DkH
 

What is the best DkH to have optimal growth for SPS. Assuming all other parameters are adjusted or okay. Please choose one and round up or down to the nearest whole number

not sure but might do a survey of TOTM write-ups.

I don't know that there is a "best" DKH, anything within the parameters you set for the poll is fine and the dkh in my tank bounces around all those numbers :lol:

Mine is at 7, but that is because I run Zeovit, otherwise IMO 9-11 is good

Dont take my TOTM writeup as something to go by....my dkh is low and Ive been struggling to get it up.....wait a second....that didnt sound good:redface:

For me I have to keep my alkalinity up around 11-12 dkh in order to keep my pH up in the 8.0- 8.2 range. There is so much carbon dioxide in my house (especially in the winter) that if I let my alkalinity fall down to 7-8 my pH will also drop to 7.6-7.8

I do everything from drawing my skimmers air from outside to dosing kalkwasser in conjunction with my Calcium reactor to growing macro algae and leaving the top of my system open for better gas exchange. But still I fight with low pH.

There is NO best dkh, per say.
it will depend on your calcium
higher calcium requires higher alkalinity and visa versa.

I assuming a Ca of 450 ppm/ Mg 1400 ppm is good for SPS. My DkH hovers around 8( a bit lower) which is required for Ultralith program. I run a Calcium reactor and have a lot of rock in the tank. I am always interested in how a person who gets a tiny frag can grow into a monster within a year. "Marie's" tank comes to mind. I do realize some corals grow faster than others. I was thinking high DkH and Ca may aid in Ca uptake by Acros. What are they doing riight that I am not. I guess I really need to see someones tank (locally) who has been raising(growing) SPS successfully.

8 to 9 I think on average is best. If you start going over 10 you'll get alk burns on some of the sps corals. I have read however that some salts have higher levels of metals such as boron which actually gives a false Alk reading on test kits and if you're using such salt you need to maintain higher Alk levels around 11-12 to achieve actual alk levels of 8-9. Not sure on all salts but I know Ocean Pure is one of them. I believe the "best" alk level will depend on the salt you use and the types of equipment you employ, a little experimenting is necessary to determine what is best for your system.

I also seem to recall that natural seawater usually doesn't exceed 8 dkh.

I agree unless you run a ULNS like zeovit for example, then it is recommended your DKH is a bit lower. My experience with Ocean Pure salt wasn't great so I don't recommend it for an SPS tank.