Alkalinity vs. Ph?

[sen5241b]

My first question for the board is what is alkalinity? Doesn't a high Ph mean there is too much alkalinity? (Low Ph being acidic and high Ph being alkaline). Why do you need to test Ph and alkaline separately?

My Ph, Ammonia, nitrates and salinity are all excellent,

 

[reeffreak]

Alkalinity, often referred to as "carbonate hardness," or German carbonate hardness, is the measure of carbonate and bicarbonate concentrations in your aquarium water. Alkalinity is a measure of the ability of a solution to neutralize acid without changing the pH. It both controls and maintains water pH. Carbonate hardness is measured in degrees (dKH), parts per million of calcium carbonate (ppm CaCo3), or milliequivalents per liter (meq/L).

If you want to know more of the relation between alkalinity and pH visit WWM.com.This is from Robert Fenner.About.com: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marphalk.htm

 

[reefer2b]

:scratchch Ok all that did was confuse me as to what it means when you test for it. :mrgreen:

 

[cthegame]

Alkalinity, often referred to as "carbonate hardness," or German carbonate hardness, is the measure of carbonate and bicarbonate concentrations in your aquarium water. Alkalinity is a measure of the ability of a solution to neutralize acid without changing the pH. It both controls and maintains water pH. Carbonate hardness is measured in degrees (dKH), parts per million of calcium carbonate (ppm CaCo3), or milliequivalents per liter (meq/L).

If you want to know more of the relation between alkalinity and pH visit WWM.com.This is from Robert Fenner.About.com: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marphalk.htm

Freak, that was great! :shock::shock::shock: Live long and prosper my friend!

 

[Bifferwine]

Alkalinity is a measure of your tank's ability to withstand/prevent changes in pH.

 

[yote]

:scratchch Ok all that did was confuse me as to what it means when you test for it. :mrgreen:

Thats why I just try to keep the levels right.Cause I sure aint cant understand it.:mrgreen:

 

[reeffreak]

Exactly Yote!
Keep alkalinity stable and where it needs to be to avoid pH swings.

 

[reefer2b]

Ok, direct and to the point. Thanks

 

[sagent3000]

Alkalinity is a measure of your tank's ability to withstand/prevent changes in pH.

you know biff i have never thought of it like that. i have been donig this for a few years and never put the two together like that

 

[yote]

you know biff i have never thought of it like that. i have been donig this for a few years and never put the two together like that

That shows why Biff beats everybody else to a post.
Shes smart:D

 

[sagent3000]

shes gotta be after all she lives in the middle of the desert and has a reef tank

 

[yote]

True,lol.

 

[Bifferwine]

Yep, it's hard enough for the livestock to survive the trip out here in the first place, let alone in my tank that hasn't had a water change since September.

 

[sagent3000]

you know i don't do water changes like people say. i just look at my corals and go on their apperance. if they are looking a little sick i do it other wise i don't.

 

[kevinsimons]

Wow - that's a huge admission for THIS board... what do your nitrates test at?

 

[cthegame]

This is the first i have heard of this. Really, since September?

I guess that's a whole other level of knowing your tank and being able to keep it healthy without a single water change...

Biff i'm amazed and impressed at the same time. You're like the Lance Armstrong of Reef Tanks. :D

I'm barely the "Paris Hilton" or "Britney Spears" of reef tanks...i have a long way to go.

 

[Bifferwine]

Wow - that's a huge admission for THIS board... what do your nitrates test at?

Ummmm... I haven't tested since September either. I'm just waaaay too lazy to do stuff like that. A 10% water change for my tank is 30 gallons. So it takes a hella lot of effort to do one of those. Everything in my tank LOOKS okay, so I just leave it alone.

In no way do I advocate not doing water changes. I think 10% once a week is ideal. And that's what I always told everyone. That was, until I got a 300 gallon tank. I still tell everyone that 10% weekly is healthy, but damn, that's hard work for my tank.

 

[RyanG]

Tisk tisk biff I was lazy on my freshie tank for a month and a half...system crash. Flirting with disaster dear.

 

[Bifferwine]

It would be pretty hard to crash 300 gallons of water, me thinks. I don't have a very high bioload, and everyone looks healthy so far. I don't even have to clean the glass of algae, I just don't have any.