Ph Really High Again - Please Help!

[fishharv]

Hi,

I'm new to the forum but reguarly read posts from you all which in past has been very helpful!

We have a small 25 litre tank, and had a continous high PH problem that is really bugging me now, today I have a reading of 8.4 (Purple on API test kit)

So far we have tried:

1) Adding Bogwood - We have one large piece in tank

2) API PH down, I have started adding more and more into the water I use for evaporation top-up and water I use for partial water changes. We are now dosing well above recommended amounts and still no effect

3) Have bought RO water twice now for top-up and partial water changes and its never made any difference to verall reading

4) I have tried testing water with and without gravel and not observed any change in PH, so don't believ it to be the gravel casuing this

5) My last thing I tried is a CO2 kit, and since Saturday where the PH was8.2 after partial water change its increased again so certianly doesn't appear to be helping

I really cannot think of much more, I assume its buffering really well but am worried and don't feel I know enough to start changing the chemistry of the water??!!

Tank is nearly 12 months old. I totally re-set it up once after it was roughly 2 months old.

Oh and our source tap water is PH 7.0/7.2 (Hard to see difference on API test kit)

Please help us!!!!

 

[fluttermoth]

It sounds like you have something in the tank that's dissolving and increasing the hardness (and thus the pH). It could be your gravel, or it could be rock (or shells?) that you have in there as decorations.

Or it could be just your tap water; have you tested that after letting it stand for 24 hours? Sometimes the water companies add things to raise/lower pH to prevent corrosion in the pipes that will disappear over that time, giving you a 'true' pH reading.

Also, you shouldn't worry to much about pH; most fish are very adaptable.

What fish species do you have?

 

[fishharv]

Hi,

The tank is a fluval Chi, its pretty bare and has literally the Black gravel that I have done the DIY PH experiment on so feel was ok, one real plant, one piece of bogwood added to lower PH and the fluval platic feature that came with tank - surely to god its not this??!!

I havn't tested our source after 24hrs so will try this

We currently have:
2 x Neon tetras - 2 died after couple of months
1 x Harlequin - 3 died also after a few months, 2 jumped out of tank so assumed this was due poor water conditions
1 x Betta male
4 x Minnows (Failry recent additions to replace others)

 

[fluttermoth]

Yeah, try testing the water after 24 hours.

In future, I'd look at fish that prefer harder water, rather than the tetras/rasboras.

I hope you don't mind me saying, but your stocking is quite poor, and you have way to many fish for a 20l tank. Really just the betta on it's own would fully stock a Chi.

 

[fishharv]

Will try it - agree about the Neons with the high PH, they were our from our original purchases before we realised PH would rise so high and stay high

With the fish we have now, I thought that was ok for this size tank? knew we couldnt have much more or anything big - Nitrite, amonia is always zero and nitrate ok

The Chi is a real love hate relationship, it does look brilliant on my desk but I wish we had a much bigger tank and guess life would be easier too

 

[fluttermoth]

Well, for a 20l tank, you want to stock with about five (adult) inches of fish and no more. The shoaling fish (neons/harlequins/minnows) like groups of at least six, of their own species. You could just about squeeze the six in, if you kept on tank maintenance, but then wouldn't have room for anything else.

I assume the minnows are White Clouds? If so, they're really not suitable for small tanks, as they're very fast, active swimmers. I wouldn't even put them in a two foot tank, tbh. Just because fish are small in size doesn't mean they can live in small tanks; you have to pick fish whose habits also make them suitable candidates. In general, you wan to avoid anything with horizontal stripes, as they tend to be fast, far swimmers and get fish with vertical stripes or spots, as they'll have evolved to 'hover' under leaves and don't need the swimming length so much.

Please don't think I'm having a go at you; we all have to start somewhere, and the advice given out by most local fish shops (LFS as they're known here!) is usually very, very poor indeed, I'm afraid to say

 

[fishharv]

PH in tap water remained the same after leaving for 24 hours

Could excessive aeration in reality cause a higher PH?