Lowering pH

[fatbobsufc]

My pH is currently at 8~8.5. Can anyone advise on the best way to lower pH as it seems to me that most community fish prefer a pH of 6.5~7.5?

 

[Eelzor]

Bogwood would help to lower it. First drench the bogwood and clean it, once done it can be placed in the tank. It may dirty it up a little but it will clear up as the filter gets to work. I am thinking of doing it myself.

 

[Alien Anna]

Don't be tempted to use pH Down type products, particularly if your water is also hard. It won't work and it'll fill your tank with phosphates (which encourage algae).

I have the same natural pH as yourself. What I do is add a ton of bogwood to my tank and pre-filter my water change water through peat, although now the bogwood works so well I don't bother with the peat any more.

 

[CFC]

If your water is really hard and alkaline then bogwood and peat filtration wont really even make a dent in it, my archerfish tank was crammed with bogwood and still held a pH of 8.5 (which is the pH of my tapwater) the buffers in hard water are very difficult to break down and as soon as you do a water change they just buffer straight back up. The most affective way of lowering pH and keeping it low is to use RO water, it is neutral in pH (pH7) with all the buffering minerals removed, the hardness can be adjusted by the ammount of trace minerals you add back in and the substrate and decor will dictate the pH, ie silica sand substrate with bogwood decor will give you a tank with acidic water (pH under 7 for amazonian species and soft water loving fish) or having some crushed coral mixed into the substrate and tuffa rock for decor will give you alkaline conditions (pH above7 for african rift valley set ups and marine and brackish tanks).

 

[fatbobsufc]

What I do is add a ton of bogwood to my tank and pre-filter my water change water through peat, although now the bogwood works so well I don't bother with the peat any more.

I have added some bogwood tonight - a t-shaped piece that is about 30cm by 20cm and is about 4cm in diameter. Do you think this is enough for a 44gallon tank? I have yet to see whether it will reduce pH.

I bought it pre-soaked and matured and it cost me £9. So at this price I don't want to have to buy too much uneccessarily. Plus I don't want to overdo it since i have a lot of rock features in the tank already!

 

[Alien Anna]

Your bogwood may take a little while to drop the pH, depending on your KH. If your KH isn't too high, a week or so should show a difference.