Fauna Marin Skim Breeze Reactor

Fauna Marin Skim Breeze Reactor is the special air filter for connection to a protein skimmer for air purification and CO2 reduction.

What is the relationship between CO2 content and PH value in the aquarium?
The PH value of the water in the aquarium is strongly dependent on the CO2 dissolved in it. The more dissolved CO2 is present in the aquarium water, the lower its PH value will be. Conversely, the PH value can be raised by less CO2 input into the water.
The corals consume CO2 during the day during photosynthesis and then release it back into the water during the night through respiration. This natural process also explains the diurnal variation of the PH value in the aquarium. You can see that the value is lowest shortly before the beginning of the lighting phase and reaches the highest value before the end of the lighting.

How does the CO2 get into the aquarium?
Normal outside air has a CO2 content of about 0.04%. However, it should be taken into account that an aquarium is usually placed in an enclosed space, in which there are usually also people and possibly pets, which greatly increase the CO2 content of the air through their breathing.
When exhaled, the air contains approximately 4% CO2.
The presence of people and animals therefore constantly increases the CO2 content in the room. It is possible to reduce the CO2 content in the room by regular ventilation, but this is not always possible or advantageous due to weather conditions.

The water in the aquarium has the property of gas exchange with the ambient air. This means that a higher CO2 content in the ambient air also leads directly to an increased CO2 value in the water.

Since most modern marine aquariums are equipped with a powerful skimmer for filtration, there is - apart from the moving water surface - an extremely strong gas exchange due to the strong mixing of air and water in the skimmer. As a result, the CO2 in the ambient air is also dissolved in large quantities in the water. This causes the PH value in the aquarium to drop.

This is where the Skim Breeze CO2 reactor comes in.

How does the Skim Breeze reactor increase the PH value in the aquarium?
The Skim Breeze CO2 reactor from Fauna Marin is filled with a special filter medium "Skim Breeze".
This has the property of removing all CO2 from the air with which it comes into contact.
This makes it possible to eliminate the CO2 input from the ambient air, which is supplied to the tank in large quantities by skimming.

The reactor is filled with the filter material and connected to the air intake of the skimmer, which draws the air through the filter material before it comes into contact with the water. This simple principle minimizes the CO2 input into the aquarium and an increased PH level is achieved.

What does a higher PH value in the aquarium?

• A PH value of the water closer to the natural value of 8.3
• Increased stony coral growth due to better functioning calcification
• A smaller daily fluctuation of the PH value in the water
• Increased reproduction rate of calcifying organisms such as shell snails
• An increased PH-value leads to a lower phosphate-value in the aquarium and thus reduces undesired algae growth
• A nutrient reduction takes place - due to the increased PH-value the dissolution of the PO4-deposits is reduced.