Strange water readings

[Wills]

Just done some water tests from my small tank (ADA 60F) and got some readings I don’t understand.

My tap water is ph7.8 kh3 gh14 (more on this in a sec) but the tank is testing at ph6 and kh0? I say kh0 as it went yellow from the first drop - it’s meant to start blue and go yellow.

I’m using a mix of DOOA tropical river sand and Tropical Aquarium Soil. The sand is meant to be inert but the soil is known to soften water but I have it in my larger tank and have not experienced the same issue?
The soil is also leaching it’s ammonia which is good as it’s started the cycle I have an ammonia reading of around 2 and nitrates of 2.


I mentioned talking about my gh more as when I first set the tank up my gh was around 17 but now the test is reading 13/14 and has been for a few weeks. I think it’s because we have had a lot of snow and rain but interesting to keep an eye on as it will increase my stocking options quite a lot.

Let me know if you’ve ever encountered anything like this too.
Wills

 

[mbsqw1d]

Just done some water tests from my small tank (ADA 60F) and got some readings I don’t understand.

My tap water is ph7.8 kh3 gh14 (more on this in a sec) but the tank is testing at ph6 and kh0? I say kh0 as it went yellow from the first drop - it’s meant to start blue and go yellow.

I’m using a mix of DOOA tropical river sand and Tropical Aquarium Soil. The sand is meant to be inert but the soil is known to soften water but I have it in my larger tank and have not experienced the same issue?
The soil is also leaching it’s ammonia which is good as it’s started the cycle I have an ammonia reading of around 2 and nitrates of 2.


I mentioned talking about my gh more as when I first set the tank up my gh was around 17 but now the test is reading 13/14 and has been for a few weeks. I think it’s because we have had a lot of snow and rain but interesting to keep an eye on as it will increase my stocking options quite a lot.

Let me know if you’ve ever encountered anything like this too.
Wills

The carbonate (kh) is quite low to begin with, so the nitrification process will likely have used that up that buffer and as such the PH has dropped accordingly. Your PH has dropped quite a bit though, which might impact on the nitrosomas.
Saying that, some people strive for an acidic tank, where the ammonia becomes ammonium.
Its just tricky when it comes to water changes once you have livestock, as you'd be quickly and dangerously elevating the PH

@Essjay

 

[Wills]

The carbonate (kh) is quite low to begin with, so the nitrification process will likely have used that up that buffer and as such the PH has dropped accordingly. Your PH has dropped quite a bit though, which might impact on the nitrosomas.
Saying that, some people strive for an acidic tank, where the ammonia becomes ammonium.
Its just tricky when it comes to water changes once you have livestock, as you'd be quickly and dangerously elevating the PH

@Essjay

Yes that’s what I’m worried about hard water with low ph seems like there are no fish with those requirements haha. I didn’t move over any media from my other tank when I set this one up but thinking that might happen to get through the cycle. When I was adding ammonia to the other tank it was sending the ph really high like over the top of the high range test kit. Just don’t understand why the two tanks are so different.

 

[Essjay]

Something is obviously different between the two tanks. You've mentioned using the same substrate, but is there any decor which is totally different which could affect the two tanks differently?

 

[Wills]

The two differences I can think of are that the main tank has Co2 in and the sand. I've just googled the sand and its stated as inert in a few different places.

The soil could be a candidate - Aquarium Soil is further an active bottom layer that lowers the pH value and slightly affects the water chemistry. Thats taken from the tropica site but I didnt experience that previously. I've been trying to find it somewhere but I think that it used to be a bit higher than the 3 its at right now.

When I first set the other tank up I was doing daily water changes where as I havent with this one - maybe I need to do that here until the substrate settles?

Wills

 

[mbsqw1d]

Ah yeh the co2 will be eating away at the KH too (carbonic acid) ? Didnt realise you could get such hard water with low kh though?

 

[Wills]

No I mean the other way round - I tested the big tank the other week and it was holding the kh at 3 and the ph same as tap water.

Going to do a full set of tests on both tanks and tap again though.

Wills