Who checks PH

[The Guy]

Who out there actually checks there PH level?
I do regular water changes keep my salinity @ 1024-25, dose ca & alk and maintain my mg manually but have not been checking the ph, how important is it really? My tank looks awesome with healthy corals and fish. :noidea:

[Craigdillman]

Only time I checked it was when I was dialing I'm dosing kalk

Other than that it's a waste I thibk

[reefwars]

If you are not doing anything to the tank that will affect ph ie carbon dioxide , acid, lack of o2.........then as long as your tank has an acceptable alkalinity and temp then I wouldn't worry to much about ph .

Shifts are normal from low to high nightly but if it drops below 7.6 or for any reason goes higher than 8.6 then I would step in.

Keep in mind all ph buffers add alkalinity , so if you must add a buffer know that you never only add just a buffer.

Watch your corals , mainly the hard corals if ph is too off they will be the first to tell you.

[The Guy]

That's kinda what I do, watch the livestock and figured as long as everybody looks good and healthy it must be ok.

[Aquattro]

I checked mine in 2003. It was low so I threw the meter out. Haven't had trouble since.

[The Guy]

Thanks everyone my suspicions have been confirmed.

[emerald crab]

In my tank over 24 hours it swings between 7.9 and 8.35. The low value is the night time. The tank is about 6 ft from the deck door and the door stays partially open overnight summertime.
If you do just a test, it depends a lot when you do it and if you don't like the value, what do you do with it?

[dcw1sfu]

I monitor mine with my apex. For me i just find a comfort in knowing things are dialed in just right when dosing. Mine ranges from about 8.05 to 8.23 daily.

[emerald crab]

I monitor mine with my apex. For me i just find a comfort in knowing things are dialed in just right when dosing. Mine ranges from about 8.05 to 8.23 daily.

You must have a light bioload.

[Dearth]

Last time I checked PH was when I started up my big tank a year or so ago

[dcw1sfu]

You must have a light bioload.

Lots of SPS and pretty much maxed bioload wise with fish. However i dose alk on the hour which i find keeps my PH really stable.

[emerald crab]

I dose Ca and Alk(sodium carbonate) every ½ hour. It helps keeping it up, but not much about day-night swings.
My main bioload are the corals (SPS). I have some fish, mainly utility fish.
This shows once again that every tank is different.

[spit.fire]

my apex tells me what it is... never pay any attention to it tho

[Aquattro]

my apex tells me what it is... never pay any attention to it tho

Problem with that is that unless you perform maintenance and calibration regularly, it's not accurate. Best that you don't pay attention to it :)

[spit.fire]

Problem with that is that unless you perform maintenance and calibration regularly, it's not accurate. Best that you don't pay attention to it :)

once i hook my calcium reactor up i MIGHT calibrate it.... as long as its within 1.5points i dont really care tho

[Aquattro]

once i hook my calcium reactor up i MIGHT calibrate it.... as long as its within 1.5points i dont really care tho

I've never even worried about it with my reactor.

[spit.fire]

I use it to turn my co2 on and off.... So much easier

[Aquattro]

I use it to turn my co2 on and off.... So much easier

I don't touch my CO2, steady feed 24/7

[AquaticExpressions]

Chasing pH is a dangerous game.

If you have aragonite based substrate, live rock, and use good buffers then there is no reason in my opinion.

It is important when using Kalk or a Calcium reactor but that is about it.

If you are using 2 part you just need to check your salinity...