SAFFABOY Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Hi guys, i'm having a slight problem with my tank.The fresh water i'm putting in(well water-rural) has a ph of 6.6.However when i test it a day later from my tank it's 7.6.Now i'm trying to get this tank ready for discus ,but i can't get the ph down.I wont use chemicals. I know hardness is related to and effects ph.My hardness is low. I'm considering putting peat in the filter to low the ph.Would this work to lower the ph?How would it effect my hardness? OK,JUST TESTED SOME WATER FROM THE TAP(STRAIGHT FROM WELL)-LEFT IT OVER NIGHT IN A SEPERATE TUB- IT HAS A PH NOW OF 7.6 SAME AS TANK.WHAT'S THE DEAL. OH,also ,can i buy any peat from a garden centre.I can get it close to home ,but was told there could be many types of peat. Thanks,any response would be appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BK Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Use peat but check that it is just peat with no additives like fertilizer. What kind of stones do u have in the tank. If fruit salad (white/gold)shingle if could contain shell so will increase pH. Is this bore water? or town supply (Rangoon). If bore water get it checked. When I was living in Woodend b4 they put the new water plant in it wasn't suitalbe to drink-nearly and the farm I worked on between Kaiapoi and Rangiora was worse. A friend of mine just brough a place in Ohoka that required a new bore as water wasn't even suitable for live stock. If on town supply get them to send you a break down of whats in the water. It will be a surprise. Did you track down some Discus? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 If the water in the bucket stays the same it suggests to me something in your tank is raising the pH. Most likely the gravel. Do the same test with some water and gravelin a bucket. Do you have anything else in the tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquatopia Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 If the water in the bucket stays the same it suggests to me something in your tank is raising the pH. Most likely the gravel. Do the same test with some water and gravelin a bucket. Do you have anything else in the tank? Hi Caryl (nice to chat last night btw). I think Saffaboy is saying that the water is always 6.6pH when it comes out of the well, but when it goes into the tank it raises. Would this not be related to the kH of the water too? Just because it comes out of the well at one pH doesnt mean it will remain that in the tank from what i can recall. It is likely that there as something in the tank buffering the hardness up too though. SAFFABOY - why are you so adamant about not using chemicals? I would have thought the simplest (if not possibly costly initially) solution would be to used RO water buffered to your desired pH for Discus. That way you can be sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BK Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Does the water smell of sulphur. I do recomend u get the water checked not just for the fish but for your family as well. Cost my mate $15,000.00 to sort his water supply out with new deeper bore and filter system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAFFABOY Posted May 6, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 6, 2005 My gravel doesn't have any shell in it.I know where you going with that.The calcium in the shell would increase ph.I had the same problem when i only had gravel in my tank- no wood,plants etc.I run a fluidised bed ,biological filter. My water is bore water.i might not have been clear with my ph readings so these are what i got: tank ph:7.6 water from tap(bore water) 6.6 water from tap(bore water- next day) 7.6 I dont like using chemicals in my tanks -prefer a natural method for my fish. My bore water doesnt have a sulphur smell.The previous owner was using the water from the bore for his diallysis (spelling) machine.cant be that bad. BK: Haven't got any discus yet.Have been away from home this week.So i might take a drive around town this weekend to the lfs. Do you keep discus? Thanks guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted May 7, 2005 Report Share Posted May 7, 2005 What sort of media does your fluidised filter have in it. From memory its normally sand(?) there could be shell in this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAFFABOY Posted May 7, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2005 Silica sand is the only media in my filter.It's really really fine stuff.No shells in it,although the silica sand itself ,perhaps would increase the ph??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freshwest Posted May 8, 2005 Report Share Posted May 8, 2005 I have the same dilemma. My bore water is pH 7.8 gh 180 ppm kh 80ppm . Up till know i have been using a mixture of rain and bore water to get the levels were i want them . My rain water comes from an irrigation dam were the water is sand filtered and UV treated . I pump it into a 220l barrel were i filter it through a 1 micron filter, as the water it quite cloudy . So far so good my discus are doing well . I also have peat in the sump of my wet/dry filter . The options you have with your bore water is an RO unit or peat filter (peat bomb) . I have been playing around with peat with my bore water and it does bring down ph and hardness . RO will work .These units arnt the cheepist and the is the question as to how long the membrane will last filtering hard water . Food for thought . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAFFABOY Posted May 9, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2005 do you find the "peat bomb" makes the water brownish.I'd really like to get the benefits of peat without the brown water result.any theories on that.RO looks too expensive.I'm only a humble apprentice builder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freshwest Posted May 9, 2005 Report Share Posted May 9, 2005 not as bad as you think the water is more of an amber colour . Dont forget discus come from black water rivers loaded with humic acids .Your fish will love you for it . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted May 9, 2005 Report Share Posted May 9, 2005 My gravel doesn't have any shell in it.I know where you going with that.The calcium in the shell would increase ph.I had the same problem when i only had gravel in my tank- no wood,plants etc.I run a fluidised bed ,biological filter. My water is bore water.i might not have been clear with my ph readings so these are what i got: tank ph:7.6 water from tap(bore water) 6.6 water from tap(bore water- next day) 7.6 I dont like using chemicals in my tanks -prefer a natural method for my fish. My bore water doesnt have a sulphur smell.The previous owner was using the water from the bore for his diallysis (spelling) machine.cant be that bad. BK: Haven't got any discus yet.Have been away from home this week.So i might take a drive around town this weekend to the lfs. Do you keep discus? Thanks guys. The tapwater at 7.6 I assume is sitting in a bucket overnight, not water added to the tank. If so, there has to be a gas dissolved in the water keeping the pH low. Overnight the gas will escape causing the pH to go up. (Incidentally, the same thing would happen during the day 8) ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midas Posted May 9, 2005 Report Share Posted May 9, 2005 I'd agree with Warren, from the comment about the pH increasing while sitting overnight, it sounds like dissolved carbon dioxide gas in the water. This will release when exposed to the air. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke* Posted May 9, 2005 Report Share Posted May 9, 2005 Yeah i agree give up on the shell. It's CO2 that has dissolved into the water releasing and raising pH. You'll want to age the water every night with a bubbler and heater then use that for water changes with your discus so it stays constant and doesn't swing the pH for them. edit: and have a stocking or two full of peat in the aging container to counteract the raise in pH if wanted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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