ph help

[La Dreya]

I just tested my water and the ph is high, about 8.0. Nearest place to get fish supplies is 75 miles away!!!! The water from the tap is this ph, anything around the house that I could use to help?
Linda

 

[Guest]

Hi Linda:
Is that the pH straight out of the tap? Try letting the water age for 24 hours, then test it again to get the true pH value. I believe it's dissolved gasses that can cause the readings to vary. Also, depending on the kind of fish you keep, 8.0 might not be all that bad - it depends.

 

[La Dreya]

Stargurl,
Thanks for the reply. Here's more info. I have several tanks, a 55 and a 20 plus several small (1-2 gallon) Betta tanks. Just moved the fish from the 55 were at a friends house in the 20.
Set up the 55 with new gravle and added a under gravle filter to the outside filter. The fish, a red-tail shark, a Kuli and 2 Blind Cave fish are fine but 3 times I added Goldfish and they all died. Goldfish in the 20 do fine. I finally added fish to the 55, yesterday, mostly Tetras and Barbs and so far they seem fine.
As I said it's about 75 miles to the nearest pet/fish store so it will be Thursday before I get there. Plan to take a water sample from both tanks to be tested and will buy a good test kid,
Linda

 

[Guest]

If you don't mind me asking, why are you mixing coldwater and tropical fish? They have very different water requirements. For example, goldfish do best at temperatures of 50-68 degrees (if I remember correctly), while most people keep tropical tanks at around 78 degrees.

Also, if you set up the 55 with new gravel, etc. I'd recommend keeping an eye on ammonia and nitrite levels because your biological filtration won't be established in the new gravel yet. You'll probably want to pick up test kits for ammonia and nitrite on Thursday.

Best of luck with your fish.

 

[La Dreya]

Stargurl,
I put the goldfish in to see what would happen, how they would do. Up untill now I did not have a heater in the tank as we needed AC to keep the temp at 80.
While the fish were in the 20 I had the outside filter in it. I plan to get the most complete test kit they have,
Linda

 

[CRaZeeeBiTcHisH]

80 degrees is too warm for a goldfish, and the previous post has a good point, it is not a good idea to mix coldwater and tropicals, they come from totally different environments--furthermore, goldfish are high waste producers and if your gravel is new you may have a chemistry problem--if your tank is otherwise established with an established filter you may be ok--if you have to run the ac to keep the water at 80 , goldfish are probably not going to be a worthwhile investment for you...unless you want to go to the trouble and expense of chilling the water....