Help with Chemicals!

[awolf3303]

Hello!

How on earth does one fix their alkalinity without increasing their PH as well?

Just a little bit of background: My tap water has a PH of at least an 8, so whenever I do water changes, I get a PH spike. To fix this, I am using acid buffer immediately after each water change to get the PH neutral again. In the week between my water changes, my PH creeps up again for no apparent reason. My alkalinity has never surpassed 40, and I am aware that it needs to be in the 100s. I read on multiple sources that baking soda increases the alkalinity, but ALSO increases the PH, which I don't want! How do I get and maintain a high alkalinity without using baking soda? Thank you!

 

[Naughts]

Hi,
There are others who can explain the relationship between pH, KH and GH. But general consensus is not to use chemicals to adjust them, have a read of this thread which includes advise from the experts:

What will naturally reduce PH?

Hi guys. My PH is around 7.2-7.4 and i want it to be more on the acidic side. Apart from ph buffers what natural things can I put on to bring the PH down a bit? Am I right in thinking peat will bring it down?

www.fishforums.net

 

[AbbeysDad]

My well water pH is 7.6, a mere .4 less than yours and all my fish do just fine. (I bred, grew out and sold over 300 swordtails last year).
Most fish in the hobby are bred and raised in a wide range of water chemistries. To jump through hoops to attempt to achieve a neutral pH of 7.0, with rare exception, is just not worth the trouble. So you might take some measures to lower the pH slightly, but it just doesn't need to be 7.0!