jason_sheman Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 hi, i m currently using a kit with have a tester and one ph up and ph down powder... today, when i go to pet shop, i saw a product which said it can automatically set the ph to a value..like 7.0, 7.2..so, i choice the 7.0 it will automatic set the water to that value... my question is seems this product is easlier to use... but compare to my current one, which one is better?? thx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockerpeller Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 i brought the same product. what i didn't know was that it can't be used with live plants in the tank. so really its no use to me... but if you don't have live plants, by all means it should be good to use... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason_sheman Posted June 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 o...i got live plant as weell..so, i cant use it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 Why are you wanting to use it at all? What is the pH of your tap water and what fish are you wanting to keep? Using chemicals to alter the pH is fraught with problems and often results in the pH swinging up and down - to the detriment of the fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HummingBird Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 What do you even need to adjust your pH for? Unless your tapwater's pH is extremely acidic or extremely alkaline, you shouldn't. The pH fluctuations caused by such products can be really harmful to fish. What's more important than having a pH exactly neutral is having a pH that's stable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HummingBird Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 Touche Caryl - great minds think alike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 Yeah but mine thought faster by 1 minute :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason_sheman Posted June 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 i'm not really sure....cos i m newbie..... when i buy my fish, the pet shop said i need one to test it and adjust the Ph to 7.0... so, should i just use the test kit to monitor the Ph level to keep in reasonable range?? also, i found trademe have following master test kit http://www.trademe.co.nz/Home-living/Pe ... 515875.htm is it good and easy to use thx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smidey Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 the fish adapt, my community tank ph is 7.5 & african is 7.8. both sets of fish thrive in their tanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 The pet shop was wrong. :roll: I suggest a newbie get a test kit for pH, ammonia, nitrates and nitrites so if something goes wrong, you will be able to tell us what the readings are for these and that will help us diagnose the problem. I don't know about the test kit you linked to as I have never used it (and rarely use test kits myself) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smidey Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 im into my second year of fish keeping & have never used anything but a ph test kit. I dont even bother using that any more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicolette Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 So humour the newbie here... what is a healthy ph range for a community tank? My tap water seems to lurk around ph7.4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markoshark Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 6.5-7.5 If the fish are used to the water, they will be fine. to naturally drop the PH use driftwood, and perhaps peat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicolette Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 I have driftwood in tank already... hmmmm.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jolliolli Posted June 20, 2007 Report Share Posted June 20, 2007 I have the kit listed above in the photo and i've found it very reliable, and easy to use. I also bought mine via trademe as it was a lot cheaper than in the shops. I think it was even from the same seller. (where i think the retail was around $70). One added benefit it had over other test kits i looked at was it provided two sets of pH tests. One for high pH (eg if you are keeping a cichlid tank) and one for your standard community tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted June 20, 2007 Report Share Posted June 20, 2007 Most tap water supplied by the council is kept slightly alkali to avoid corrosion of copper and brass in people's plumbing systems. Water also normally turns acid through the biproducts of fish keeping so it s fairly easy to keep the pH you want with water changes unless you want to keep fish way outside of the "neutral range." People often forget that pH is logarithmic and therefore the changes around 7 can be infinitesimal and if you start making adjustments you will be at it forever (to the detriment of your fish). Hide it all in the bottom draw and put it down to experience. I don't own any testing kits but I do have an accurate electronic thermometer so I can keep a check on temperature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jn Posted June 20, 2007 Report Share Posted June 20, 2007 I have that test kit and have gotten alot of use out of it. Like most recently I added medication to my tank and didn't know if the biological filter was going to be affected. Having the ammonia/nitrite tests helped me know if my tank was cycling again so I could know how to manage water changes. Also handy for when you add new fish, switch to a new tank, or setup an emergency hospital tank. You can retest to reassure yourself that everything is still good. I check the pH when I notice any significant changes in my plants or the type or amount of algae (some thrive at different pH levels from what I've read) That's a very good trader selling the kit and their prices on those test kits are the best you'll find (mine also came from her just over a year ago and the price is still about the same) I suppose with experience and bigger and bigger tanks you stop needing them (I'm still a newbie too) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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