Ph Very Low

cg360 · Oct 30, 2005

Hi. Got my aquarium about a month ago. Took some bad advice and stuck 10 neons in straight away. The guy at the shop said I needed to get fish in there, but that they might die. Well, they did. Since then, I've read a lot on here now and am just waiting for my tank to cycle properly, with the help of a more responsible LFS, before I get any more fish. My figures seem to be going the right way, but the pH is very low - 5.4 a week ago and 4.8 this week. I tested my tap water and it's 7.0, so I'm very confused.

The tank's a square-ish 39 litre, with a UGF, gravel and a piece of driftwood, which I soaked overnight in hot water.

Will it be okay or should I start again? I've read about UGF's and lots of people don't like them. Maybe it would be better to start again with a little corner filter?

Thanks for any help.

Cheers,

Craig

dthoffsett · Oct 30, 2005

Don't worry about the ph while you are cycling. Because of the high ammonia levels, the ph will fluctuate up and down, mostly down. Lord knows I freaked out when I was cycling. When the cycle is over, be sure and test the ph again, depending on the hardness of your water, it should stay right around what your tap water is. If not you could always add a little baking soda to your water to raise the carbonate hardness KH which buffers your ph and keeps it steady. However, baking soda will also raise your ph to around 8.2 (great for african cichlids). So it all really depends on what kind of fish you're planning on. Sorry to be long winded. Hope I helped, and didn't confuse you further.

love_fish · Oct 30, 2005

Hey, I was just about to ask this in a topic. My ph is really low all of a sudden. Well, I wont hijack this guys thread. So, how much baking soda should you add to raise the pH?

dthoffsett · Oct 30, 2005

love_fish said:
Hey, I was just about to ask this in a topic. My ph is really low all of a sudden. Well, I wont hijack this guys thread. So, how much baking soda should you add to raise the pH?

The main purpose of adding baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) is to increase your KH which buffers the PH and keeps it stable. However, a side effect is that it raises PH to no higher than 8.2. I use it because I keep african cichlids, and my KH is a dismally low 4. I add 1/2 teaspoon to every 5 gallons that I add when I do a water change, which brings my KH up to around 13. Obviously you would add 5 t. to every 5 gal of tank size initially. Please note, the 1/2 t. is only an approximate value, it's what I've found that works for me. Ideally you should add a little at a time to a bucket of water until you reach the desired KH level. I also only add the b. soda when the KH level starts dropping (about every 2 weeks).

SkiFletch · Oct 30, 2005

4.8 are you serious? Thats ummm, a lower pH than vinegar :blink:

Somethings not right there. I wouldnt go adding bicarbonate yet, lets make sure you actually have 4.8 pH. What kind of test kit are you using? I've never seen one that measures down to 4.8 designed for an aquarium :unsure:

Is it a liquid kit? Strips? Designed for aquariums? And how old is it?

Does the water have an odor to it at all? However, most importantly, are you adding CO2? If so, thats probably the source of your problem

If none of those questions jump out at you you could do a penny test... Put a somewhat dull tarnished penny in a glass of the tankwater and see if the tarnish is removed in a couple days.

cg360 · Oct 31, 2005

It's a liquid kit, which is the same as the one the shop uses for testing ammonia, nitrates and nitrites. They use a digital pH tester, though. Just out of interest, I tested the pH myself from the same specimen bottle they used and got 6.0 again! And my tank has climbed slightly to 6.4.

Tested the tap water again, too. 7.0.

I guess the pH won't matter as water changes will make it climb anyway once the cycle's complete?

Thanks for all the help, btw. Much appreciated.

Craig