Ph---low

[reg2k2]

My pH measures 6.0/<, lowest point on chart.

End of May (dirty tank) - two 60% water changes.
First week of July - water change & hooked up other half of UG filter.

Last night measured pH as above. I was surprised, having changed the water fairly recently--my tap measures 8.2pH.
Between tap water & driftwood, I used to usually come out about neutral. 'Course, it's been ages since I've tested.

Any concerns with another water change? Maybe 2-4gal?
I just read something about low pH converting ammonia to ammonium, but high pH doing the reverse. Not that I've ever had a prob w/ammonia.

The fish seem to be doing o.k., only I thought one of the tetras seemed to be a little dark, which prompted me to test. And the water does seem to be a bit yellow itself.

15gal. tank, 12" x 24"
1 adult Peckotia, 2 adult tetras, 5 juvenile tetras

I'd rather not use pH-Up/Down, unless you think this is an emergency. If water change doesn't help, I figured on putting shell grit in filter. I imagine they sell that for marine tanks @ fish store--?

 

[Davy Reynolds]

Low pH is what I'm suffering from put it's due to my tap water.

Your tap water Ph may be high but you'll need to find out the KH (Carbonate hardness) If this is low there is nothing to hold your ph together and it'll drop. SO it's best to find this out first.

The first cause of this is usually bad husbandary, mainly overfeeding. I'd suggest for now doing more water changes. So start doing 30% water changes every week. This will sort out the husbandary.
If the KH is low you can add baking soda. one level tsp per 100L will rase it 1deg KH. This is a short term soluition. You can also add calcium plus.

The main concern is the high ph tap water and you elements in the tank trying to lower the ph so it's best to test the water for GH and KH.

Get beck to me with these results

 

[reg2k2]

I hope kH is regular water hardness.  (gH---?)

Test results are moderately hard, 80-150ppm.

Oh, I forgot.  I did put some Fungus Clear in by mistake at the end of May.  Don't know if that would have any bearing on this.  

Prob. am overfeeding.  Before July, there was only Tiny. (Easy to overfeed 1 tetra).  I try to keep it in mind, but then I worry that maybe the shy new fish didn't get none.  Have to resist, I guess.

So, goo ahead with the water change, eh?

 

[Davy Reynolds]

KH is not the normal hardness. GH is (GH meaning general hardness).

You can read this article Click here

 

[reg2k2]

Right you are, Davy!
Tested KH---1/2deg. if anything.
GH tested nil as well. (I won't tell you the date on the first test i used ) By the way, how long are test kits usually good for?

Well, I am stunned. I would've sworn it was hard water.

Tank's pH reads just over 6.0, unless my eyes are foolin' me.
If it doesn't go up after next water change, I think I may remove the larger piece of driftwood, tho I don't think poor Mr. P will care too much for that.

 

[Davy Reynolds]

Not to good then
Since you've no KH then the pH is falling apart. If you do the same tests with the tap water you'll see what your fighting

I've suggested some ways above. just dont be tempted to put loads of baking soda in, it's toxic in large amounts. Plus you dont want to rase the ph to fast as this could shock the fish.

Test kits usually last about 1-2 years for them to be at there best. There is normaly a shelf life date on them.

 

[Alien Anna]

You could try adding some of that high calcium mineral water. Actually, I did do it myself - by accident, mistaking it for spring water. I was trying to *lower* my KH and GH.

I realised my mistake and had to do a 75% water change right away before I killed all my Amazonian (acid, soft-water loving) fish, but you could try it deliberately to get your water up.

Don't remove the driftwood - your plec would be terrible. Do put in some limestone rocks and consider getting some coral-sand and putting it in a stocking inside your filter. A couple of shells would be a good idea too (they are calcium, see). Have a look in your LFS for rocks suitable for an African cichlid tank.

 

[Dragonslair]

My friends will now probably now crucify me, concerning feeding. I only feed my fishes twice a day. They are fed enough food that would fit on a 5p. They clear it up within 3 to 4 minutes. I do however drop 2 plecomin tablets to the bottom of the tank for my bottom dwellers. This way my tank water is pretty crystal clear. I do a 25% water change every fortnight. The filter is well matured and recently everything is running pretty smoothly. My fish are beginning to breed. That must be a good sign. I have 65 various community fish. 26 of them Neons!

 

[Macquatic]

:what:  reg, I've the same problem up here in the North. The tap water is VERY soft i.e. KH nil! I use a small piece of tufa rock or some coral gravel in a box filter to buffer the ph. I also change up to 50% of the water every week. Dirty gravel is another cause of dropping ph, so a good clean would not go amiss. I find the tufa or coral much easier than trying to add chemicals to the water.    Mac.

 

[reg2k2]

Stopped by LFS on way home today and left w/ crushed coral, a mesh bag to put it in, and a suggestion to change the water every day 'til it came up.

Was about to do a change, and decided to test again.

:0 It did not test yellow (I'd say about 6.4), so I decided to skip the change 'til the weekend, assuming it doesn't drop before that.

I don't know how big a 5p is, but when I feed my fish (a tad fewer than 60!--how big a tank?), I put in about 10(1cm) flakes.  Some bits always drift to the bottom.  The black phantom tetras nibble a bit off the bottom, but nobody else.  Am I over-feeding?  
And my catfish gets 1-2 tabs a night.

I would say I feed my fish once a day, but really since I bought the new fish, I'd say twice, even three since I picked up the bloodworms for a treat (none of which hit the bottom).[]

Well, I hope my water rectifies itself as I improve my "husbandry".  If not, I've got plenty of suggestions to go on---thanks for all your input!  Weekly water changes--ugh.  But, if that's what it takes.  Have to find out what tufa and limestone look like.  
Also, a theory I've kept--does this make sense?  Dolomite is supposed to bring pH up.  Gravel is made of dolomite (correct me if I'm wrong).  As some of the color has chipped off of mine, do you think it might affect the pH, too?

 

[Alien Anna]

Hi,
re. feeding. From a water quality POV, and also a fish health POV, small frequent feeds are better than one big one. I feed a pinch of flake, bloodworm, pellets or wafers about 3 times per day. I tend to feed different things at each feeding since I have a wide mix of requirements in my tank. I even weighted down some lettuce yesterday, for my snails and plec, but they rejected it (fussy herberts!). If the food is gobbled up under 3 minutes, I consider it not too much and my fish are all healthy and my water quality good (I've never had measurable nitrites or ammonia).

Re. Gravel. Most aquarium gravel is inert. Which is why we suggested crushed-coral sand and "gravel" - it is strongly alkaline but is unlikely to cause sudden, alarming swings in pH. If you put it in your filter, in a stocking or net, you can always remove it if the pH rises too high.