almost violent ph swings
- Thread starter rbredding
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Sounds like it needs to be calibrated..
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Yeah, that can't be right. I would imagine that everything in your tank would be severely stressed, if not dead.
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Sounds like a stray voltage issue . Maybe a heater or pump turning on and off and is fouling the reading from the probe.
Thanks, I'll check for stray voltage when I get home tonight..
I will also look into calibrating the probe..
it does change with the temperature (temp goes up, so does ph)... I'll see what I can come up with...
the probe isn't far from the heater, but the heater shouldn't be turning on at all these days...
I will also look into calibrating the probe..
it does change with the temperature (temp goes up, so does ph)... I'll see what I can come up with...
the probe isn't far from the heater, but the heater shouldn't be turning on at all these days...
no, I don't dose anything..
I unplugged the only two submerged items one at a time.. first the heater.. then the skimmer (running a mag7)...
when I unplugged the mag7, the ph jumped from 10.8 to 8.3 (so I left it unplugged lastnight)
I'm going to look at the graph again when I get home and if it's clear, I'll take the Mag7 back (maybe get one of the new marineland pumps up at MarineDesign.
it seems that the problem is solved.. we'll see...
weird thing is that the skimmer ran 24/7 so I can't explain why the ph would be up for 4 hours then down for 6, then back up again for 2 then down for 2 etc.. (I'll upload a screenshot of the graph log)
I unplugged the only two submerged items one at a time.. first the heater.. then the skimmer (running a mag7)...
when I unplugged the mag7, the ph jumped from 10.8 to 8.3 (so I left it unplugged lastnight)
I'm going to look at the graph again when I get home and if it's clear, I'll take the Mag7 back (maybe get one of the new marineland pumps up at MarineDesign.
it seems that the problem is solved.. we'll see...
weird thing is that the skimmer ran 24/7 so I can't explain why the ph would be up for 4 hours then down for 6, then back up again for 2 then down for 2 etc.. (I'll upload a screenshot of the graph log)
pH Probes can be affected by Electro Magnetic Fields, it doesn't mean the Mag is puting voltage into the tank. Although, you should test for it just to be sure. How close was the probe to the Mag Drive? All probes should be as far away from electrical devices as possible.
Tim
Tim
the ph probe is in the return section of the skimmer. The heater is also in that area (probably too close, but I don't really have anywhere else I want to put the heater - not like it's really on much anyway)
slinky - you can test for stray voltage by using a multimeter and touching one probe to the water and the other probe to anything grounded (center screw of an outlet cover or the ground hole of an outlet for example)
it's NOT the mag pump.. I disconnected it overnight on Thursday and checked the graph the next morning, PH swing in the middle of the night..
so I'm not sure what could be causing it, but I'm continuing to investigate (I've yet to have time to calibrate it but because it's fluctuating between normal range (8.1-8.3) to pegged out 11.3, I doubt it's a calibration issue...
I've added a screenshot of the probe over the last week.. (it looks like everytime the temp raises, the ph raises.. )
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slinky - you can test for stray voltage by using a multimeter and touching one probe to the water and the other probe to anything grounded (center screw of an outlet cover or the ground hole of an outlet for example)
it's NOT the mag pump.. I disconnected it overnight on Thursday and checked the graph the next morning, PH swing in the middle of the night..
so I'm not sure what could be causing it, but I'm continuing to investigate (I've yet to have time to calibrate it but because it's fluctuating between normal range (8.1-8.3) to pegged out 11.3, I doubt it's a calibration issue...
I've added a screenshot of the probe over the last week.. (it looks like everytime the temp raises, the ph raises.. )
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Had that happen before Like I said it is usually stray voltage. That don't have to be any where close either just in the same system. It doesn't have to be much current either a mill-amp can cause the appearance of a fluctuation via the probe.
well I really believe that may be the issue.. I've got several fish and some soft corals and they seem to be fine. I plan on getting to the bottom of it but work is crazy right now.. (working today actually)
I just couldn't in my head come up with any reason why the ph would raise more than 3 points in the matter of 30 minutes.. stay up for a cpl hours, then drop just as fast back to the previous baseline.
I just couldn't in my head come up with any reason why the ph would raise more than 3 points in the matter of 30 minutes.. stay up for a cpl hours, then drop just as fast back to the previous baseline.
replaced the probe with one that I bought from Dave for my calcium reactor.
this is over the past week...
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this is over the past week...
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that's the main reason I wasn't worried about it.. the inhabitants were all happy so it couldn't be a correct reading.. (even though it went on for almost 10 days before I even bothered to do a chemical test.. )
like you said.. I would have seen it in the fish/corals first..
