|
|
Post by notaquitter2003 on Nov 25, 2003 9:54:13 GMT -5
I need some PH help.. I have a 2.5 minibow with UGF -connected but not being used-the filter that is. I just did a 100% water change on Sunday (with aged water) when i tested the water (it had been conditioned with Amquel and Novaqua and Aquarium Salt and a few drops of Aquarisol) the PH level was at 8.2!!!! so more poor boys couldn't go back in.  I ended up dumping all the water using spring water which had a 7.4 PH and then i treated it and waited for several hours and it was fine so i put them back in. They are in there now and bubble nesting like crazy  My average PH level is 7.5 so anything between 7.0-7.5 I am comfortable with. I tested some other water i had been aging this morning (conditioned with Amquel and Novaqua and Aquarium Salt and a few drops of Aquarisol) and sure enough it is at 8.2 again.  I use tap water and i age it for a few days..why isn't the PH level going going down? I am headed to the pet store to get PH down..but before i do...can anyone else suggest other ideas of what i can do... Funny part is that today I am taking the boys out of the 2.5 tank and they are going in the kritter keepers to the neighbors while i am out of town...i will use the current water for two of my boys...my other one needs a full water change today but i want to make sure his water is ok (ph levels) before i switch him... Any help is much appreciated!  |
|
Rhyn
Junior Bubble Nester
Posts: 165
|
Post by Rhyn on Nov 30, 2003 13:26:47 GMT -5
There's nothing wrong with pH down - as long as you don't put it into the tank water and you put it into water to be aged, it's fine. I'm actually pretty tired of hearing people talking badly about pH down - I discussed this with a friend who's a year away from a Chem degree, and I've been assured to my satisfaction about its safety. The chemical reaction takes the pH down (an acid) and it reacts with the bases in the water to neutralize them. Anyone who's had chemistry classes should remember their acid/base reactions: acid + base = water + salt. The classic is HCl + NaOH. Makes HOH + NaCl. HOH = H2O, which is water. NaCl is table salt. When you add pH down (which I'm almost certain is HCl), it reacts with whatever it is in the water to make water and a salt (not necessarily NaCl, but still a salt). I used it with my fishies for a year with no problems and I've started having pH problems again and intend to use it if I feel it to be neccessary. Aside from all of that, though, you don't *have* to have your pH at 7.0. It's nice, but not essential. Our water can get as high as 9.1, we add water softener that lowers it a bit, but it's still above 8.0. Some fish are fine with this (all my current ones are), but others aren't. Zeus had issues with a pH of 8.2 last year, so he got his water adjusted to 7.0 (he got the twitchy-seizures at high pH). These guys are tough fish and it takes a lot to get them. They're not nearly as delicate as they look. |
|
|
|
Post by estel on Nov 30, 2003 23:14:53 GMT -5
There's nothing wrong with pH down - as long as you don't put it into the tank water and you put it into water to be aged, it's fine. I'm actually pretty tired of hearing people talking badly about pH down - I discussed this with a friend who's a year away from a Chem degree, and I've been assured to my satisfaction about its safety. I think the reason a lot of people are hesitant about (or actually fanatically opposed to  ) chemically altering the pH is that, as we all know, it's stressful for fish to be subjected to pH changes. In the hands of experienced fish-keepers the products are probably fine, because those with experience know what they're doing and can keep the water consistent and healthy, but for a _newbie_ it could be pretty easy to forget to dose, or to overdose, or to chuck some product straight into the tank on top of their favourite fish, or whatever. To the OP: if I were you, I would do some experimentation. For example, first test the tap water again, just to make sure there haven't been any changes in the actual water supply. Then add Amquel and test. Then take some new water, add Novaqua, and test. Then take some new water, add Aquarisol, and test. And so on. And if you find a particular product is the culprit but you've always been using it, maybe your bottle has gone past its use-by date. Btw, why so many products? I don't even know what they all do  (I personally add a chlorine/chloramine/ammonia remover, a bit of rock salt if the fish is sick, and that's it Easier on the budget ) |
|
|
|
Post by notaquitter2003 on Dec 1, 2003 10:41:34 GMT -5
Good Morning Everyone.. After much testing, retesting, aging water etc etc. I broke down and purchased ph Down. It really did help. I added the two drops per gallon it suggested waited -tested then had to add a few more drops. I found that 6 drops worked perfectly. I was away for five days and tested the 3 gallons i have aging and the ph is at 7.2 which is what the current water in the tanks have leveled at. Unfortunately i am headed back to Petco to return the ph tester kit..in which the glass vile used for testing was broken.. Thanks! |
|
|
|
Post by BettaBGood on Dec 1, 2003 17:28:26 GMT -5
Sorry about your test kit, but glad to hear you've got the pH under control! Best wishes w/betta care! |
|
|
|
Post by mickey on Dec 1, 2003 19:08:14 GMT -5
there really is only 2 reasons that i ahve always been against the pH adjuster products ...one is that i have seen way to many newbies use the product straight in tanks and then over do it ...use to much pH up then haveing to go back and us pH down to try and correct the first over use ...this is super stressfull for the fish and can actually cause the water to be to tixic for the fish and kill them ...the 2nd reason is that i have also seen to many trying to adjust the pH from say 7.8 down to 7.0 ..sure this is pretty far change but totally unnessary ... i have always suggested that if your pH is not in an extream high or low then leave it alone as far as the pH+- chems as the fish will quite readily get used to the pH and then you can use the regular water that you normally would and the water chemestry would be more consistant for the fish and thus happier fish .... now in a happening as you stated above (pH 8.0 or higher or 6.8 or lower) then yes a change needs to be made and the pH chems are probably the easiest way to do that tho other ways are probably better as they can be alot more consistant (sodium bicarbonate or peat moss ) but alway always always treat the water with out the fish preferably in a larger container of treated(dechlorinated, salted) as this would be a 100 times better than treating a tank with a fish in it do to the reduced stress.... Mickey
|
|
Rhyn
Junior Bubble Nester
Posts: 165
|
Post by Rhyn on Dec 2, 2003 13:43:58 GMT -5
For treating water ahead of time, you can get a large trashcan at a hardware store (we got a 30 gal for $8). It seems like it takes up a lot of space at first, but it makes water changes a lot easier (rather than treating water for each tank for each water change). If you get a small one, it doesn't take up too much room...
|
|
I ended up dumping all the water using spring water which had a 7.4 PH and then i treated it and waited for several hours and it was fine so i put them back in. They are in there now and bubble nesting like crazy 
I use tap water and i age it for a few days..why isn't the PH level going going down?
) chemically altering the pH is that, as we all know, it's stressful for fish to be subjected to pH changes. In the hands of experienced fish-keepers the products are probably fine, because those with experience know what they're doing 