SEACHEM - Marine Buffer - 250g - Raises pH to 8.3

Features :

Marine Buffer® will safely raise marine pH up to 8.3. It will not raise the pH above 8.3, even in the event of an inadvertent overdose. Marine Buffer® is a blended product and is not simply baking soda or soda ash, commonly sold as a substitute. These products can raise the pH to dangerous levels if not used correctly. Marine Buffer® contains sodium, magnesium, calcium, strontium and potassium salts of carbonate, bicarbonate, chloride, sulphate and borate. Use Seachem 's MultiTest™ Marine pH & Alkalinity to check pH and total alkalinity. Use Marine Trace™ to restore proper trace levels and feed with NutriDiet® Marine Flakes for thriving, healthy saltwater fish.

Total alkalinity is a measure of three main ions: carbonate, bicarbonate and borate. In salt water, bicarbonate brings the pH towards 7.8, carbonate towards 9.1 and borate towards 9.5 or more. Due to the chemistry of buffer systems, the closer you bring the pH to the pK of a buffer system, the harder it is for the pH to shift. So if you mix a buffer in such a way that the combined product brings the pH towards 8.3, the more you use, the more stable the pH becomes. This is the principle of Marine Buffer™. It is a blended buffer that drives and maintains your pH at 8.3 through blending. The catch with this seemingly simple solution is that most salt mixes contain significant amounts of bicarbonate salts. This moves the pK of the buffer system towards 7.8, and a buffer that aims for 8.3 will never achieve this. Thus, the Marine Buffer's pK is actually slightly higher than 8.3 in order to combat the influx of bicarbonate with each water change. Marine Buffer™ was the first buffer on the market that contained borate salts (which make a saltwater buffer system much more stable), and Marine Buffer™ remains the most effective pH buffer on the market for marine aquariums .

Dosage:

Add 5 g (1 teaspoon at 1 level) for every 80 L (20 US gallons). For precise dosing, use the Seachem Digital Spoon Scale. Dissolve in at least one cup of fresh water. This dose will also increase alkalinity by approximately 1 meq/L. Add daily until pH stabilizes at 8.3. This will take anywhere from a day to a week, depending on the original pH and alkalinity. Thereafter, use biweekly or monthly to maintain a pH of 8.3.