i think i need to get the ph up but how ? the other readings i think are fine do i add shell for the ph ? or chemical ph

Was the ph 7 or 7.5?

You can raise that with baking soda

by my colour chat max around 7.2

just add baking soda ?

Here is a good buffer recipe...

Epsom Salt

Marine Salt

Baking Soda

Instructions

For every 5 (20 litres) US Gallons of water, add 1-tablespoon Epsom salt, 1-teaspoon baking soda, and 1-teaspoon marine salt. (You don't have to use the marine salt, only if desired)

lol same as the link I posted above to the cichlid forum one haha have a read of the link doch it tells you what to do, and with everything add a little at a time to figure out how much you need to add for your water, it is all explained in the link..

Here is is again

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/buffer_recipe.php

:lol: Duh :roll: I have the little recipe saved on notepad... just incase oneday I have a memory block :lol:

have put baking soda in the tank will see what the reading is when i get home will also get some marine salt and epsom salts today

well checked my tank this afternoon after assing baking soda and has jumped 5 points to 8.0 ph great stuff will add a little more then the epsom salts and sea salt

I wouldn't try and muck around with it too much more over 8 that should be fine man, just chuck in some salt to get the KH up so it stays stable, and figure out how much you need to add with water changes, remember to replace any evaporated water with fresh water also

well i put some more in just to make sure all that is good and i should just add epsom salt now and sea salt ?

Read the article it said what to add to correct what you want to.. Just look at your measurements and adjust what you have to..

Ph add baking soda

gh add epsom salt

and i presume kh add normal salt.. I think both epsom and normal salt raise kh..

well got the PH right with the baking soda but i cant figure out from the instructions on my test kit about the GH and KH i am confused as to what they should be maybe im just thick but have added some epsom salts

am still confused with this GH and KH the recipe given says get a GH berween 15-25 DGH but my info on my test kit only goes to 12 DGH i am using a aquarium pharmaceuticals test kit what should the solution colour be after some drops ? can anyone clarify this for me and put it into english

Gh is general hardness.. Dont you just count the drops until the water changes colour? The more drops the harder the water? So if you drop in 15-20 drops its sweet?

Kh is the same thing just count the drops, if your Kh is low your ph will swing all around the place so its good to get that as high as it needs to be..

how do you check your water for gh and kh ?

I just check it IAW the instructions in whatever test kit im using? lol Usually counting drops till water changes colour..

If i were you i woudlnt even bother with GH and KH. Just get your pH up by buffering the water (use limestone or some sort of calcium/aragonite sand) and the other levels will be fine. I wouldn't try raising things with baking soda etc as most of them are just temporary fixes. SOOOOO much easier to just have a buffer in the tank or filter, and not have to worry about it.....

I agree with Evil - for all of this chemistry I'm thinking the only recipe is for disaster.

I can only speak for myself but the only real problems I've had is when I dicked around with my water too much. It seems to be gettinig very complicated for a tank that doesn'y have fish yet.

I used to do my water this way adding baking soda and salt to each 20 litre bucket when I stuck it in but gave up in the end too much work So much easier to stick the hose in each tank and let the coral sand do the buffering.. But if you cant find any you don't really have any option..

would washed crushed seashell be any good ?

Yea seashell would be fine. just put some in a stocking in your filter or something. You will have to replace it every now and again as it will slowly disintegrate. probably every few months

ok so a couple of kilo of crushed shell in a stocking in the sump shoud do it

will my small gravel substrate be ok or should i have sand as well or all sand ?

The buffer recipe works very well if you are thorough with measurements and when water changes are done, the right amount is added... not a disaster if you are careful... many african keepers use this method overseas.

Running externals or sump with crushed shell or coral is a good option.