Hey guys. So I'm lost on what to do about my ph levels. Doesn't matter what I do my ph levels drop to low 4. I don't over feed, tank is not crowded. I do use co2 but at only about 1bubble per 2 or three seconds. I use flourish, excel and root tabs. I actually been doing small water changes every day and still nothing. Tap water reads above 7. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I also run three filters 2 canisters and one hob filter. 55g tank.
Ph always low
- Thread starter Damian
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NRB
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
What are you using to test your ph, strips or liquid? A ph of 4 seems very low, especially if your tap water is closer to 7. I would recommend using the API master test kit. Test your ph with that and you may also want to get the kh test as well. I would then test tank water and tap water and see what the readings are.
What type of substrate do you have?
Do you have driftwood?
Any additional decoartions in your tank besides plants?
If you are trying to get back to a neutral ph, you may want to look at adding argonite/crushed coral to your canister filter. This will raise the kh, which will make it harder for ph to fall.
Only thing that may be hard is doing this gradually, so you don't kill your fish.
What type of substrate do you have?
Do you have driftwood?
Any additional decoartions in your tank besides plants?
If you are trying to get back to a neutral ph, you may want to look at adding argonite/crushed coral to your canister filter. This will raise the kh, which will make it harder for ph to fall.
Only thing that may be hard is doing this gradually, so you don't kill your fish.
I have a electronic ph reader that's been calibrated. I bought the API liquid master kit to check if my ph reader was broken and it shows 6. But that's as low as it gets. I don't have driftwood just plastic decorations. I have flora max. And I also use argonite/crushed coral.
coralbandit
Aquarium Advice Addict
What fish do you have and how do hey act?
How long have you had them?
How long have you had them?
Caliban07
Aquarium Advice Addict
I don't think there is any need to worry then personally. I've had ph in the 5s with shrimp carrying eggs etc. The seemingly sensitive ottos were fine too.
The drop is mainly due to co2 addition and ph drop due to weak acids such as co2 don't harm fish.
I always like to refer people to this section in Diana walstads book ecology of the planted aquarium when talking about pH. In her words:
"Daily variations of the water parameters are rarely – if ever – taken into account. Data collected in a freshwater lake (Star Lake, VT) with a very low alkalinity showed a diurnal pH fluctuation beyond the imagination of most hobbyists. Thus, the pH at 10 am was measured at 5.7 (strongly acidic), 9.6 at noon (strongly alkaline), 8.3 at 2 pm (moderately alkaline) and finally, 6.4 at 4 pm (slightly / moderately acidic). Readings were taken at a 0.5M depth. The fluctuation observed was due to the low KH value of the water (something reported for the Amazon river, too) and the presence of large amounts of phytoplankton. Under the circumstance it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to figure what is the “right” pH for any form of aquatic life collected in that lake and which tank could cope with this kind of fluctuation. The low – high points of the day differ by 4 pH points, which means that the concentration of H+ in the morning is 10.000 times higher than at noon, while this change takes place in just two hours. It goes without saying that this pH swing cannot be observed in an aquarium only because we cannot reproduce the amount of light which falls in the Lake. In any case, if somebody reported that a suitable pH for aquatic life collected in this lake should range daily from 5.7 – 9.6 most hobbyists would think it was a typo"
Hope this helps
coralbandit
Aquarium Advice Addict
Watch the mollies the closet IMO.
They will not last long if your water is really that low pH....They are hard water fish and will show some form of external skin/scale irritation eventually..
They will not last long if your water is really that low pH....They are hard water fish and will show some form of external skin/scale irritation eventually..
mambee
Aquarium Advice Freak
I never used to check my ph. I moved a BNP from another tank to my 150 and he immediately looked distressed. I also had a problem with my tank staying cloudy after water changes. A check of my ph showed that it was extremely low. I removed a large piece of driftwood and added crushed coral to my canister. Ph got back to neutral and the water cleared up. My water comes from the same source as NYC's water and is extremely soft. Adding the crushed coral helped buffer the water. I also believe that very acidic water inhibits the growth of the beneficial bacteria in the filter.
