PH Disaster ....HELP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[DiscusDiva]

My PH is dropping down to 6.4 constantly i have tried the PH up but it isn't working my poor little danios are now dropping off as well I am using a CO2 system which I think may be playing a part in this?

any ideas?

[alanmin4304]

CO2 + H2O = H2CO3

[DiscusDiva]

the CO2 is off at night - is there some way i can regulate this better so I don't drop so low?

[Ktttk]

You can try add some oyster shells/grit to buffer and stabilise the pH. But as alan has mentioned, I think it is the CO2 that is causing the drop in pH as it reacts with water to form carbonic acid.

[jayci]

What is in your tank. Wood(Bog) will drop Ph. Some gravels do as well.

Algae bloom can also drop Ph.

Short term you can use baking soda to raise the Ph. I think that is what 'Ph up' is anyway.

Do extra water changes, Hamilton Ph is around 7.4

Add shells or bird grit, these will help in the long termas a buffer. I think these will also change the water hardness.

[DiscusDiva]

the tank has been running for about 6 months it has the brightstne gravel and a large piece of driftwood it seemed to naturally be tailing back just under 7 ph but the 6.4 is a massive drop!

am i best to get a ph controller/ do these work well?

[alanmin4304]

Don't forget that when you add calcium carbonate in the form of marble, chalk, limestone, oyster shell, bird grit or whatever you are increasing the pH but also the calcium and therefore the hardness.

[Ira]

And the hardness buffers against PH change, which is good.

[alanmin4304]

So long as you want hard water. It is the carbonate that buffers rather than the calcium which is already in solution.

[dimebag]

if it stays stable at 6.4 why not leave it at that? my tank is always at 6.4, even though the water i do waterchanges with 2-3 times per week is 7.0ph.

dont really know why it drops but its stable and fish are happy so yeah thats how it stays

[fulloc]

i use a chunk of clean coral to help stabilise the ph at a higher level for my discus and always keep bogwood in to stop it rising too far and also as a natural food source

usually the bogwood is fine but every now and again i throw th coral in when necessary.

[SpidersWeb]

P.S. pH Up and baking soda are the same thing except one is cheaper.

To work out dosage I'd take a 1L sample, and slowly add baking soda, when the pH is where you want it, then multiply that by how many litres of water your tank has in it (subtract some for rocks etc), and dose that.

Slowly add the soda, going from pH 6.4 to pH 7.2 for example could hurt the fish, try to spread it out over hours and watch for problems. What you are doing is raising the KH, which also affects pH but makes the pH much more stable.

Remember to add more baking soda for every bucket/litre of water you remove (but not evaptoration).

Check the pH first thing in the morning, and just before bed, see if there is a difference. If it is a pressurised system that is pumping hard, it will affect pH, but if its one of those tablet or yeast systems, I wouldn't worry about that.

At 6.4 ammonia wont be a problem, but you should really test for nitrite (not nitrate) and if you've got access to a kit, kH.