Like any marine tank, keeping a stable pH is important to the well-being of your tank inhabitants, particularly corals and invertebrates that require calcium to incorporate into their shells or corallites. Without going into heavy chemistry, our aragonite substrate in combination with the LR, help to maintain a calcium and bicarbonate buffer system which tends to keep the nano system pH stable......to a degree.
On initial startup, a nano tank is going to be unstable. Dead organisms, coralline dieoff, dissolved organics all will contribute to to a pH that may be out of range with what your desired level should be. In general, we would like to keep our pH in the 8.2 range with 8.1-8.4 acceptable.
Here are some general thoughts:
1) Invertebrates and hitchhikers that survived on your LR and made it across the globe from the South Pacific are pretty hardy creatures. They'll survive a pH of 7.7
2) As your tank matures, the pH should stabilize.
3) pH will drop overnight. Photosynthesis stops when the lights go out. Hence, during lights on, CO2 is absorbed and O2 given off. At night, the rising CO2 will lower the pH (CO2/bicarbonate equilbirium). Check your pH before lights out.
4) Calcium participates in the buffer system. As you add corals and coralline algae takes off, your calcium may fall. You should check your calcium levels routinely when you start to add livestock that are dependent on good calcium levels in the water (380-400 ppm).....NOT 2 weeks after cycling.
5) Magnesium also contributes to a stable buffering system, but, NO newbie nano reefer should be buying a magnesium test kit until they have a fully stocked nano tank that HAS pH problems. Water changes help all.
My advice to anyone before they start 'dosing' their tank is:
1) Take two steps back and look at your tank. How is it doing? Are the corals thriving? Tank inhabitants happy? Don't just treat numbers.
2) Good water husbandry should do the trick....keep up with water changes
3) A 4 week old nano tank with 2 mushrooms and one zoanthid frag doesn't need to be dosed for a pH of 7.9
As your tank begins to mature and contains calcium requiring invertebrates, eg, LPS, SPS, etc, AND your pH is not where you would like it, then you may want to intervene and start to buffer your tank. Some thoughts on buffering:
1) Expensive marine bufferes are predominantly sodium bicarbonate.
2) If you must dose, using a 2 part system may be beneficial if your calcium tends to be on the low side ( continually dosing bicarb without adding calcium my precipiate some calcium out of solution)
3) If calcium is being absorbed greater than water changes replace, then you may need to dose calcium (Kalkwasser). NOT NECESSARY during early tank maturation. This is after your tank is matured, stabilized, stocked and you have some mileage under your belt.
4) If you must dose, keep your eye on pH, dKh and calcium.
5) Dose in the morning when pH is low to avoid overshooting.
Hope this helped. JMO. Feel free to pitch in
SH
On initial startup, a nano tank is going to be unstable. Dead organisms, coralline dieoff, dissolved organics all will contribute to to a pH that may be out of range with what your desired level should be. In general, we would like to keep our pH in the 8.2 range with 8.1-8.4 acceptable.
Here are some general thoughts:
1) Invertebrates and hitchhikers that survived on your LR and made it across the globe from the South Pacific are pretty hardy creatures. They'll survive a pH of 7.7
2) As your tank matures, the pH should stabilize.
3) pH will drop overnight. Photosynthesis stops when the lights go out. Hence, during lights on, CO2 is absorbed and O2 given off. At night, the rising CO2 will lower the pH (CO2/bicarbonate equilbirium). Check your pH before lights out.
4) Calcium participates in the buffer system. As you add corals and coralline algae takes off, your calcium may fall. You should check your calcium levels routinely when you start to add livestock that are dependent on good calcium levels in the water (380-400 ppm).....NOT 2 weeks after cycling.
5) Magnesium also contributes to a stable buffering system, but, NO newbie nano reefer should be buying a magnesium test kit until they have a fully stocked nano tank that HAS pH problems. Water changes help all.
My advice to anyone before they start 'dosing' their tank is:
1) Take two steps back and look at your tank. How is it doing? Are the corals thriving? Tank inhabitants happy? Don't just treat numbers.
2) Good water husbandry should do the trick....keep up with water changes
3) A 4 week old nano tank with 2 mushrooms and one zoanthid frag doesn't need to be dosed for a pH of 7.9
As your tank begins to mature and contains calcium requiring invertebrates, eg, LPS, SPS, etc, AND your pH is not where you would like it, then you may want to intervene and start to buffer your tank. Some thoughts on buffering:
1) Expensive marine bufferes are predominantly sodium bicarbonate.
2) If you must dose, using a 2 part system may be beneficial if your calcium tends to be on the low side ( continually dosing bicarb without adding calcium my precipiate some calcium out of solution)
3) If calcium is being absorbed greater than water changes replace, then you may need to dose calcium (Kalkwasser). NOT NECESSARY during early tank maturation. This is after your tank is matured, stabilized, stocked and you have some mileage under your belt.
4) If you must dose, keep your eye on pH, dKh and calcium.
5) Dose in the morning when pH is low to avoid overshooting.
Hope this helped. JMO. Feel free to pitch in
SH
