My New Addition !

A small nitrite reading again this morning so did a 50% water change and an hour later nitrite is at zero. Fish still getting on realy well and tails and fins healing up lovely. Gourami is no longer permanently hidden behind the filter and out and about lots now. Really thought I was going to lose him as he was so stressed and torn up but seems to be recovering really well. Are still concerned that the Ph is high but not sure what i can do about it. Hoping it won't have an adverse effect on fishes health.
 
regarding your pH, have you checked yours against the tap water? If the tanks is higher then you may have added something that is raising it. Do you have any rocks in there?
 
regarding your pH, have you checked yours against the tap water? If the tanks is higher then you may have added something that is raising it. Do you have any rocks in there?

My tap ph is 7.4-7.6 and the tank reading is 8.2. Have no rocks in the tank. All plants are silk and plastic. Whilst cycling bthe tank the ph would drop naturally towards the ammonia dosing time but for some reason i'm unsure of, it just isn't dropping at al. Wondering if it's as a result of the nitrite issues i've had lately. Can over-feeding cause it ??
 
My tap ph is 7.4-7.6 and the tank reading is 8.2. Have no rocks in the tank. All plants are silk and plastic. Whilst cycling bthe tank the ph would drop naturally towards the ammonia dosing time but for some reason i'm unsure of, it just isn't dropping at al. Wondering if it's as a result of the nitrite issues i've had lately. Can over-feeding cause it ??

Over-feeding should not affect your pH. What are you using for a substrate? Just plain sand?
 
My tap ph is 7.4-7.6 and the tank reading is 8.2. Have no rocks in the tank. All plants are silk and plastic. Whilst cycling bthe tank the ph would drop naturally towards the ammonia dosing time but for some reason i'm unsure of, it just isn't dropping at al. Wondering if it's as a result of the nitrite issues i've had lately. Can over-feeding cause it ??

Over-feeding can should not affect your pH. What are you using for a substrate? Just plain sand?

Yeah just plain sand. The only conclusion that I could come to is that the nitrite (from over-feeding) may have caused a rise in ph but really don't know.
 
Yeah just plain sand. The only conclusion that I could come to is that the nitrite (from over-feeding) may have caused a rise in ph but really don't know.

if that's the case then I've never heard of it happening......but I'm no chemist!
 
Yeah just plain sand. The only conclusion that I could come to is that the nitrite (from over-feeding) may have caused a rise in ph but really don't know.

if that's the case then I've never heard of it happening......but I'm no chemist!

I don't know mate...totally clueless and clutching at straws. Just guessing really. Will keep an eye on it for now and just pray all fish cope ok.
 
Hi liver, sorry to hear about the problems you've been having :(

Could you list everything thats in the tank, like what decor, what substrate and everything you put in the tank e.g. what ferts or anything else like that.

Its unusual for the pH to rise. i'd recommend leaving some tap water and testing it to see if it rises over a week. Possibly do the same with any suspicious objects that may be rising the pH.

I think i overfed, atleast at the start but didn't seem to get any nitrite readings and you didn't stock loads so i'm a bit puzzled to be honest as I'm sure you are.
 
I've had the random readings too though haven't I. I really think it's just a new tank can be unstable and you were just lucky Simon.

I've started feedings my fish only every other day. I hope I'm not underfeeding now coz I don't think I feed them very much. I never did in IMO but I have few signs of overfeeding :S
 
I sometimes even feed twice a day...and my tanks fully stocked now? havn't you used meds and things caz?
 
Hi guys. Have the same tank set-up as when cycled, nothing has changed at all except the addition of fish and a few daily 50% water changes other than that everything is the same. All the plants are artificial and is the log too. i'm feeding every other day now but i too worry that i'm under-feeding. Remaining fish seem really active at the moment but i'm aware that that level of ph isn't good for the species of fish i have.
 
A few quick words for you Liverbird. Nitrites will not cause a rise in pH. On the contrary, nitrites are often present in the nitrous acid form and will tend to drive your pH lower. Do not fret too much over the pH of your tank water. As long as you can keep the ammonia and nitrite levels good, the fish will adapt to a wide range of pH in fairly short order. In a natural environment, the simple plant growth that takes place in a lake or brook will drive the pH all over the map daily. At night, no oxygen is being produced from photosynthesis and the respiration of plants and fish will raise the CO2 concentration resulting in a big drop in pH. When the sun comes out in the morning, the plants will quickly consume all of the available CO2 in the water and the pH will rise quite a bit, often a whole unit, like from 7.0 to 8.0. The fish simply go on with their lives and ignore the change. Many of the rapid changes we see in our tanks pH from tap water are merely changes in dissolved gasses. That is something the fish will ignore just as they would in a natural water system.
If you are worried about the source of the pH change, try a little experiment. Draw a sample of tap water and read its pH, then read the same water sample's pH a day or two later. I would bet that you will find that simply letting the water sit around in a glass container and lose its dissolved gasses will show a large pH change after a day or two. If it gets close to what you are seeing in your tank, there is nothing at all to find in the tank. The pH change is a simple result of gassing off fresh tap water.
 
When the sun comes out in the morning, the plants will quickly consume all of the available CO2 in the water and the pH will rise quite a bit, often a whole unit, like from 7.0 to 8.0. The fish simply go on with their lives and ignore the change.

very interesting. I was under the impression that natural habitat pH was almost constant. I had no idea that it fluctuated to that degree.
 
The only habitat where the pH is almost constant is in ocean water where there is just so darned much water compared to the amount of living plant material. That is not the water that we deal with in a freshwater tank.
 
The only habitat where the pH is almost constant is in ocean water where there is just so darned much water compared to the amount of living plant material. That is not the water that we deal with in a freshwater tank.

You and waterdrop need to write a book :lol:
 

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