Mixing RO water to lower PH?

[Daven]

I may be wrong on this, but from what ive read the only real way to lower PH is to lower the hardness. Also driftwood, but i havent been able to find a definite answer on that either. Which is where RO/distilled water comes into play. But does the lowered hardness actually lower the PH or would i need to then use something to lower it and the hardness would allow it to stay there? And can i count on such mixtures during water changes to stay at the same level consistently?

Background for my particular case is that i am setting up a tank to eventually house a pair of Bolivian Rams, which sounds like it would do better in a lower PH. My tap water seems to read 7.5 on my test, the LPS says he thinks itsmore like 7.8. So if i cant make it definite and reliable, i might be fine but it would be nice to stay ideal.

 

[demo]

Hey Daven,
Adding Ro watter to your tank is a total hassle and could lead to system failure .
If you measured every thing every time ,something simple like 50/50 might work out.
I've read substrates like aqua soil will lower your your pH to 6 Ish . You can add granulated
peat to your filter if you don't mind tan water
I asked the owner of the lfs about soft water fish in my hard water and he said if I'm not breeding it should not be a problem

 

[gemach7]

There are several ways to reduce PH.

1). Driftwood, barley, leaf litter added to your tank leach tannic acid into the water lowering ph slowly. The effect is gradual and is effected by your tanks KH level.

2). If your tank is planted adding a CO2 system will lower your ph. Be careful with this method too much CO2 and you will poison your fish.

3). Tanks lower in ph as they age. Effect is very gradual.

4). If you you are diligent with finding the exact ph of your WC water each time. Additives that effect KH can lower your ph quicker. But test on your tap water in a predetermined amount. Example 5 gallons you may use 1/4 teaspoon of chosen additive to meet the now lower PH of the tank. If you do this each time the water you add will be same ph as the tank.

With Bolivian Rams stability is more important than matching their exact wild environment. They will live perfectly fine at around 7




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[Daven]

Hey Daven,
Adding Ro watter to your tank is a total hassle and could lead to system failure .
If you measured every thing every time ,something simple like 50/50 might work out.
I've read substrates like aqua soil will lower your your pH to 6 Ish . You can add granulated
peat to your filter if you don't mind tan water
I asked the owner of the lfs about soft water fish in my hard water and he said if I'm not breeding it should not be a problem

I might look into some of that soil, however i was going to use pool filter sand so itll depend on how high the cost is. Id prefer clear water, but im more interested in suitable tank perimeters

There are several ways to reduce PH.

1). Driftwood, barley, leaf litter added to your tank leach tannic acid into the water lowering ph slowly. The effect is gradual and is effected by your tanks KH level.

2). If your tank is planted adding a CO2 system will lower your ph. Be careful with this method too much CO2 and you will poison your fish.

3). Tanks lower in ph as they age. Effect is very gradual.

4). If you you are diligent with finding the exact ph of your WC water each time. Additives that effect KH can lower your ph quicker. But test on your tap water in a predetermined amount. Example 5 gallons you may use 1/4 teaspoon of chosen additive to meet the now lower PH of the tank. If you do this each time the water you add will be same ph as the tank.

With Bolivian Rams stability is more important than matching their exact wild environment. They will live perfectly fine at around 7




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What i wondered about driftwood is how long the effect would last before "used up", and if the water hardness would even allow a change anyways. That being said, im planning to get at least one decent sized piece since i like the look even if it doesnt help

I get it would be very hard to match the exact mixture every time, but if its a matter of making a ratio that works consistently that may be my best option it seems. I am afraid that if my water is actually 7.8, it may be too high for them to be 100% comfortable. Maybe a mixture plus the driftwood could lower it a bit to make it closer to 7

 

[gemach7]

I might look into some of that soil, however i was going to use pool filter sand so itll depend on how high the cost is. Id prefer clear water, but im more interested in suitable tank perimeters







What i wondered about driftwood is how long the effect would last before "used up", and if the water hardness would even allow a change anyways. That being said, im planning to get at least one decent sized piece since i like the look even if it doesnt help



I get it would be very hard to match the exact mixture every time, but if its a matter of making a ratio that works consistently that may be my best option it seems. I am afraid that if my water is actually 7.8, it may be too high for them to be 100% comfortable. Maybe a mixture plus the driftwood could lower it a bit to make it closer to 7

You can mix these methods to lower ph... My tap is around 8ph and I lowered initial tank with drift wood and leaf litter and keep stable with a little over 1 gram of seachem acid buffer added to each 10 gallon wc I do with addition of co2 with a dyi yeast system...
I too have had learning curve issues with my sub 7 ph tank recently developing an algae bloom so will say a lot of this is asking questions when you hit a road block, so you don't affect your aquatic life.


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[Daven]

You can mix these methods to lower ph... My tap is around 8ph and I lowered initial tank with drift wood and leaf litter and keep stable with a little over 1 gram of seachem acid buffer added to each 10 gallon wc I do with addition of co2 with a dyi yeast system...
I too have had learning curve issues with my sub 7 ph tank recently developing an algae bloom so will say a lot of this is asking questions when you hit a road block, so you don't affect your aquatic life.


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Yeah, this is one of the reasons i plan to keep my other, more hardy fish first and slowly make my way up to getting my last 2 Bolivines. This way i can make sure things are steady and that i can keep it up before i jump in. I wish it was as easy as adding driftwood like i had thought. Maybe i should try and find a softener around for cheap and go that route for my tank

 

[Autumnsky]

If you are thinking softening by using a machine that adds salt (uses salt pellets) - that is not recommended because of the salt.

 

[Mebbid]

As long as your ph isnt any higher than the lows 8s then your fish will be perfectly fine. Stability is the key to ph rather than a perfect number.

However, to answer your question: the ro method is going to be the most surefire way to drop your ph. You just have to mix it equally whenever you do a water change and barring any changes in your tap water this should be a stable way to manage ph

Driftwood / peat moss is so so but the problem is that it stains your water Brown with tannins. The tannins are a form of acid so they do indeed decrease your ph.

 

[coralbandit]

Mixing ro with tap is the most repeatable way to lower pH/gh/kh.
That being said ;
IMO you don't need to lower your pH to keep the bolivian rams.
I raise my GBR in 7.6ph and they are fine!(GH 10/kh3).

 

[gemach7]

If you are thinking softening by using a machine that adds salt (uses salt pellets) - that is not recommended because of the salt.

Second this water softeners work by ion replacement. They take the mg+ and ca+ ions and replace them with Na ions. This will cause the salinity of your water to increase, much more detrimental to freshwater fish than slightly high ph. Also by removing the hardness ions too much will increase likelyhood of ph swings as your water will have no buffering agents to stabilize the ph.


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[Daven]

Second this water softeners work by ion replacement. They take the mg+ and ca+ ions and replace them with Na ions. This will cause the salinity of your water to increase, much more detrimental to freshwater fish than slightly high ph. Also by removing the hardness ions too much will increase likelyhood of ph swings as your water will have no buffering agents to stabilize the ph.


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Ahh good call. I forgot how those actually work lol

Well i appreciate the help guys! It seems i may be ok just leaving things how they are since it would be the most stable way to go. If not then ill look into mixing RO and the driftwood should do the rest. Thanks!