Ph Question

[sturtzzy]

my ph is 8.2 out of the tap and im using peat moss currently to lower it. its now at 7.4 and i want t keep it consistently at that. im worried that when i do a water change my ph will rise.. anything i can do to keep it stable??

 

[garyspence84]

You could try keeping bogwood in your tank, that will keep your tanks PH lower.

If your water changes too much, you could lower the percentage of water you change, ie, only change 25/30% per week.

If your filter is well established then it should keep your water at a constant as well.

Hope this helps

 

[the_lock_man]

I have to say I disagree with Gary somewhat. Very often, water with a high pH also has a high KH (Carbonate Hardness), and that buffers pH - ie the pH constantly wants to return to its natural pH. Therefore, bunging a bit of bogwood into the water will probably not help. That's certainly my experience with my hard water.

By using the peat filter, you are softening the water (ie lowering the KH) at the same time as lowering the pH.

You are right to be concerned about changes in pH, a large quick swing in pH can cause health issues for the fish.

The way to do it would be to pre-soften the water before it goes into the tank. You could maybe use rainwater mixed with tap, or you could try using Reverse Osmosis water mixed with tap.

 

[garyspence84]

I didn't say keeping bogwood would cure the problem, but it certainly does make a difference. Albeit not much, but it does make a difference.
Having kept 2 tanks of the same volume, same filters, 1 filled with bogwood and 1 filled with plastic bogwood. The 1 with real wood was a good .5 lower than the other with plastic wood.

Not trying to cause a storm, just going on past experiences.

But as lock-man suggests, softening the water before mixing defo sounds like your best bet. How you would go about such a task is beyond me though.

 

[the_lock_man]

I didn't say keeping bogwood would cure the problem, but it certainly does make a difference. Albeit not much, but it does make a difference.
Having kept 2 tanks of the same volume, same filters, 1 filled with bogwood and 1 filled with plastic bogwood. The 1 with real wood was a good .5 lower than the other with plastic wood.

Not trying to cause a storm, just going on past experiences.

It would do in your soft water, Gary, but in my hard water, it made not one iota of difference.

 

[garyspence84]

Lol fair doo's. Water up here is pretty soft. Didn't take that into consideration /