A dummy needs advice

[jaowl]

Even thou I have several tanks--I have a question on alkalinity and ph levels.

One tank is a small 5 gal & I just did a water change yesterday. The alkalinity is high(300) and the ph level is 8.4 according to the test strips(Jungle Quick Dip 5).

How do I correct these? The other levels are below 25 for hardness--nitrite show 0 and nitrate is 20

I appreciate any thoughts and suggestions

 

[loganj]

What kind of test kits are you using? I'm guessing the alkalinity reading you gave is in ppm? And that this is the carbonate hardness measurement? The easiest way to lower carbonate hardness and pH is to mix distilled water with your tap water until the desired readings are reached. Be careful not to get the carbonate hardness too low though as this will cause your pH to fluctuate easily.

 

[TankGirl]

Why do you want to manipulate the water parameters? If you are not having particular problems with the fish, I would leave it alone.

If you are having trouble a R/O unit is the best way to go. If you just want to lower your pH the addition of CO2 would do the trick, if you have plants. It is tough to do this kind of thing in a 5-gal, where the slightest change has drastic effects on the total tank parameters. I would test your tap water to see what you are adding to your tank, and test the water before and after water changes to demonstrate the impact your water changes are having. Fish load and plant load will be factors in this equation as well. You need to sort of chart the water parameters over a period of months to get a picture of how stable the tank is. Again, stability is more difficult in a tank of this size, so it is helpful to look at how the tank is over time.

 

[BrianNY]

Tank Girl is sooooo smart! There are products to help you control ph but in reality stability is very important. What kind of fish are you keeping in that 5 gal. I'm thinking it might be guppies, and 8.4 is not a prob for them at all