Ph concerns

[muelleh]

I am new to the forum and have a question about Ph.

I have two male bettas (since Oct. 04), each in his own 2 gal. tank with undergravel filtration and tank cover with light. In each, I have a small java fern attached to a small piece of driftwood and a small ball of java moss (floating). I feed them 3 pellets 2xday and remove any that are uneaten (rarely have to). I change 80% of the water every week and every third week or so I take everything out and completely clean each tank.

I have a well, but I still use StressCoat, StressZyme, AquaSafe, and fertilizer for the plants to condition the water. My guys seem to be very happy and healthy.

I realized that I need to be checking the Ph and did: the Ph in the tanks is 7.2 yet the Ph of my well water is 6.8. I condition the water right before I change it to keep the temps the same, so there is really no time for it to sit and the Ph to change on its own. So my question is this: is the Ph difference too large for the water changes and if so, what can I do about it?

Thanks so much for any help/suggestions.

[briggs]

That is a pretty big jump I think. Is there any way you can let the water sit maybe in the garage or basement or anywhere for awhile?

My water is 7 out of the tap then after a 24 hours its at about 7.2.. i cant really get around that so i have a few jugs in my room to let the water sit

[muelleh]

Thanks for your quick response. The concern I had about letting the water sit is temperature fluctuation - it will cool down too much. I guess I could just get some heaters and keep it warm that way...?

[briggs]

I dont know what your setup is so I'm not sure.

Do you have heaters in your tanks? If you dont, then the water itemp n the tanks should be about the same as the water temp in the jugs that you get from the well, assuming you are able to keep it in the same room or something.

If its still to cold no matter what, compared to their tank water temp.. then you can also put the water on the stove for a few seconds or something and slightly heat it up

Whats the temperature of the water in their tanks, and whats the temperature of the water from the well once its been sitting for awhile? (If you have any to test, that is)

[muelleh]

Thank you - this has helped me think outside the box. I filled up a bucket and put it on my porch: 80+ degree temps outside should warm it right up!

[amanichen]

Briggs has given you a solution, but I'm curious as to why this is happening.

What kind of substrate are you using? What's the ammonia level in your tank water?

If you let tap water sit out does it go from 6.8 to 7.2, or is it just that your tank is 7.2?