To Use Peat Or Not!

[Jjsmith46]

Hi,in my rio 300 i run three baskets of peat in my 405 and it seems to make no dif to ph,i would rather fill the baskets with bio media,i have five clown loach and as my ph is high-7.5-8.0,i wanted to make it softer but as i do a lot of wc it dont do anything so should i remove it,any thoughts.

 

[Squidward]

Hi,in my rio 300 i run three baskets of peat in my 405 and it seems to make no dif to ph,i would rather fill the baskets with bio media,i have five clown loach and as my ph is high-7.5-8.0,i wanted to make it softer but as i do a lot of wc it dont do anything so should i remove it,any thoughts.

You could add some RO water to your tank.

 

[Skins]

Hi,in my rio 300 i run three baskets of peat in my 405 and it seems to make no dif to ph,i would rather fill the baskets with bio media,i have five clown loach and as my ph is high-7.5-8.0,i wanted to make it softer but as i do a lot of wc it dont do anything so should i remove it,any thoughts.

You could add some RO water to your tank.

+1, bogwood will help to but RO water may be your best bet like squidward said.

Keith.

 

[raptorrex]

Hi,in my rio 300 i run three baskets of peat in my 405 and it seems to make no dif to ph,i would rather fill the baskets with bio media,i have five clown loach and as my ph is high-7.5-8.0,i wanted to make it softer but as i do a lot of wc it dont do anything so should i remove it,any thoughts.

You could add some RO water to your tank.

its a fallacy that RO will soften your water. it may work at first, but the water will buffer itself. as the op points out, peat is making no difference. same will go for RO. as you have been advised on several occasions, here.

@OP, you may as well remove it. using peat, in a filter, is only part of the "loosing battle" to lower PH. even more so as you point out it is not working.
as for lowering PH? its a hard one. you could start from scratch and use RO and some additives to "reconstitute" water to your requirements. but the best advice is. Keep fish that suite your water. remembering, within reason, fish are far less sensitive than most think. and a lot less sensitive than some insist.

 

[BigC]

How do you feel about using filtered Rainwater & RO permutations.
I lower my pH of such using Hydrochloric Acid,(HCl is very dangerous and ultra corrosive when in neat state) I'm pretty successful in breeding Rivulus xiphidius in very soft water TDS under 17.9 (>1'dKH) pH 5.2
Peat is rubbish for what you are intending and its capabilities cannot be predicted or quantified. It will make your water more acidic given time but how much and how long is the question.
If you come from a non-heavy industrialised part of town then consider Rainwater and RO
Regards
C

 

[Jjsmith46]

Cheers,out comes the peat then.