PETEYPLECO Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 I have guesstimated that the average PH for my collection of different species in my tank should be 7. The tank has been consistantly at PH 6.6 for two or three months dispite adding "proper ph 7.0" at recommended dose with no change. Is this because I am running my filter with carbon and it is removing the chemicals? Am being over concerned and its just my tanks natural environment at PH 6.6 as my fish seem okay and happy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilknieval69 Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 as long as fish seem ok you should be alright. 6.6 should be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowman Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 I wouldn't worry about the p.h. 6.6 should be fine, most fish have a reasonable tolerance and so long as it isn't going through large changes it should be ok. You can take the carbon out, it probably has absorbed most of the p.h. plus, usually the carbon only lasts a month or so and most will only use it to filter out meds they have used. I wouldn't worry about adding p.h. 7.0 either, leave it for a week or so and then check to make sure it hasn't fluctuated to much. HTH Shane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 Don't use that pH altering stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETEYPLECO Posted January 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 I have thought about removing the carbom altogether but I love the shiney crystal clear water. What else can I use to keep the water clear like this or what are the most common filter media used? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 Throw bird grit in a bag in the filter. Cheap and effective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowman Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 I've never used carbon and always get told the water looks crystal clear, IMO all you need is a decent mechanical and biological filter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LYNDYLOO Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 I would have to second that snowman, no need for carbon, only use it when necessary, like you say to filter out meds and so on. Good luck Lynda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim&Dan Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 Fully agree on the carbon part! We have always had crystal clear water both with and without it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanksman Posted January 17, 2006 Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 For cleaning the water more use filter wool - like cotton wool - It will need to be replaced probably fortnightly to maintain good flows through the filter - but your carbon needs replacing frequently as well - if you want to use it that is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETEYPLECO Posted January 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2006 I will remove my carbon and buy some aditional media for the empty baskets to increase the surface area for those helpfull little bugs. CHEERS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETEYPLECO Posted January 23, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2006 PH still the same after 5 days and after filling up filter with extra noodles, the bird grit thing sounds good can you elaborate further eg should you put it in a stocking, how long will it raise the PH for, will it continue to raise PH through the roof? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted January 23, 2006 Report Share Posted January 23, 2006 if you really do want it at seven you can add sea shells/ calciferous decor. they normally dont raise the ph too much but do keep an eye on it. im not sure what bird grit is made of but i think it would just be used because it could hold alot of bacteria? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted January 23, 2006 Report Share Posted January 23, 2006 if you really do want it at seven you can add sea shells/ calciferous decor. they normally dont raise the ph too much but do keep an eye on it. im not sure what bird grit is made of but i think it would just be used because it could hold alot of bacteria? It doesn't hold a significant amount of bacteria. It's made of crushed oyster shells. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted January 23, 2006 Report Share Posted January 23, 2006 i seeeee :lol: im not expert on birds and their grit haha, guess that would up the ph then aye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETEYPLECO Posted January 26, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2006 Just as an additional point I checked my tap water's PH lastnight while doing a water change and it was PH 7.6. After topping up my tank the tank ph is still way low (6.2 due to power cut for 7 1/2 hours and water quality has dropped) go figure? I drained 30 ltrs from 160 +/- refilled tank with tap water with water ager added and tested ph in tank straight away = ph 6.2. What makes the ph change so much imediatly after refilling the tank? I thought it would increase the ph by topping up the tank up with water with a ph of 7.6? :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanksman Posted January 26, 2006 Report Share Posted January 26, 2006 Have you got Bog wood or peat in there somewhere - That will hold the ph low. Have you put oyster shells in the filter yet? Also are you using an airstone to bubble off the CO2 gas which also lowers ph? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETEYPLECO Posted January 26, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2006 Hi tanksman, I have a piece of wood for my pleco. I was told birdgrit for raising ph but I am unsure of where to put it and for how long - permanant or just to get ph up and does it just keep raising the ph through the roof? Silly question but where do you get oyster shells from? I have an airstone which I turned way down last week but had to increase it due to long power cut and I was hoping I could get some extra air into my filter as many bacteria had died - I will turn down again tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
me love fishy Posted January 26, 2006 Report Share Posted January 26, 2006 Good point Tanksman, bogwood definitely makes the water more acidic. I used to have the same problem in my 60L tank as I had bogwood for my plec, it was never too much of a problem though and as long as it didn't get too acidic, most fish were fine. I would just recommend doing 25% water changes everyday until it gets closer to 7 and then just monitor it every few days to make sure it doesn't creep up too much, but if your fish don't look sick I wouldn't worry about having the perfect PH, different fish prefer different levels of PH anyway. Happy fishkeeping Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanksman Posted January 27, 2006 Report Share Posted January 27, 2006 Yeah good point - ph 6.2 is not necessarily a bad thing - You could get some discus petey - Make sure your filter is cycled first though and do heaps of reading to see if your setup suits discus as its alot of money and stress if they start dying. Plenty of fish that enjoy acidic conditions though - Not many that like sudden changes in ph though so be careful if you do muck around with it. Oyster grit is available at petshops and garden centres - you could put it in your filter if there is space - external canister filters are great for this - or you could put it over the bottom of the tanlk like sand if you can tolerate the look - personally its not a look I like. Also the oyster shell will buffer the ph at around 7.5 - 8 0- it doesnot go up and up and up - it makes the ph more stable... Ammmonia and nitrite are apparently more toxic at higher ph so again be careful - How do you be careful - use a water test kit - and add stuff to your tank slowly if it is needed at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETEYPLECO Posted January 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2006 Hey tanksman, I went out to my LFS yesterday and got me some oyster shell and a media bag and placed it in the top media basket in my external filter. It has been at least 24 hours and no PH change? How long does it take to be noticable? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETEYPLECO Posted February 6, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2006 Its been well over a week now and still no change in PH - now 6.6. I even tried adding a smallish dose of bi carb soda to give things a boost. The only thing that happened is my water is now nice and cloudy because of the shell! Must be the dambed wood in my tank keeping PH low? I think Ill just give up and surrender to have it at 6.6. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 6, 2006 Report Share Posted February 6, 2006 Most people forget that pH is minus the log of the hydrogen ion concentration, which put simply means that if it takes one drop of acid to change the pH from 7 to 6, it will take 10 drops to change from 6 to 5. If I remember correctly Coca Cola has a pH of 4.6. If you wish to alter pH and it is around 7 you are dealing with very minor changes and you will be changing it forever. As was said earlier most fish will tolerate a reasonable range, but what they don't like is frequent changes, it needs to be very gradual. I would go with previous advice and get rid of the carbon and put in a bit of bird grit (oyster shell --calcium carbonate) then keep your hands in your pockets and watch and enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted February 6, 2006 Report Share Posted February 6, 2006 Does carbon affect the pH? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim&Dan Posted February 7, 2006 Report Share Posted February 7, 2006 Does carbon affect the pH? Not as far as I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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