Bogwood, Coral, And Ph

[pauly]

I'm planning on putting some Bogwood into my Malawi tank this weekend (it's been soaking for a week). I'm conscious of the fact that Malawi's are sensitive to low Ph levels and that bogwood can lower the Ph.

I've added some crused coral to my filter which will hopefully raise and buffer my Ph level.

My questions are, how much will the bogwood lower my Ph? and should I add some bicarbonate of soda at the same time to help balance out the shift in Ph level?

Thanks in advance,

Paul.

 

[pauly]

 

[Tommy Gun]

Hey Pauly!

Perhaps the reason you haven't gotten any replies yet is because this is a hard question to answer without knowing a bit more information, such as:

How large is your tank (gallons/liters)

What is the Kh of your water, in the tank, after a few days since your last water change?

How much crushed coral did you add to your filter? (out of curiousity, how did you add it? All at once? A little at a time? this may be something to watch for a couple days if you have done so recently)

How much wood are you planning to add?

Where did you get the wood from (e.g. from an LFS, directly from nature, etc...)?

Are you changing the water you are soaking the wood in often? If so, how often? Is the water still clear when you just before you change it? If not, how 'dirty' does it look (e.g. like coffee, like tea, etc...)?

In short, depending on some of these variables, the addition of the wood and/or crushed coral could have anywhere from a lot to no affect on your tank -- but it should also be pointed out that if the pH change is done slowly, there is little to no risk from keeping your cichlids in a tank with a pH that is not entirely within the range of Lake Malawi. In fact, I have been keeping mbuna in my house on and off for a few years now and I never buffer the water, which has a pH of around 6.8 to 7.2 (from one tank to another, not one day to another) and haven't been able to see any negative affects from doing so....I have even had quite a few batches of fry of various sorts so this shouldnt become an issue if you are looking to breed your fish; based upon my experiences.

 

[pauly]

Hey Pauly!

Perhaps the reason you haven't gotten any replies yet is because this is a hard question to answer without knowing a bit more information, such as:

How large is your tank (gallons/liters)

What is the Kh of your water, in the tank, after a few days since your last water change?

How much crushed coral did you add to your filter? (out of curiousity, how did you add it? All at once? A little at a time? this may be something to watch for a couple days if you have done so recently)

How much wood are you planning to add?

Where did you get the wood from (e.g. from an LFS, directly from nature, etc...)?

Are you changing the water you are soaking the wood in often? If so, how often? Is the water still clear when you just before you change it? If not, how 'dirty' does it look (e.g. like coffee, like tea, etc...)?

In short, depending on some of these variables, the addition of the wood and/or crushed coral could have anywhere from a lot to no affect on your tank -- but it should also be pointed out that if the pH change is done slowly, there is little to no risk from keeping your cichlids in a tank with a pH that is not entirely within the range of Lake Malawi. In fact, I have been keeping mbuna in my house on and off for a few years now and I never buffer the water, which has a pH of around 6.8 to 7.2 (from one tank to another, not one day to another) and haven't been able to see any negative affects from doing so....I have even had quite a few batches of fry of various sorts so this shouldnt become an issue if you are looking to breed your fish; based upon my experiences.

Thanks for the reply TG. I'll try to answer your questions

• My tank is 180l.
• I have no test to measure my Kh, I'm starting to realise maybe I should get one.
• I added about a handful of coral all at once three days ago. My Ph has risen from 7.0 to 7.2 in that time.
• The wood is about 30cm long and 20cm high, and I got it from a LFS (Shirley Aquatics)
• The first time I soaked the wood, the water turned a tea colour. I've been changing the water daily for a week but it's been clear since the second water change.

So the wood shouldn't cause a major swing in Ph levels? Should I add the bicarb anyway or see how it goes? I understand I add it to the fresh water during a change, a not directly to the tank.

Paul.

 

[Tommy Gun]

Are those metric liters we are talking about? (Just kidding...there is a funny beer commercial here in the states that asks the same question about grams) I really need to brush up on metric conversions!

Anyways....

I have no test to measure my Kh, I'm starting to realise maybe I should get one.

While I realize that quite a few hobbyists feel as though these tests aren't that important over the long-term duration of a tank's life, and if all is going well, it really shouldn't, however, I am a big advocate of not only learning as much information about your water chemistry as you can, but understanding what all of that info means. For example...

I added about a handful of coral all at once three days ago. My Ph has risen from 7.0 to 7.2 in that time.

There is a decent chance that the Kh of your water is relatively high becuase of the relatively little effect of the handful of crushed coral on your tank's pH...but I stress the fact that this is only a possibility and really offers no accurate insight in itself...since the higher the Kh, the more stable your pH should be...also stressing the fact that this only applies in a very general sense and I am sure a thousand people on this forum could beat that point into the ground. A test kit would certainly provide more in-depth analysis, however, at this point, I am willing to bet that the wood will not have a huge affect on your tank's pH. To be honest, I am not familiar with Biocarb, so I cannot say if it would help you or hurt you.

The first time I soaked the wood, the water turned a tea colour. I've been changing the water daily for a week but it's been clear since the second water change.

This is probably a good sign....however, it could be an illusion as well. Try taking a sample out of the vessel which the wood is soaking in a clear glass and look at it under your tank's lights...this might give you a better idea of any discoloration you could expect to see in the tank if you placed it there right now. To be honest, I am not the wood expert by any means (I have some in my cichlid tank right now...but I bought it straight from an LFS tank so it was already 'good to go'), but it is my understanding (albeit slight) that any tannis that leach from the wood are not going to be a huge problem to your fish...but I am not sure of the entire affect on water chemistry either, especially without knowing additional info like the Kh.

Honestly, if this was my tank, I might go ahead and give this a shot on the weekend or some period of time where you can watch the tank a bit more closely, but I would think adding this wood is not really going to make or break you at this point...based upon what you have explained thus far.

 

[pauly]

Thanks for the in-depth repsonse.

I added two teaspoons of Baking Soda last night (mixed it to a jug of tank water then poured it back in). That raised my Ph to 7.6.

I bought myself a Kh and Gh test kit this morning and my fist readings were Kh 4, Gh 5. I found the Gh test a little less clear than the Kh one as the colour changed gradually rather suddenly like the Kh. Anyway so that told me I had some buffer so in went the wood.

I'll do some more tests later to see the results.

Paul.