Rcunning8
Premium member
Hey guys I didn't want you to miss out on this little experiment I am doing on my tank. I posted this write up on my build thread but in case you don't follow me there I wanted to share it in its own separate thread as well. Today is day 1!!
So guys I wanted to update my thread with a new piece of equipment that I purchased from brs!! I saw a video from Ryan on brs tv that demonstrated the use of a co2 scrubber on their 160 build and since my ph has been running low since I upgraded to the new apex I decided I would try it out.
According to most people the most optimal ph to run your tank is 8.3-8.4 as this ph increases coral growth and health. I just recently read a book which indicated that corals start to die and or loose viability at ph less than 7.8 which is sad to hear as this seems to be the fate at which our oceans are heading towards
.
Many people have heard that the ocean is becoming "acidified" and if you haven't heard of this you must be living under a rock! The reason behind ocean acidification is simple. Increased co2 in the atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels increases what is known as the partial pressure of co2. Some of you may also know the the oceans act as a buffer and when the atmospheric partial pressure of co2 increases this drives co2 into the ocean in order to equilibriate these gases. This is not so good for our reefs because when co2 and h2o combine they form h2co3 i.e. carbonic acid. Carbonic acid dissociates into a hydrogen atom and hco3-. If any of you have taken chemistry you will know that hydrogen ions are acidic ions and therefore drop the ph of the oceans and our home aquariums.
A good way to test this in real time is to turn on the burners (while cooking food) on your stove and if you have an apex and tank in close vicinity to your stove you will see the ph drop drastically!! This is because the burning of natural gas produces co2 and therefore the above process happens. This is why people who tell you to open your windows to increase your ph when ph is reading low because the pressence of humans and or pets indoors can increase co2 levels and the partial pressure of co2 of indoor air is allllways higher than outdoor air no matter how well ventilated your apartment or home is.
Hence the indication for use of a co2 scrubber on your tank! For people who have never heard of this device, little do you know that it has probably been used on you if you have ever undergone surgery under general anesthesia! This device basically takes in airs via negative pressure created by the skimmer, runs it through the medical grade co2 absorbing media and injects air composed of only nitrogen and oxygen into your tank therefore eliminating any additional co2 that is injected into your tank via the skimmer.
Anyways after seeing the video and understanding why this device works I decided to make the plunge and purchase this piece of equipment, all in all it cost me about 100 bucks which ain't to shabby!! Now pics of my installation!
Tube connected to scrubber attached to my skimmer air intake line below
Apex graph showing a sharp rise in ph after installation
My ph usually maxes out at 8.1 when I don't touch my tank at all and am hands off. Today I was making frags and messing with the sandbed so it did not max out at that number. I hope that this equipment will help with my ph as it is still low and if not I need to start thinking of probe issues because I don't think that my ph is correctly representing my true ph of my tank given how gosh damn healthy and amazing growth that has been taking place. I will continue to monitor this measurement over the coming days and fingers are crossed hoping that this method may help my low ph problem. Hope this post was helpful and happy reefing yo!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
So guys I wanted to update my thread with a new piece of equipment that I purchased from brs!! I saw a video from Ryan on brs tv that demonstrated the use of a co2 scrubber on their 160 build and since my ph has been running low since I upgraded to the new apex I decided I would try it out.
According to most people the most optimal ph to run your tank is 8.3-8.4 as this ph increases coral growth and health. I just recently read a book which indicated that corals start to die and or loose viability at ph less than 7.8 which is sad to hear as this seems to be the fate at which our oceans are heading towards
. Many people have heard that the ocean is becoming "acidified" and if you haven't heard of this you must be living under a rock! The reason behind ocean acidification is simple. Increased co2 in the atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels increases what is known as the partial pressure of co2. Some of you may also know the the oceans act as a buffer and when the atmospheric partial pressure of co2 increases this drives co2 into the ocean in order to equilibriate these gases. This is not so good for our reefs because when co2 and h2o combine they form h2co3 i.e. carbonic acid. Carbonic acid dissociates into a hydrogen atom and hco3-. If any of you have taken chemistry you will know that hydrogen ions are acidic ions and therefore drop the ph of the oceans and our home aquariums.
A good way to test this in real time is to turn on the burners (while cooking food) on your stove and if you have an apex and tank in close vicinity to your stove you will see the ph drop drastically!! This is because the burning of natural gas produces co2 and therefore the above process happens. This is why people who tell you to open your windows to increase your ph when ph is reading low because the pressence of humans and or pets indoors can increase co2 levels and the partial pressure of co2 of indoor air is allllways higher than outdoor air no matter how well ventilated your apartment or home is.
Hence the indication for use of a co2 scrubber on your tank! For people who have never heard of this device, little do you know that it has probably been used on you if you have ever undergone surgery under general anesthesia! This device basically takes in airs via negative pressure created by the skimmer, runs it through the medical grade co2 absorbing media and injects air composed of only nitrogen and oxygen into your tank therefore eliminating any additional co2 that is injected into your tank via the skimmer.
Anyways after seeing the video and understanding why this device works I decided to make the plunge and purchase this piece of equipment, all in all it cost me about 100 bucks which ain't to shabby!! Now pics of my installation!
Tube connected to scrubber attached to my skimmer air intake line below
Apex graph showing a sharp rise in ph after installation
My ph usually maxes out at 8.1 when I don't touch my tank at all and am hands off. Today I was making frags and messing with the sandbed so it did not max out at that number. I hope that this equipment will help with my ph as it is still low and if not I need to start thinking of probe issues because I don't think that my ph is correctly representing my true ph of my tank given how gosh damn healthy and amazing growth that has been taking place. I will continue to monitor this measurement over the coming days and fingers are crossed hoping that this method may help my low ph problem. Hope this post was helpful and happy reefing yo!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
