.
HTH
Ph
HTH
Ph
<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by sarcophyton:
<strong>Bashcraft, You do not use any buffer for alkylinity? Also, maybe this is a bit unclear but, I did manage to raise the alkylinity from 0 to 1.7 milequiv.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I use nothing but kalk. Alk has been 3.0 - 3.5 meq/l for a year now.
Like I said, a big water change would probably do wonders.
Bob
<strong>Bashcraft, You do not use any buffer for alkylinity? Also, maybe this is a bit unclear but, I did manage to raise the alkylinity from 0 to 1.7 milequiv.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I use nothing but kalk. Alk has been 3.0 - 3.5 meq/l for a year now.
Like I said, a big water change would probably do wonders.
Bob
How is it out of whack? The equation for a buffer is a balanced equation. Meaning that there is always an equal amount of both ions in solution, unless of course I am missing something here. What is stopping the addition H3O+ from raising the alkylinity? I find it hard to believe that there is not enough OH- to balance the equation. I am not trying mess with you bob, I am trying to learn. Thanks for your help. Jeff
<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by sarcophyton:
<strong>What is stopping the addition H3O+ from raising the alkylinity? I find it hard to believe that there is not enough OH- to balance the equation.Jeff</strong><hr></blockquote>
Jeff,
After adding as much buffer as you have in the last couple weeks, with minimum results, apparantly something is out of balance.
The easiest way I know of correcting a problem like this is to replace the "bad" water with "good" water. Trying to "rebuild" the water with chemicals is usually not successful.
Bob
<strong>What is stopping the addition H3O+ from raising the alkylinity? I find it hard to believe that there is not enough OH- to balance the equation.Jeff</strong><hr></blockquote>
Jeff,
After adding as much buffer as you have in the last couple weeks, with minimum results, apparantly something is out of balance.
The easiest way I know of correcting a problem like this is to replace the "bad" water with "good" water. Trying to "rebuild" the water with chemicals is usually not successful.
Bob
Jeff,
Do your Corals look ok? If so then get a second test of the water with a different kit before you do anything. There are times when you get Ionic imballance in the water and the best way to fix is with a water change. Usually a sign of a ballance problem is when you add buffer, does your tank stay cloudy or start to snow? Any chance you have a CA test kit?, would be curious to know what your Calcium levels are. Also how old is the tank.
Me thinks your test kit has problems. Ive seen my share of POS test kits.
Ph
Do your Corals look ok? If so then get a second test of the water with a different kit before you do anything. There are times when you get Ionic imballance in the water and the best way to fix is with a water change. Usually a sign of a ballance problem is when you add buffer, does your tank stay cloudy or start to snow? Any chance you have a CA test kit?, would be curious to know what your Calcium levels are. Also how old is the tank.
Me thinks your test kit has problems. Ive seen my share of POS test kits.
Ph
randy holmes-farley
Advanced Reefer
- Location
- Arlington, MA
Let's ballpark what you've added:
6 tablespoons (not teaspoons) is probably something like 80 grams of solid. If that was sodium bicarbonate, that would provide about 1000 meq of alkalinity. Put that into your tank (284 L) and the alkalinity ought to rise by about 3.5 meq/L EVERY DAY.
That's why people were suggesting that something is wrong.
6 tablespoons (not teaspoons) is probably something like 80 grams of solid. If that was sodium bicarbonate, that would provide about 1000 meq of alkalinity. Put that into your tank (284 L) and the alkalinity ought to rise by about 3.5 meq/L EVERY DAY.
That's why people were suggesting that something is wrong.
Thank you for all the help. Randy, I added teaspoons not tablespoons, please read the rest of the thread. Ph and Tyoberg, the limited corals that I have look good. I have a few sarcophytons, go figure, various button polyps, and a bunch of mushrooms. I have kept limited hard corals in the past and had some success, but not lately, hence the inquirey and discovery of a alkylinity problem. I have a feeling that the calcium is high because I have been adding it, and the macroalgea that usaully eats it is beeing out competed for nutrients by the recent addition of a refugium. On the other hand, There is plenty of coraline algea on the rocks, but none on the glass, hmmmm... Tyoberg, where do you suggest a search on the topic? I read the archived thread on this site and it was pretty informative, but i am still having some trouble. Thank you all again.
Jeff
Jeff
randy holmes-farley
Advanced Reefer
- Location
- Arlington, MA
Jeff:
<< Randy, I added teaspoons not tablespoons, please read the rest of the thread. >>
I hope this is coming across to me differently than you intened it. I find it offensive the way that was written. I literaly have posted thousands of answers to chemistry questions, and if I missed where you pointed out a mistake in one of your posts, that doesn't seem like a reason to chastise me.
<< Randy, I added teaspoons not tablespoons, please read the rest of the thread. >>
I hope this is coming across to me differently than you intened it. I find it offensive the way that was written. I literaly have posted thousands of answers to chemistry questions, and if I missed where you pointed out a mistake in one of your posts, that doesn't seem like a reason to chastise me.
randy holmes-farley
Advanced Reefer
- Location
- Arlington, MA
Yes, if I hadn't missed the correction from tablespoons to teaspoons, the post would have been different. Still, if you divide the answer by 3, the conclusion is the same: you've added a bunch of alkalinity that isn't showing up.
As for links to articles, I don't know of any especially clear ones. One that I've written for AAMO on alkalinity should be posted this month, and a second on calcium has been submitted to them. I'm also putting together a combo calcium and alkalinity article for RC's magazine, but it is not yet done.
As for links to articles, I don't know of any especially clear ones. One that I've written for AAMO on alkalinity should be posted this month, and a second on calcium has been submitted to them. I'm also putting together a combo calcium and alkalinity article for RC's magazine, but it is not yet done.
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