anybody have issues with aquarium when brewing?

don't know if any of you have an aquarium,,but I have a reef aquarium and it's filtration and sump are in my basement. well a few days ago I had placed my fermenters in the basement next to the filtration. after the fermenters wear down there for a while I started loosing corals and I was getting cloudy water in the aquarium. Now I am thinking that the co2 given off by the beer is causing the PH of my aquarium to drop like a rock at night. Does the beer give off enough co2 to change the ratio of gasses in a 15'x15' area ????

My aquarium was set up for 6 years without issue before this.....

I'd trade yeast herding over reef culling any day.

spam said:

don't know if any of you have an aquarium,,but I have a reef aquarium and it's filtration and sump are in my basement. well a few days ago I had placed my fermenters in the basement next to the filtration. after the fermenters wear down there for a while I started loosing corals and I was getting cloudy water in the aquarium. Now I am thinking that the co2 given off by the beer is causing the PH of my aquarium to drop like a rock at night. Does the beer give off enough co2 to change the ratio of gasses in a 15'x15' area ????

My aquarium was set up for 6 years without issue before this.....

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Hmmm, feed your airlock output into a calc reactor? Interesting idea!

Very interesting problem (sorry, perhaps harrowing to you - I know - I've killed my share of corals and was always distressed over it). Maybe you can monitor pH before and after fermentation and look for a correlation. Please continue to update this thread if you find out more.

CO2 is heavier than air. Is your aquarium equipment @ floor level?

rhamilton said:

CO2 is heavier than air. Is your aquarium equipment @ floor level?

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I don't own an aquarium, but if the extension of that is that the CO2 will settle on the floor it's important to note that this is only true in a very static environment. Most aquariums I've seen have had various circulation pumps, maybe fans, etc.

To the OP, if you look at posts in the equipment forums you can find that people have found enough CO2 in a keezer to induce oxygen deprivation for a short time, so I think the answer is that if you're brewing enough beer you can get a lot of CO2, and you may want to experiment with venting your basement for the duration - nothing fancy, just a fan to blow the CO2 out towards... I don't know maybe a bathroom window or something?

simtel20 said:

I don't own an aquarium, but if the extension of that is that the CO2 will settle on the floor it's important to note that this is only true in a very static environment. Most aquariums I've seen have had various circulation pumps, maybe fans, etc.

To the OP, if you look at posts in the equipment forums you can find that people have found enough CO2 in a keezer to induce oxygen deprivation for a short time, so I think the answer is that if you're brewing enough beer you can get a lot of CO2, and you may want to experiment with venting your basement for the duration - nothing fancy, just a fan to blow the CO2 out towards... I don't know maybe a bathroom window or something?

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My first thought as well, was that if there's something in the system that pulls air in, it could very well be sucking the co2 in instead.

His sump is near the fermenters. This is a large container of water that is pumped back into the fish tank (gravity gets it to the sump).

He may have a fan over the sump if he's running high-intensity lights (i.e., metal halides) on his reef. More likely, though, his fans are on his tank (if he has them at all).

Fermentation does produce a lot of CO2, so there might be some connection here. One way to find out is to set a separate container of water in the room and monitor the CO2 in it during fermentation.

How about moving fermenters to another room to see if you are still killing coral or not?

Well also factor in that not only CO2 is being vented. That hop aroma escaping from the fermenter contains organic compounds that might not play nice with corals either. I'd remove the fermenters and see if the coral recovers.

rhamilton said:

CO2 is heavier than air. Is your aquarium equipment @ floor level?

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Humans breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. We can observe that people can survive watching a movie and it is then self evident that carbon dioxide does not settle at the bottom of a room to the exclusion of other gases.

the airlock is about 12" higher than the sump. And only about 2' away from it.(for now) wonder if the majority of co2 is in just the rite position or draft causing it to flow directly into/onto the 20 gallon sump witch is only half full of water providing the perfect place for the co2 to collect??? I have the basement doors wide open with a fan going for now. I will move the fermenters later. I am having trouble finding a PH test kit locally so I will get one online(have not needed one in years).

passedpawn: what a great idea! marry the 2 hobbies!!!! only I use 2-part lol

spam said:

only I use 2-part lol

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I mix kalkwasser in a large make-up water reservoir that drips into my sump through a float valve. I always wanted a calc reactor, but they are pricey.

I'd not ferment in the same area as the sump. You might gain a lot of benefit by delivering external air to the skimmer's air inlet. If doing that, I'd also recommend a particulate filter there too. It's amazing the amount of N input that comes from dust. The majority of the air-water interface is in the skimmer, not the surface of the sump or tank. If I leave a cup of saltwater out for a day, there's pretty much a layer of dust covering the surface. You might not think this is much compared to dosing pods or food or whatever, but you have to consider the multiplication factor that the skimmer contributes.

As per CO2, even breathing in the same room as the sump (a modern, reasonably well sealed room) can arf with your pH quite a bit. I never had that problem, but did have a dust issue.

I have a 300g reef tank with a Digital Aquatics Reef Keeper Elite. My reef tank is in my dinning room 15 feet from my fermentation room. I see a direct correlation between each rapid fermentation and a drop of ph on the Reef Keepers hourly ph graph every time I brew. Its only a few .XX's but again my brew room is 15 feet from my tank.

