water test high ph level/

[lowrider]

ok i notice my corals not looking good and knew it was time for new bulbs so i assumed that was the problem but i dida water check and my ph is8.8 or mayby more but its high so am i in for trouble now or will they pull out of this? ty for any help

[lowrider]

i forgot to say its a 30 gal tank my nitrite 0 ppm nitrate 0ppm ammonia 0 ppm i have 3 damsel and a blenny corals candycane hammer birdsnest green and pink a leather and xenia and a purple diga i think thats it

[AuroraDrvr]

Are you sure your test kit is not bad? I would recommend buying another pH test kit, even if it is a cheapo PetSmart kit.

If it is still high, you can SLOWLY dose Distilled White Vinegar to drop pH to normal levels while you look for the reason(s) that your pH is high. I would time your vinegar dosing so you're down to 8.3/8.2 in 10-12 Hours.

[Amphiprion]

First, you should verify that the pH test results are accurate by either using a different test/meter. After that, what do you use to supplement calcium--like kalkwasser? Do you have a refugium with lots of algae growing? If you do, you should stop using kalkwasser (or other supplement) for now and start adding less, while testing alkalinity. If not, the first thing I recommend is, surprisingly, heavy aeration. That will actually drop the pH a bit if it is that high. After that, I recommend carbonated water if it is still too high. If either of those two don't work, you can try vinegar, which actually has a double effect--not only is it a weak organic acid, but it will also yield CO2 upon oxidation by bacteria, lowering the pH even more.