pH in a SW tank

[squirt_12]

Does pH have a BIG deal in a SW tank??
What is the recommended for a FOWLR and Reef tank??
I didn't know if it was a huge deal or if it was like FW.

[Dave66]

Does pH have a BIG deal in a SW tank??
What is the recommended for a FOWLR and Reef tank??
I didn't know if it was a huge deal or if it was like FW.

Yes, squirt, its a huge deal. PH is 8.1, 8.2 in the reef area were all the corals and fish in our tanks come from. The reef is the most stable environment on Earth, thus the fish and other animals that developed there have a very narrow latitude in which they can live, unlike freshwater fish, which because of rainwater and seasons, have a much wider latitude. For instance, you could keep a neon tetra easily between pH 6.0 to 7.5. But a marine neon gobie MUST be kept in pH 8.1 to 8.2, as it can't survive and thrive in anything else. Yes, some people keep them all the way down to 7.9, but that means they don't know how to have proper pH in their tank, and the gobies suffer because of it. And corals, clams and other inverts couldn't survive anything OTHER than 8.1 to 8.2.

Dave

[squirt_12]

Thanks Dave. I figured that SW would have to have a more stable pH as FW but I wanted to know for sure. I would have never thought that the pH would be so high though. I guess that it would only be a little basic.