How Do I Lower The Ph?

[az9]

i don't have any rocks or shells in it but the ph is above 8 and i don't know how to bring it down.

 

[Supraman]

Mine was at 8.8 until I put some drift wood in the tank. Lowered it down to 7.6 so I'm happy with that

 

[az9]

it's fake right? because i already have fake driftwood in my tank. 

 

[CezzaXV]

8 isn't overly high, and there are plenty of fish that would be perfectly happy in pH 8 water. It is much more important to fish to have a stable pH than a "correct" one.

 

[Supraman]

No my drift wood is not fake

 

[TallTree01]

lol. Why would you get fake driftwood? The safest way to lower ph is real driftwood. I'd agree with cezza that it is better to have it stable than low.

 

[This Old Spouse]

Driftwood (real driftwood) will gradually lower your pH safely. Plus, it looks good.

 

[az9]

oh, i have plastic drift wood  

 

[This Old Spouse]

Well, take a hike up to the big lake and grab some real stuff. 

 

[az9]

you can do that? i was told not to just take stuff from outside.

 

[This Old Spouse]

Oh, heck yeah. That's where all my driftwood came from because I'm, well, cheap. I can't afford $20-100 for a piece of wood I can find on the shores of the lake! Some people even take deadwood out from the woods and strip off the bark.
 
Here's the thing: look for hardwoods only. No pine, spruce, tamarack, or woods that are "sappy". Then when you get it home, clean it well to get the obvious stuff off, then you'll need to soak it for a good long while to get it to sink again and get rid of some of the tannins that will leach into the water and turn it brownish. Then follow with pouring boiling water over it to kill any nasties.
 
If you don't want to wait weeks, pick out a nice piece or six, then just clean it off and pour the boiling water over it. You can force it to stay underwater by attaching it to a piece of flat slate, or putting big rocks on it until it does become waterlogged.
 
By the way, love your avatar!

 

[az9]

ok, sweet! thanks!

 

[This Old Spouse]

Are you in the U.P.?

 

[az9]

no, why?

 

[This Old Spouse]

Just trying to figure out if you're close to a big lake.