Help: Driftwood tannins and effect on pH

[mattcham]

I want to lower the pH of my tank from 7.4 to 6.5 and keep it at around 6.5.

Is the pH-lowering ability of Mopani driftwood directly related to the amount of tannins?

Would pre-boiling the wood reduce its ability to lower pH?

Are tannins unrelated to pH? Perhaps something else from the wood causes the pH drop?

I'm planning to use reverse osmosis water to reduce the hardness of the water and to ease the pH reduction.

 

[Rivercats]

You can't rely on DW to lower ph. The tannins that are released from DW are what lowers the ph. Since many don't like the tannin colored water it's pretty much a moot point. Plus some types of DW leech more tannins than others. True Bog DW is by far the best for lower ph.

Using RO water to cut with tap water is the best way to consistently lower and maintain a lower ph. I use this method in one tank right now and change out 10g weekly using 5g of RO to 5g of tap for the fill water.

 

[mattcham]

Thanks rivercats. I'm planning to add peat in my filter media slot too. If tannins reduce pH then I won't pre-boil the driftwood and I'll skip using carbon in the filter until the pH reaches 6.5 with my reverse osmosis water.

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