Honestly, whats your SPS tanks ALK.

[Jar*Head]

Between 7.8-8.0 work best for me

[prance1520]

I try to stay 9-10. I know someone who keeps it at 12 with great results, but he's very meticulous also.

On a side note, spikes are terrible for corals, but high dKH won't be a killer for most corals. I didn't keep track of what my calcium reactor was doing for a while, and tested only to find I had a dKH well over 16 (thats as high as the test kit goes, and it wasn't changing color anytime soon). Corals didn't look great, but they were definately still doing ok.

I'm not encouraging superhigh dKh, just reiterating that its the rapid change that is bad, not the high levels.

[Lenny C]

8 works good for me.

[Lenny C]

8 works for me. I used to keep mine around 3..... yeah... that was before I knew anything.

[eskymick]

I've been having an easy time keeping mine at 9.

[tnn1567]

Wow, I am just amazed that everyone keep theirs between 8 and 10. I keep mine at 11.2 and I use my pulsing xenia to help me know when my alkalinity is low.

[MammothReefer]

9.6 wouldn't mind it lower.

[kwl1763]

8-10 tending toward 10

[REEF-DADDY]

Originally posted by tnn1567
Wow, I am just amazed that everyone keep theirs between 8 and 10. I keep mine at 11.2 and I use my pulsing xenia to help me know when my alkalinity is low.

NSW is 7-8, why do you keep yours so high?

[rutz81]

After reading this I decided to check my normally stable condtions... My alk is at 15.7!!!! I lowered my drip rate immediately. Guess that kind of explains my tip tissue recession. Should I use anything to lower it fast, or just let it come down by itself? HELP!!

[Bebo77]

8's

can i ask.. how much does your guys alk fluctuate?

[MGB]

What's everybody using to test, and how accurate are the test kits, I'm wondering how that could vary.

[mysterybox]

9.6 (salifert)

[REEF-DADDY]

Originally posted by Bebo77
8's

can i ask.. how much does your guys alk fluctuate?

Not at all unless I do a water change with high alk IO!

[carib]

i am not panicing when i read 7-ish,but i was shaking when i saw 10 after changing the media. Gabriel-mine usualy reads 8.0,with 0.5 up or down{not often)

[AWExotics]

My systems at times have been as high as 15 and as low as 6. I try to keep it around 10. I ran one system at 12 + and had a few tri colors color so incredibly.

Within reasonable levels I think there is a more major concern with extrem changes rather than your actual number. I raise and lower alk slowly if I ever need to adjust it.

[gasman059]

9-11.5 fluctuation

[rutz81]

Originally posted by AWExotics
My systems at times have been as high as 15 and as low as 6. I try to keep it around 10. I ran one system at 12 + and had a few tri colors color so incredibly.

Within reasonable levels I think there is a more major concern with extrem changes rather than your actual number. I raise and lower alk slowly if I ever need to adjust it.

How do you lower alk?

[AWExotics]

Add Calcium, water changes are the two methods for me. It makes it a slow process which is important, IMO

[MammothReefer]

I must amend, my alk is 8.6 not 9.6 either I fixed it or I did my test wrong

[PrangeWay]

140ppm or 7.8 dkh - using Lamotte test kit accurate to 4ppm or .2 dkh

It's just about rock solid there with dosing pump dosing alk 2 part every 2 hours.


PW

[Corn]

8-10

[my2girls]

7.4-7.7 for me using Salifert.

[stony_corals]

7 using salifert. I try to stay in NSW range.

[j.prostrata]

7.5-7.7 dKH using salifert, Ca 400-410, Mg 1250-1300, salinity 1.026 or roughly 35ppt temp 77-79F.