Local Lfs Thinks Only Ph Matters....

[keenonfish]

Hey folks, recently took some aquarium water to my local LFS, and they proceeded to test the water. The lad got bottles out for Ph, Nitrites (I think) and something like general hardness. When I made a comment that it would be interesting to know what my ammonia levels will be the owner came along and stated that if my Ph was normal Ammonia is harmless to fish and not relevant.... He even went on to say the importance of the ammonia test was a common misconception in fish keeping!
On the other hand, when I took my water to Pets at home (I was having fish problems) about a year ago, the only test I remember being a problem was the Ammonia, despite Ph being ok!

Now I would normally dismiss the LFS as someone who doesn't care / know what they are talking about but this is a BIIIIG warehouse in the UK who I believe has a very good reputation for stock. (anyone who wants a clue they have moved three times in the last 5 years from tiny shop to big warehouse but don't want to mention names).

The other partner to the business also suggested I should try to stay on top of ph with chemicals (?) whereas the person serving me suggested fish normally acclimatise as long as things don't swing too far...

Now I kind of think I have been led up the garden path, and made to buy a PH kit that is only part of what I need (especially as I could have bought a master kit from ebay for not much more!) but I would like to know if forum members can try to suggest how Ph and Ammonia interact and whether this LFS was correct to some extent or way off the mark..? Out of interest will this LFS practice what he preaches in his own shop?

Incidentally, I have not found as LFS in my area yet that checks anything more than Ph apart from the superstore so what is going on!?

 

[smegforbrains]

Ammonia is less toxic in lower PH waters but should never be considered safe.


Another LFS talking utter poo.

 

[aaronnorth]

as the ph becomes acidic, it shifts to ammonium which is less toxic, but it can still be deadly.

 

[andywg]

I suggest you read this excellent post by bignose. It goes over the ammonia/ammonium balance and how pH affects it.

 

[keenonfish]

I suggest you read this excellent post by bignose. It goes over the ammonia/ammonium balance and how pH affects it.

Great article thanks! Maybe I should take a copy to my local LFS

 

[Colin_T]

If your tank has been set up for more than a couple of months most shops won't bother testing for ammonia or nitrite because they assume it is fine. And if you haven't been having problems with your fish then they won't waste money on a test that probably isn't needed. Hence they only test for PH. Some shops will ask a few questions like how long has the tank been set up, how often do you do water changes, when was the last time you cleaned the filter and how did you do it, and have you lost any fish recently? I you say you wash the filter out under tap water or you have lost fish within the last week the shop should check the water for PH, ammonia, nitrite & nitrate.
Quite often there can be a problem with the PH or you might have an ammonia & a nitrite reading. Then they should put the results on paper for you and send you home to do water changes.
That can be a lot of work so most shops don't often bother about it

Some shops will adjust their PH and hardness but others will just use the water they have available, unmodified. The better shops will usually increase the hardness & PH for rift lake cichlids and livebearers and maybe lower the PH for tetras and barbs. But it depends on what their water is like. My LFS uses normal tap water for everything except rift lake cichlids and livebearers because the PH is about 7.2 and the water is relatively soft, (less than 150ppm GH). The tanks that do have harder alkaline water also have labels on them stating the water has a PH of about 8 and a GH of about 300ppm, etc.

Many shops will buffer the GH or KH of their water so they have fewer problems with the PH dropping due to the biological load in the tanks.

Most fish will acclimatise to the water they are kept in. About the only time you should bother tinkering with the PH or hardness, is if you are keeping wild caught fishes. Then you want to try and keep the PH close to the fish's natural conditions. With most commonly available freshwater aquarium fishes being captive bred, you should be able to leave the PH as is and the fish should adapt and live long happy lives as long as you avoid massive PH fluctuations.

Generally ammonia is a problem to fish kept in alkaline water and nitrite is a problem in acid water. If you keep the PH below 7.0 then fish can tolerate reasonably high levels of ammonia and not die. However, tiny traces of ammonia in very alkaline water (PH of 7.6 and above) can kill fish very quickly. If you have an established filter and don't wash it out under tap water, then you should never have an ammonia problem in a tank that has been running for more than a couple of months.