Another Mistake (PH)...

[snifflyfro]

I made yet another mistake. I've got my tank fully cycled, but when testing the PH I realized it has sky rocketed to 8.1. My tap water is 7.0 so I immediately wanted to see what was causing this. I filled a cup with a sample of the sand I use (Play Sand from Lowes, doesn't say anything about the contents on the bag).

I let the water and sand stand over night and sure enough the PH shot right up. Are the only solution to:
1. To deal with it and get higher PH fish
2. Complete substrate change.

I don't really want to put peat in the filter because I don't want the water discolored, and I'm not sure if I'm up to doing the CO2 method yet. Are there any other solutions? Will the sand eventually become exhausted?

Thanks.

 

[snifflyfro]

I actually then tested a cup of water with no sand and got the same results. It looks as if I have dissolved CO2 in my tap water and once it has time to sit the PH goes up to it's real level.

 

[Menagerie]

I was going to ask about the tap water. That's some pH! What types of fish were you looking to put into the tank? What sort of decor? Fake plants, low light plants, no plants? Driftwood?

 

[snifflyfro]

Too late to go to a Cichild tank, I'm sure some of you guys only wish you had a PH like this. I found something interesting, many towns seem to have annual water reports, I found one for where I live and am now looking for one in the town where my college is. It tells you about all different types of things that are in the water, including PH. Interestingly enough when I go home in mid June I'll be moving to water with a 6.6 or so PH, quite a change for the guys, I'll have to ease them into it VERY slowly.

No plants or driftwood. I have flagstone that I checked to make sure was inert and then boiled, plastic and silk plants and a piece of fake driftwood (too bad I didn't go with the real stuff, I had a nice piece but the darn thing just wouldn't sink after all types of different treatments, boiled for hours on end).

It looks like the fish I have will be OK, and I just won't pick up the cardinal tetras that I was looking at.