BLACKHAWK007 said:

I have a 300g reef tank with a Digital Aquatics Reef Keeper Elite. My reef tank is in my dinning room 15 feet from my fermentation room. I see a direct correlation between each rapid fermentation and a drop of ph on the Reef Keepers hourly ph graph every time I brew. Its only a few .XX's but again my brew room is 15 feet from my tank.

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Wow. Pics at one of the reef sites? Please post links. Nice!

Your protein skimmer can be sucking in CO2 and supersaturating the water. To see if you have too much CO2 in the water, place a sample of water in a cup with an aerator, if you see a significant pH rise you have a bunch of CO2. That's my poor mans way of checking for high CO2 in intensive marine aquaculture systems.

diverpat said:

Your protein skimmer can be sucking in CO2 and supersaturating the water. To see if you have too much CO2 in the water, place a sample of water in a cup with an aerator, if you see a significant pH rise you have a bunch of CO2. That's my poor mans way of checking for high CO2 in intensive marine aquaculture systems.

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That is your problem. Your skimmer is sucking up the CO2. There are plenty of examples of people running a line from outside to the skimmer pump air line. Even a house without something producing large amounts of CO2 can have issues if it is closed up tightly for too long. The PH will drop and as you know that can have a very negative effect on a reef system.

well it's GREAT that others are into home brewing AND reef tanks!!!!!! Thought I was strange,,lol

I don't normally use a skimmer,I use an algae turf scrubber,,my tank has been set up for 6 years with out any losses. The skimmer was a temporary measure only,I will d/c it in the am.

I moved my brew buckets to the other side of the basement near an open window with a computer fan blowing on them,hopefully this helps.

THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR THE GREAT HELP!!!

I will report back in the morning!

For anyone that cares it's a 45 gallon mixed reef with a 20 gallon sump and 5 gallon refuge ,,ATS is only filtration and I have about 50 corals and 9 fish one of witch is a yellow tang that I have kept very healthy for 3 years now! And until this little problem I have not had any losses...wish me luck...

My fermenter is within 5 feet of my reef aquarium, I have no issues.

I find it almost impossible to kill yellow tangs. Same for hippo (blue).

how do you like the algae turf scrubber? I've done a little research, but I like my reactors (katalyst) more

I have a 280g reef tank that I am constantly struggling to keep the pH up on. I manage only with my Reefkeeper Elite dosing Kalk for top-off when pH is below 8.35, and RO/DI when it's above that. Using two-part helps too. I have a beast of a skimmer in a fairly sealed up house, so I know I've got a CO2 problem. Bulkreefsupply has CO2 scrubbers for skimmers...I'm thinking about getting one.

I'd also recommend getting a pH meter at very least...way more accurate then test strips and if you get one the temperature corrects you can use it to check your mash pH.


Wow, am I on homebrewtalk or reefcentral?

I will agree, CO2 is obnoxious with pH

lets see some tank pics.

builderguy said:

I have a 280g reef tank that I am constantly struggling to keep the pH up on. I manage only with my Reefkeeper Elite dosing Kalk for top-off when pH is below 8.35, and RO/DI when it's above that. Using two-part helps too. I have a beast of a skimmer in a fairly sealed up house, so I know I've got a CO2 problem. Bulkreefsupply has CO2 scrubbers for skimmers...I'm thinking about getting one.

I'd also recommend getting a pH meter at very least...way more accurate then test strips and if you get one the temperature corrects you can use it to check your mash pH.


Wow, am I on homebrewtalk or reefcentral?

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I was just about to mention going there for some input. Great site.

passedpawn said:

I find it almost impossible to kill yellow tangs. Same for hippo (blue).

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You are not trying hard enough.

Speaking of yellow tangs, most I see in pet shops are in very poor health and skin and bones. I think they stress out and stop eating. Mine is very shy and gets freightened easily, my naso I could pet if I wanted. But my yellow tang is very thick and very bright yellow and very healthy, as is the naso.

Speaking of yellow and naso tangs. Mine are a couple or at least very close friends. Found this out when we went to move. I took naso out, put him (looks like a him) into a tuperware container for the move, good so far. Took the yellow one out and put in her (looks like a her) into her container and she began to shutter almost violently, I waited but she did not calm down. I didn't know what to do until I got the idea to put them in the same container and as soon as I did the she calmed right down and he appeard to be much happier to.

If I ever have to get rid of them, they are going as a pair or no deal.

well now that the beer is moved and the basement window is open everything is back to normal

when I get a ph tester I will confirm.

I LOVE the ATS it has been the only filtration for years now and the tank has never been more healthy

Ok enough about aquariums for today,,,this is a brewing site after all LOL

My DROIDX doesn't seem to like my LED lights very much, sorry for the blur.

nice! perfect place to have a home brew is in front of a reef tank!!!

spam said:

nice! perfect place to have a home brew is in front of a reef tank!!!

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You guys ever sit up late in a chair and just watch the fish?

I work nights, so I love watching the transition in my tank from when my halides turn off through my dusk/dawn cycle to the moonlights. A couple of brews only makes it better.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2078667

Spam hope you dont mind my posting your reef central thread for those who care to follow up from the other angle.

every weekend !! lol

I used to dose Kalk in my tank with my top off water, kept my pH rock stable. Just a small dip at night. Loved keeping reef tanks but my tank cracked while I was away dumping 45 gallons of water on the floor and drying out my coral. Hung it up after that.. Hope you get it fixed.