pH Rises.....Any assistance? - Page 2

HiggyBrew · 06/12/2012, 01:44 PM

My guess is that your ATO pump flow rate is too high which is causing the kalk slurry at the bottom of the reactor to mix into the saturated water above. This will add too much OH ions to the tank causing a large spike in the tanks pH. You may have better luck using a very low flowrate peristaltic pump. This way the RO/DI input will be very gentle, and will not stir up the slurry. You may also have too much kalk in the reactor for its design. Make sure the kalkwasser is clear and not milky, if it's milky then you are adding concentrated CaOH which is very harsh (caustic). This could cause a runaway pH, drifting upwards. Another possibility would be an extreme evaporation rate, causing large additions of ATO/kalkwasser. I would check that the reactor is working properly first.

joelespinoza · 06/16/2012, 09:50 PM

If you are really having an issue with raising PH and you cant control it even with the correct mag/cal/alk values, and it is not being caused by something removable, like lime filled homemade concrete rocks, then as Randy said greater air exposure is a good way to control the situation without resorting to dosing. The increased exposure of CO2 to the tank water is helpful.

If you are incredibly concerned and are having a long term issue, try something like a larger chamber skimmer or algae scrubber waterfall screen. You dont have to make an actual algae scrubber for this to work (IE it doesnt have to be lit), but hanging waterfall screens are a great way to increase exposure to atmosphere.

joelespinoza · 06/16/2012, 09:51 PM

If you are really having an issue with raising PH and you cant control it even with the correct mag/cal/alk values, and it is not being caused by something removable, like lime filled homemade concrete rocks, then as Randy said greater air exposure is a good way to control the situation without resorting to dosing. The increased exposure of CO2 to the tank water is helpful.

If you are incredibly concerned and are having a long term issue, try something like a larger chamber skimmer or algae scrubber waterfall screen. You dont have to make an actual algae scrubber for this to work (IE it doesnt have to be lit), but hanging waterfall screens are a great way to increase exposure to atmosphere. Here is a couple examples:

http://reefcentral.com/forums/show...rubber-Designs

06/12/2012, 01:44 PM	#26
HiggyBrew Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Michigan, USA Posts: 51	My guess is that your ATO pump flow rate is too high which is causing the kalk slurry at the bottom of the reactor to mix into the saturated water above. This will add too much OH ions to the tank causing a large spike in the tanks pH. You may have better luck using a very low flowrate peristaltic pump. This way the RO/DI input will be very gentle, and will not stir up the slurry. You may also have too much kalk in the reactor for its design. Make sure the kalkwasser is clear and not milky, if it's milky then you are adding concentrated CaOH which is very harsh (caustic). This could cause a runaway pH, drifting upwards. Another possibility would be an extreme evaporation rate, causing large additions of ATO/kalkwasser. I would check that the reactor is working properly first.

06/16/2012, 09:50 PM	#27
joelespinoza Moved On Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Galveston Posts: 417	If you are really having an issue with raising PH and you cant control it even with the correct mag/cal/alk values, and it is not being caused by something removable, like lime filled homemade concrete rocks, then as Randy said greater air exposure is a good way to control the situation without resorting to dosing. The increased exposure of CO2 to the tank water is helpful. If you are incredibly concerned and are having a long term issue, try something like a larger chamber skimmer or algae scrubber waterfall screen. You dont have to make an actual algae scrubber for this to work (IE it doesnt have to be lit), but hanging waterfall screens are a great way to increase exposure to atmosphere.

06/16/2012, 09:51 PM	#28
joelespinoza Moved On Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Galveston Posts: 417	If you are really having an issue with raising PH and you cant control it even with the correct mag/cal/alk values, and it is not being caused by something removable, like lime filled homemade concrete rocks, then as Randy said greater air exposure is a good way to control the situation without resorting to dosing. The increased exposure of CO2 to the tank water is helpful. If you are incredibly concerned and are having a long term issue, try something like a larger chamber skimmer or algae scrubber waterfall screen. You dont have to make an actual algae scrubber for this to work (IE it doesnt have to be lit), but hanging waterfall screens are a great way to increase exposure to atmosphere. Here is a couple examples: http://reefcentral.com/forums/show...rubber-Designs