Driftwood and pH

[jaywings19]

My 72G tank is still in the middle of cycling. I soaked one piece of Malaysian driftwood for about 2 weeks before adding it to the tank about 10 days ago. It dropped my ph from 7.0 (tap) to about 6.6-6.8 (test kit results were in between). This piece was a rather large stump-ish piece.

I started soaking another piece of driftwood after the first one. This piece was long and skinny with a branch... but definitely smaller than the stump mentioned above. I only soaked this piece for a few days because it was smaller and stopped turning my bucket water yellowish... so I figured it was ready for introduction into the tank.

I put the second piece in the tank last Saturday. At that time, the pH was still 6.6-6.8 as mentioned above. However, the pH dropped to 6.0 as of Tuesday night (only 3 days later).

I don't understand why the second piece made the pH drop so far when it is noticeably smaller than the original piece. I would really like to have both pieces in there... but I don't want my pH that low. I want the pH to be in the mid-upper 6's (approximately where it was after the first piece was added).

Any thoughts why the 2nd piece caused such a huge drop? Because it soaked less time than the stump? Because the tank is still cycling?

 

[modernhamlet]

Sounds like you just got a piece of tannin filled wood. I fishless cycled my 29g and had a piece of driftwood that was pushing the pH to 6.0 and lower as well. By the time the cycle had completed though, the piece seemed to have expended its tannins, because now my pH stays between 6.8 and 6.5.

You could always take it out during the cycle and soak it in hot water that you change whenever you can. I hear that works well.

 

[thecichlidaddict]

Keep an eye on the PH. If it doesn't drop any further I would not worry about it too much, that PH is fine for the fish.

 

[jaywings19]

Keep an eye on the PH. If it doesn't drop any further I would not worry about it too much, that PH is fine for the fish.

I know the pH won't be bad for the fish... but what I'm trying to avoid is a big discrepancy between my tap pH and the tank pH... for water change purposes. I'm planning to do Discus.