High pH Problem... Use RO?

[Kov]

So this is over a year later, but was trying to revive this thread

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f12/mixing-ro-and-tap-water-s-205094.html

to see how things were going for Bearchumjs...

I am experiencing nearly the same problem. Tank is 36g freshwater set up just about 5 months ago. Tap water rises to 8.2 pH, and it is difficult to bring it down below 8.0 with any regularity (have been using Seachem Acid Buffer). It rises back up after weekly 5g water change. I've had a good-sized piece of driftwood in the tank for the past 3 months.

I do not have nitrates in the tap water, but the tank water has been cloudy from day one (which makes me think hardness). It does not seem to be the bacterial bloom, as it's been consistently cloudy.

Anyway, have been toying with the idea of introducing RO water at water changes to see if that would help bring down the pH level and reduce cloudiness over time.

How's your experiment worked long-term, Bearchum. Thoughts anyone else?

Thx,
Kov

 

[Bearchumjs]

Hi!

Ok- so long term, I used the mixture up until about 3 or 4 months ago. My pH stayed at 7.8. I got tired of using store water and started doing pwcs with my tap water. It if course slowly brought my pH up but it allowed time for my fish to adjust very slowly to the higher pH. All is well with my tank. As far as the cloudiness of your water, I don't know why it would be cloudy. Can you please tell us :


Tank stock
Water temp
PH
Ammo
Nitrites
Nitrates


Substrate
Live or fake plants


City or well water?


That should help people get an idea of what is going on with your water. And I suggest you get rid of the pH down stuff. A stable but higher pH is better than a fluctuating one.

 

[bobc4d]

leave your pH as is, mine runs 8.5. your fish will adjust to the pH and will be fine

 

[Bearchumjs]

leave your pH as is, mine runs 8.5. your fish will adjust to the pH and will be fine

Agreed.

 

[Kov]

Thanks for the replies. Shoulda known better than to leave this stuff out...

Tank stock

3 zebra danios (cycled the tank originally)
1 marigold sword (came in 1 month later)
1 krib (came in 2 months later)
​

Water temp

77-79 F
​

Water / PH

City tap water 7.8 out of tap, 8.2 after 24 hrs
tank water 8.2 (using API high-pH test)
​

Ammo, Nitrites, Nitrates

All 0.0 for past 2.5 months. Had one ammonia spike about 3 months ago that claimed two fish, but steady since then.
​

Substrate

TopFin gravel ( @35 lbs black, @ 15 lbs glow-white)
​

Decor

4 plastic plants, 1 store-bought castle, 1 lg piece driftwood
​

So don't sweat the pH level? Still, the RO would at least help with that (and maybe the cloudiness), yes? The driftwood should help the pH over time as well, but I don't know how long that will take to show any results.

 

[VOXGM]

My black ghost loves my tank and it runs 8.2. Stable ph is all that matters. When u start adjusting the ph, that's when it gets bad.

 

[VOXGM]

leave your pH as is, mine runs 8.5. your fish will adjust to the pH and will be fine

Agreed.

 

[armymp327]

your PH is fine, i have a PH of 8.2 also and my fish do just fine.

the reason it is going from 7.8 to 8.2 is probably because of any Co2 in the water out of the tap is degassing in those 24 hours. A PH swing because of Co2 degassing is harmless to your fish.

also with is a PH that high, i imagine you also have a high KH like mine, so any PH reducing products are not going to work because KH acts as a PH buffer. long story short you have to lower KH before you can lower PH which you should not be doing anyways, as it will swing and harm your fish. stable PH is key

 

[Kov]

Two things:

With the higher pH, what do you do to safely acclimate new fish that are likely coming from a store tank with a lower pH?

Any thoughts on the cloudiness of the tank? Could it be from the hardness of the water? Would RO water changes be a safe way to try to clear the water up? Have I asked enough questions in a row??

Thx,
Kov

 

[armymp327]

best way to acclimate is using the drip method, though i just float the bag while dumping half of the water from the bag into a bucket and replacing with water from my tank a repeat every 15 mins for an hour to 2 hours depending on type of fish.

as for the cloudiness, RO water is not going to help, is it a white milky cloudy? or a does it have a green tint to it (best way to find that out is put some tank water into a white cup under a good light and see)

 

[Kov]

Cloudiness is pale/milky. It's been that way from the start. Water acquired a bit of a yellow tint when I put the big hunk of driftwood in (even tho I boiled the thing multiple times). That has begun to dissipate over the past month or so.

 

[armymp327]

white milky water indicates a bacterial bloom, what are your water parameters for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate? i think you had said all 0. though if nitrates are really 0 then that would indicate a problem with your cycle, has nitrates should always be higher then 5 in a cycled tank unless you have an extreme amount of live plants.

 

[Budda619]

Make sure you have enough gas exchange occurring.

 

[Kov]

All levels at zero. Nitrates had popped up after the ammo spike, but the weekly water changes seem to have brought that down.

Gas exchange should be fine. Have a bubbler & two filters (Aqueon 30 w/carbon and Purigen cartridges, and Fluval Aquaclear 30 filled with Matrix).

What would cause a persistent bloom in the water column like that, tho? Is it possible it is hardness rather than bacteria?

 

[armymp327]

You just said you had an ammonia spike, your tank is either not cycled or going through mini cycles, that is what is causing the bacterial bloom and cloudiness, hard water will not do that I have a kh of 9 and a oh of 8.2 and my water is crystal clear (fully cycled though)

 

[Kov]

The ammo has been at 0 for 2.5 months. How long can a bloom last? Any ideas on what I'm doing to keep it in this state?

Thx for the replies,
Kov

 

[armymp327]

How do you clean your tank? Do you replace any of the filter media?

 

[Kov]

Right now, I vacuum about 1/4 of the gravel every other water change (every other week). The lfs said not to do any vacuuming for the first few months, but once the ammo spiked I began the vacuum routine.

The carbon filter was replaced for the first time about two months ago. The lfs had said to leave the filter in for several months to allow bacteria to build up there. Haven't touched the matrix or purigen bag.

 

[VOXGM]

I don't ever run carbon unless I'm removing meds or ridding smelly water. I here the carbon can strip additives the help bb to grow. I dunno if that's true but I always run my chemical media last in line. Honestly I dunno if its 100% true so don't hold me to that. Not saying this is your problem in any way. I'm just thinking out loud.

 

[Bearchumjs]

This article may help a little:


http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/waterconditions/a/cloudywater.htm

It says in there that not cleaning the gravel can cause bacterial blooms. If you didn't vacuum it for a while it may be the cause of the problem. Depending on what everyone else thinks, you may need to do a major gravel cleaning.

I'd take out all the fish and put them in a bucket of tank water, put the decorations in the bucket also. Then I'd use my hand to stir up the gravel, remove dirty water, put clean water in. Repeat the process until the water isn't very dirty when you stir up the gravel.

And yes- drip acclimation is, in my opinion, the best way to acclimate new fish. However, the float the bag and remove/replace water method is also effective. Look up drip acclimation on YouTube to see how it's done. It's super easy.