Stats And Low Ph

beany_bot · May 28, 2008

Just did my water test.

all fine. Soft water/no ammonia/ammonium just a few points below. are they worth worrying about?

big tank (180litre)

pH 6.4
nitrate/nitrite 100

Small tank

pH 6.8
nitrate/nitrite 25

Is this anything to worry about of is it all ok? everything else was fine, i have very very soft water near me which could explain low pH. If it is too low how can i safetly raise the pH?

beany_bot · May 28, 2008

pinkdolphin_113 · May 28, 2008

is it your nitrate or nitrite that is at 100 and 25? what are these measured in? they can't be mg/l surely??
if thats right, you have something to worry about, yea. you need your nitrite to be at 0 (or <0.3mg/l). nitrate isn't toxic so thats not really as important, but you'll probably lower that when you try lower your nitrite anyway.

beany_bot · May 28, 2008

pinkdolphin_113 said:
is it your nitrate or nitrite that is at 100 and 25? what are these measured in? they can't be mg/l surely??
if thats right, you have something to worry about, yea. you need your nitrite to be at 0 (or <0.3mg/l). nitrate isn't toxic so thats not really as important, but you'll probably lower that when you try lower your nitrite anyway.

emmm im not really sure :blush:

oops. im guessing you guys can guess from what the results are?? maybe?? Its the pH im worried about because i was told with soft water (mine is 0gh 0 kh) i need to be weary of a pH crash.

beany_bot · May 28, 2008

wolfwolf · May 28, 2008

What is the pH of your tap water? I would not worry about raising your pH as much as increasing the hardness of your water. That can be done with crushed coral or various powders that are on the market.

You better be careful bumping your post twice in one day. Some people will be offended.

beany_bot · May 28, 2008

wolfwolf said:
What is the pH of your tap water? I would not worry about raising your pH as much as increasing the hardness of your water. That can be done with crushed coral or various powders that are on the market.

You better be careful bumping your post twice in one day. Some people will be offended.

I havent actually checked. ill check when i get home. im guessing its 7 ? ? Do i HAVE to harden my water? i would have though fish liked soft water?

Miss Wiggle · May 28, 2008

some fish will like the soft water, it depends on which species you decide to keep. for some fish it's absolutley fine. what are you planning on keeping in this? is the tank cycled or cycling? what's the backstory here?!

you need to be clear if you are talking about nitrate or nitrite, they are two different things and you'll have different readings for each of them.

beany_bot · May 28, 2008

Miss Wiggle said:
some fish will like the soft water, it depends on which species you decide to keep. for some fish it's absolutley fine. what are you planning on keeping in this? is the tank cycled or cycling? what's the backstory here?!

you need to be clear if you are talking about nitrate or nitrite, they are two different things and you'll have different readings for each of them.

The tank is quite settled and have had it for a few months now, the fish in it are in my sig. Im not sure which was which, one was 0 and one was 100.

Miss Wiggle · May 28, 2008

OK that makes a little more sense! the 0 reading will be nitrite and 100 will be nitrate, the nitrite is fine, nitrate is too high and is a sure sign that you've either got too many fish in the tank or aren't doing enough maintenance. what size are your tanks?

you've a fair mix of fish, some like harder water and some like softer so you can either buffer it up to pitch it inbetween the two at around 7, or you can shift around your fish so that you've only got ones which are suitable for your water, bearing in mind that you may be overstocked thi may be a good opportunity to adjust things so that you have only suitable fish for your water.

Nicolas · May 28, 2008

beany_bot said:
Miss Wiggle said:

some fish will like the soft water, it depends on which species you decide to keep. for some fish it's absolutley fine. what are you planning on keeping in this? is the tank cycled or cycling? what's the backstory here?!

you need to be clear if you are talking about nitrate or nitrite, they are two different things and you'll have different readings for each of them.

Click to expand...

The tank is quite settled and have had it for a few months now, the fish in it are in my sig. Im not sure which was which, one was 0 and one was 100.

Your nitrite would be 0 and your nitrate would be 100. Try lowering your nitrate as it is a bit high. You can lower your nitrate by regular partial water changes and a good gravel vacuuming.