Raising PH for african cichlids?

[360º]

so i put demasoni cichlids in a 30 gallon tank in the hopes of breeding.

usually these are very aggressive and must be kept in large groups.

but i for some reason have a male and female that get along great.

ok so my tap water is pretty neutral, ph 7-7.2

i would like to raise it to around 8..... i have that proper ph 8.2 stuff but i dont know if i should use it.

any advice

 

[mfdrookie516]

I would put crushed coral in there rather than using that proper ph stuff... they do make african cichlid buffer and lake salts... that's supposed to mimmick the lakes pretty well.

 

[360º]

thanks.

 

[krap101]

Sometime Home Depot carries something like Castle Sand or Southdown sand, which is white in color. This is basically aragonite, and I used it in my 29 gallon when I was breeding brichardi. I raised my pH from 7.2ish to like 7.8-8.2 area, so it worked out well. It was more flakey than sand, and less uniform, but I haven't seen it at my local hd for awhile.

 

[patola_l]

i have had the best luch with aragonite sand, it is even recommended for cichlid tanks and works perfectly to raise pH and keep it stable. I have found it at almost all pet stores