diver21 Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 is it normal for rain water to have a ph higher than 6? i set up a rain collection barrel and tested the rain water and it was higher than 6! wondering if anyone else has the same problem and what the ph of other peoples rainwater is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 Why do you think rainwater should have a pH of 6? Pure rainwater has a pH of about 5.6. Are you sure it's not the barrel leeching something to bring the pH up? My RW is always between 5.4 and 6.0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwiplymouth Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 My rain water is at 6 but that is the lowest reading on my test so it may be lower. I agree, perhaps the problems are with your storage container Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 Why do you think rainwater should have a pH of 6? Pure rainwater has a pH of about 5.6. Are you sure it's not the barrel leeching something to bring the pH up? My RW is always between 5.4 and 6.0 My pure rainwater has a PH of 7 as close as I can measure which is what the PH of pure water is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 is it normal for rain water to have a ph higher than 6? i set up a rain collection barrel and tested the rain water and it was higher than 6! wondering if anyone else has the same problem and what the ph of other peoples rainwater is. I think if it's as low as 6 that's abnormal, the PH of pure water is 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diver21 Posted November 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 yea im shure that pure water has a ph of 7. theres only 3 things i can think of that would make the water so acidic 1, i didnt clean the barrel enough before useing it (i scrubed and rinced it) the barrel was previously used as a containor to bring fencing staples into the country 2, i live next to the blenheim airport and pollution might be too high 3, i havnt gotten up on the roof yet to see how clean the gutters are, thought they would be alrite as theres no tallish trees around the house and i dont have a ladder, in the bottom of the barrel theres minimal crud, just acouple of leaves, ammonia level of 0 though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 If it's between 6 and 7 I wouldn't worry. Rain water changes PH very easily, it's normal for it to be a little under 7 because it does absorb some CO2 from the atmosphere which will drop it a tiny bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu :) Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 I just tested my rain water again, which comes from an under ground tank under the house. But here's the curve ball... wait for it... African cichlid owners cry out in jealously (or not )... pH 8.2 Lucky me gets my new Lake Tanganyika setup this week... lucky fish. Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 If the pH is low it can be from polution in the atmoshere. SO2 is more prevalent in urban areas. If high it could be from storing in a concrete tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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