Damian, I live in NJ, had tanks here for decades (yes I'm an old guy) and I can only think of one time where the ph dropped/crashed in the tank below scale after a massive water change a couple of years ago. Water in my tanks are around 7to 8 ph anytime I checked, which is rarely. I don't use any buffers or corals. I wonder where in NJ you are? I'm next door to Princeton.
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Hey gilpi i live in keansburg in monmouth county. My town uses reverse osmosis to purify drinking water. I read about reverse osmosis and fish tanks. My tap water is also 7 to 8 but once added to a tank it has no buffering capabilities when it mixes with tank water and will crash. Something like that I don't really remember the entire article but I remember that part.
That's interesting about your water. I'm not one that frets much about pH but then again I am sure I don't have the same water as you do. My fish range from high pH Africans to lower pH south Americans and I don't do anything to the water since my pH readings always seem to be on the border of high whenever I take a reading.
The only time I noticed something wrong was when I did something like a 90% water change in my African tank once, the fish suddenly dropped to the bottom and it was then I noticed the pH had crashed, a little baking soda saved the day.
I'm wondering if you were to do smaller water changes?
The only time I noticed something wrong was when I did something like a 90% water change in my African tank once, the fish suddenly dropped to the bottom and it was then I noticed the pH had crashed, a little baking soda saved the day.
I'm wondering if you were to do smaller water changes?
Caliban07
Aquarium Advice Addict
Sounds like the fish dropped to the bottom because KH and TDS bottomed out not so much pH.
Try adding some Epsom salts I am not the science major here but it helps stability of KH, also you can always get some, very important mineral - magnesium sulfate.
I have 0 kh in my tap.
I add up to 1 tablespoon per gallon of Epsom Salts, you can start with 1.5 tsp p/g probably would be good.
Then also add Kent Marine, Superbuffer-dKH (in FW) at the rate they list on the package per gallon.
Also a pinch, maybe 1/8 or less of tsp of baking soda when doing a 25-30G pwc.
Rarely will add a couple TBL's (for a 72G tank) of natural mineral salt called Orso salt, aka Redmond or Real brand salt - I get it at the health food store where it is a few dollars for a couple pound bag. Maybe 4 times a year when changing the canister filter. That is mainly when I think about it. I guess this isn't necessary but when I used to add this all the time in my tanks - as in every water change I never had a pH issue. After I stopped using salt hearing it was not good for the fish, there were more issues. Annecdotal input.
This has helped my tanks out greatly with the unstable pH issue, in regards to the calcium and magnesium.
I have 0 kh in my tap.
I add up to 1 tablespoon per gallon of Epsom Salts, you can start with 1.5 tsp p/g probably would be good.
Then also add Kent Marine, Superbuffer-dKH (in FW) at the rate they list on the package per gallon.
Also a pinch, maybe 1/8 or less of tsp of baking soda when doing a 25-30G pwc.
Rarely will add a couple TBL's (for a 72G tank) of natural mineral salt called Orso salt, aka Redmond or Real brand salt - I get it at the health food store where it is a few dollars for a couple pound bag. Maybe 4 times a year when changing the canister filter. That is mainly when I think about it. I guess this isn't necessary but when I used to add this all the time in my tanks - as in every water change I never had a pH issue. After I stopped using salt hearing it was not good for the fish, there were more issues. Annecdotal input.
This has helped my tanks out greatly with the unstable pH issue, in regards to the calcium and magnesium.
Ingy
Aquarium Advice Addict
Never add anything you can't test for.
In nature about 90% of alkalinity is from bicarbonate and you can simply add sodium bicarbonate or baking soda. If you want to add it, just make sure you test for it too. FW tanks need very little unless your snail population is very high.
In nature about 90% of alkalinity is from bicarbonate and you can simply add sodium bicarbonate or baking soda. If you want to add it, just make sure you test for it too. FW tanks need very little unless your snail population is very high.
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