P H Control

[tim foch-gatrell]

hi anyone, i have a tank 3metres by 70 by 70 centremetres with a filtration tank of about 60 gallons , my problem is that local tap water has a p h of 8 and i am constantly buffering down using chemicals with a total water capacity of 600 gallons this is costing me the proverbial arm and leg . has anyone any idea how i can keep the ph nuetral? sorry about typing me and computers dont mix.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

hi there, as you've found out buffering the water up or down with chemicals is a nightmare.

i'd try putting a layer of peat into your filter, it softens the water and should bring the pH down a touch.

what fish are you keeping though, they may not mind the high pH

 

[Colin_T]

You can get a reverse osmosis (R/O) unit to give you more pure water and you can mix this with the tank water to help lower the pH.
You can try using peat to lower the PH. Add some to the filter and over time it will help to drop the PH. However, in a big tank you will need a bit of peat and it needs to be replaced every month or so. Peat can also cause the water to go yellow due to the tannins it releases into the water.

Most people just accept the PH as is and keep fish that are suited to the harder more alkaline water. And most captive bred fishes are tolerant of more variable water qualities than their wild counterparts.

 

[tim foch-gatrell]

You can get a reverse osmosis (R/O) unit to give you more pure water and you can mix this with the tank water to help lower the pH.
You can try using peat to lower the PH. Add some to the filter and over time it will help to drop the PH. However, in a big tank you will need a bit of peat and it needs to be replaced every month or so. Peat can also cause the water to go yellow due to the tannins it releases into the water.

Most people just accept the PH as is and keep fish that are suited to the harder more alkaline water. And most captive bred fishes are tolerant of more variable water qualities than their wild counterparts.

colin thanks for the info i am already using peat and as u say the water does go a tad yellow but with frequent water changes the ph tends to go up with local water at 8 i am still buffering with ph/kh minus from tetra aqua selling for 12 euros a bottle i need a bottle a week. i have a variety of fish but want to have several discus which require nuetral to slightly acidic.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

You can get a reverse osmosis (R/O) unit to give you more pure water and you can mix this with the tank water to help lower the pH.
You can try using peat to lower the PH. Add some to the filter and over time it will help to drop the PH. However, in a big tank you will need a bit of peat and it needs to be replaced every month or so. Peat can also cause the water to go yellow due to the tannins it releases into the water.

Most people just accept the PH as is and keep fish that are suited to the harder more alkaline water. And most captive bred fishes are tolerant of more variable water qualities than their wild counterparts.

colin thanks for the info i am already using peat and as u say the water does go a tad yellow but with frequent water changes the ph tends to go up with local water at 8 i am still buffering with ph/kh minus from tetra aqua selling for 12 euros a bottle i need a bottle a week. i have a variety of fish but want to have several discus which require nuetral to slightly acidic.

for that money and to keep discus i'd recommend an RO unit, we got one for £50, I expect you'd need one a bit bigger, but it's only a 1 off outlay, if you add up the 12 euro's a week over a few months it'd pay for itself i'm sure. You'd need to remineralise the water before adding it to the tank

check out www.osmotics.co.uk or www.ro-man.co.uk (not sure if those are .co.uk or .com's so try them with both!)

 

[Colin_T]

the other option is to find discus that are locally bred and they would be more tolerant of the higher PH. But as Miss Wiggly Poppins suggested, get an R/O unit.