I am so glad that post made it. My battery died just as I hit submit and I was not sure if it made it.
Here is my suggestion, learn to speak Greek. :lol:
What do I mean by that? Well if you really want to have a successful tank then you need to understand the basic chemistry. That is going to take some time and reading, then some more time and conversation, and then maybe a little more reading. I have been trying to figure it out for a couple of years now and I still do not feel 100% educated. Please do not get too scared off by that statement. It really is not that hard. It does have a bit to do with how anal retentive you are.
Here is a link to a bunch of articles.
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=7f640a72b9be2224d13d03d8dc3b7a06&threadid=102605
There are several that I suggest you read. They are written by someone who most people consider an excellent resource to use and reference when it comes to talking about the chemistry of a reef tank. These would be good to start;
Reef Aquarium Water Parameters
How to Select a Calcium and Alkalinity Supplementation Scheme
An Improved Do-it-Yourself Two-Part Calcium and Alkalinity Supplement System
What Your Grandmother Never Told You about Lime
Now in the mean time what to do while you digest that. Do not go out and buy the stuff from the LFS. All it basically is a combination of Sodium Bicarbonate and Sodium Carbonate or Arm and Hammer Baking Soda and Arm and Hammer Baking Soda that has been baked in an oven at 300 degrees for 60 minutes. Really, I am not kidding. So just go buy yourself a 4 lbs box. I would suggest you bake it and here is why. So many new reefers get obsessed with pH, don't. What you really want to focus on is you alkalinity level. If you get to and maintain a good alkalinity level the pH will take care of itself. There are a few exceptions to this rule but let us try this and see if in fact it is an issue.
What you need to do is find out just how much alkalinity/buffer you need to dose to maintain a relatively constant level. This is done by taking a reading and then dosing the appropriate amount of buffer and then checking it again a few hours/half day later and dosing until it gets where you want it. Then you need to check it regularly, I do it in the morning before lights on and in the evening before lights out and find out how much you need to dose and when to get it to maintain your desired level.
Now what is that magic level? That is what you can get from the reading but until you do I would suggest something at least 2.5 meq/l but no more than 4.0 meq/l. Here is a link to a reef chemistry calculator that can tell how much you need to dose to get to the desired levels. I do know that all of the different way to read the levels are confusing, ppm dKh, meq/l but this calculator gives them all.
http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/chem_calc3.html
How should you dose. I would suggest making your self a little home made doser out of an empty vinegar bottle (you much have one of those around since we all us vinegar to clean the junk and gunk and deposits off of our pumps) and put a small hole in it, just big enough to squeeze some soft air tubing in and then put a small plastic air valve on it. You can put your buffer in, shake it up and then set it over your sump and open the air valve so it drips in.
OK enough typing for now. If you want to talk it over further send me a PM and I will get you my contact info and we can talk until we are blue in the face.
I hope that all helps, otherwise I just wasted a bunch of your time and mine. :shock:
LMK,
Stanley T'''
PS you mentioned the brand of test kit you are using. Just about all of them work to some degree but in my opinion the best for the money are Salifert. I would see if you could pick on of those up. They are not too expensive for the alkalinity test, about $8-$10.
