How do I lower my ph?

[jacpaq2000]

My ph is around 8.4. With the fish I currently have/want that is way to high. I want to lower it down to around 6.2. What are some ways I can lower ph naturally with as little cost as possible?


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[Fish king]

I would say use some driftwood but it can be expensive depending on how big your tank is because you'll need a bigger size piece


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[Delapool]

My ph is around 8.4. With the fish I currently have/want that is way to high. I want to lower it down to around 6.2. What are some ways I can lower ph naturally with as little cost as possible?


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Have you tested tap kh? If the kh is high it will be a lot more work to lower ph and undone every water change.

 

[Mebbid]

The easiest way is to just mix your tap with either distilled or ro water to drop it to where you want. I would say anything below 8 is perfectly fine for fish that like the ph that low.

 

[BBradbury]

Adjusting Water pH

Hello jac...

That's a huge change considering water that's acidic or basic is measured by what is called a "logarithmic" scale. In easy to understand terms, even a tiny change of one number on the pH scale is significant and will kill all the fish.

Unless you're keeping and breeding rare aquarium fish, it would be better for you to forget about the pH, hardness and all that chemistry stuff and concentrate on just keeping the tank water properties constant with large, weekly water changes. Changing the chemistry of the tap water and maintaining the change isn't something most water keepers should try.

B

 

[Brookster123]

Just get an ro/di unit or as mebbid stated.. cut the tap.. I'd avoid chemicals all together.. what are you looking to keep?

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[jacpaq2000]

Just get an ro/di unit or as mebbid stated.. cut the tap.. I'd avoid chemicals all together.. what are you looking to keep?

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I have red minors and neons right now but I'm looking to keep 2 Angels


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[mikem691]

I have red minors and neons right now but I'm looking to keep 2 Angels


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I had no problems with angels in 8.2 ph

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[Lotocus]

I have high ph too 8.4 and a large variety of fish that all do fine even though their preferred ph is much lower. My fish supplier has high ph too. The biggest concern I would have is when you first introduce them. The change in ph is what will hurt the most so if the pet store's water is much lower you may want to drip them for a while before moving them into the tank.


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[ppo8820]

I wouldnt mess with it personally. Today, fish are bred to handle a wide variety of PH levels. Yes, Angel fish have a low, acidic ph in the wild...........but the ones you buy at the store have never seen the amazon river, so they can acclimate to a much wider spectrum of PH. I have 3 very healthy and happy angels in a ph of almost 8 and never had issues with plants (so far). The key is a stable ph and swings cause stress and disease. Whatever you buy, acclimate it slowly by using the drip method or slowly adding your tank water to the bag over the course of an hour..............you will be fine.

 

[Angela1108]

Once you mess with it it opens the possibility of huge fluxes in it. A stable ph imo is better than the perfect ideal for most species. Just make sure when adding new ones you acclimate them in slowly.

Trying to change it will be a constant battle and can easily yo yo all over the place


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[Mebbid]

Yes, a stable pH is better than a perfect one. Also, yes most fish will do just fine when in whatever pH you give them.

However, there's a point when it's just a bit too high and for me anything above 8.2 is there. Adding a small amount of distilled or RO water to drop the pH into the high 7s rather than the 8.4 it is currently at isn't going to harm anything. There is still plenty of buffering capacity of the water when the pH is in the high 7s to keep the ph from swinging and stay stable.