Ph Question

[powerdyne6]

I decided to test the ph level of the tank water, I tested and the results came out yellowish, now on my test card for ph low it has sort of like a greeny yellow color but its not even close to the same yellow

I tested again and again and it always came out the same
I thought maybe i should do the test with the high PH card but again it came out the same yellowish color

any help would be appreciated, my test kit is the master test kit from RED SEA (fresh lab)

 

[iairj84]

Your PH number must just be lower than that on the card... That's possible and your ph shouldnt fluctuate very much, if at all.

 

[powerdyne6]

Your PH number must just be lower than that on the card... That's possible and your ph shouldnt fluctuate very much, if at all.

that is weird cause the ph of my tank and even the tap water has always been around 7.0
now I did a water change like 3/4 of the tank about 5 days ago cause my tank was finished cycling using the ammonia method

I used tap water but the 2 days before the water change we had a huge storm, lots of rain, so do you think that might of caused the PH to drop so low.

the ph on the low card ranges from 6.2 to 7.4 and 6.2 was a yelloish color but not the same as what I tested, do you think it is lower than that, and how could I get it back up, do another water change?

 

[powerdyne6]

Your PH number must just be lower than that on the card... That's possible and your ph shouldnt fluctuate very much, if at all.

that is weird cause the ph of my tank and even the tap water has always been around 7.0
now I did a water change like 3/4 of the tank about 5 days ago cause my tank was finished cycling using the ammonia method

I used tap water but the 2 days before the water change we had a huge storm, lots of rain, so do you think that might of caused the PH to drop so low.

the ph on the low card ranges from 6.2 to 7.4 and 6.2 was a yelloish color but not the same as what I tested, do you think it is lower than that, and how could I get it back up, do another water change?

anyone??

 

[edgun88]

When your tank bacteria dissolve ammonia and nitrite it cause they pH to go down. This is why your pH is so low. Change the water until you get a pH you and your fish feel comfortable with.

 

[powerdyne6]

When your tank bacteria dissolve ammonia and nitrite it cause they pH to go down. This is why your pH is so low. Change the water until you get a pH you and your fish feel comfortable with.

alright will do
thanks for all the reply's

 

[gpgscott]

People get fixated on pH and that can be a problem. Once you have a properly cycled tank what is really important is dissolved organics, (nitrtite, nitrate, phosphastes) pH is used in a general way to measure this because as nitrites, and nitrates rise pH generally falls. Chasing pH is bad because it lead to rapid shifts which are hard on the fish, best to concentrate on nitrites, and nitrates which are the by product of the fishes normal biological presence in the tank. Make sure you have good quality water to begin with, do not over stock, have an appropriately sized filter, do routine water changes, do not overfeed. Once you get a tank set up as I have outlined above and run for a couple of months in my opinion you can throw the test kits out. Its all about the fish and their behavior, not chasing some arbitrary number. Scott

Also , I would dump the strips and get liquids, much better, store them in the original box in a cool dark area and dispose of them per date on box. But I want to stress again once you have a tank up and running in my opinion stop chasing numbers.

 

[powerdyne6]

People get fixated on pH and that can be a problem. Once you have a properly cycled tank what is really important is dissolved organics, (nitrtite, nitrate, phosphastes) pH is used in a general way to measure this because as nitrites, and nitrates rise pH generally falls. Chasing pH is bad because it lead to rapid shifts which are hard on the fish, best to concentrate on nitrites, and nitrates which are the by product of the fishes normal biological presence in the tank. Make sure you have good quality water to begin with, do not over stock, have an appropriately sized filter, do routine water changes, do not overfeed. Once you get a tank set up as I have outlined above and run for a couple of months in my opinion you can throw the test kits out. Its all about the fish and their behavior, not chasing some arbitrary number. Scott

Also , I would dump the strips and get liquids, much better, store them in the original box in a cool dark area and dispose of them per date on box. But I want to stress again once you have a tank up and running in my opinion stop chasing numbers.

i don't have test strips and I never have had them, I have the liquid test kits
but I did about a 20 percent change and it did raise the ph level a little bit