New tank, cycle and low ph help

[cginex]

Hey i set up my 30g aio on Friday with saltwater purchased from local shop. It's their water. I added 30 lbs of man made purple live rock and 20lbs of live reef sand. Checked my levels today and my ph is 7.2 and my alkalinity is 60 ish. Any thoughts? I've had pump and filters on and my reef full spectrum tablet light on. Light 8-10 hours a day and filer/pump 24/7. Thanks for the help.

[tommyhrs]

If it has run a full cycle throw a piece of raw shrimp in for a day or 2 to see if it handles a bio load or produces any ammonia. Test the salinity and raise it if nessesary, some stores run a very low specific gravity. Then if all things check out you can get a buffer to raise ph. Keep in mind a new tank still needs some time to mature even if you used everything live to start it.

[disc1]

Using buffers to mess with pH is a bad idea. They'll all push alkalinity through the roof.

Are your rocks and sand dissolving? If not, then there's no way the pH is really that low. How are you measuring that?

When you say alkalinity is 60ish I assume you are talking about units of ppm. Is that correct? If so then that needs to come up. What is your salinity and how was it measured?

[bertoni]

I agree that 7.2 isn't possible. I'd get some second opinions on the test kits. I personally would avoid throwing shrimp into the tank to rot. You can test the filter with a bit of fish food, if you're worried.

[cginex]

thanks guys...when you say test the filter with a bit of fish food, what do you mean?
i am checking salinity with my Instant Ocean hydrometer....salinity measures about 1.025, same as it was when i put it in the tank friday night. that is fine isnt it?

also, as for testing the water i am using test strips, i think tetra makes them.
http://www.petmountain.com/product/aquarium-saltwater-test-kits/11442-571178/tetra-easystrips-6-in-1-aquarium-test-strips.html?utm_source=googleproductads&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=%7Bkeyword%7D&gclid=COnDssDW4LYCFQne4AodXysA8w

[disc1]

Throw those test strips in the garbage where they belong.

[cginex]

alrighty then....any suggestions without breaking the bank for a test kit? also, i am somewhat color blind so when colors look similar its tough for me to tell.

[bertoni]

If you add a bit of fish food, and the ammonia doesn't spike, the live rock is ready for filtration duty. Otherwise, wait for the ammonia to drop to zero and try again. :)

You could just ignore the pH for now. What animals do you intend to keep? If you don't want to keep stony corals or grow coralline, you might not need an alkalinity kit.