# How to keep PH stable



## diwu13 (Sep 20, 2011)

People use RO/DI water which removes all the kH (which buffers pH) and then active substrates that will buffer the pH to the desired level, generally ~6 or so.


----------



## wicca27 (May 3, 2009)

when water sits it degasses and lets out some of the stuff the water treatment plants put in. my tap water strait out of the faucet has a ph of 8 to 8.5 if i let it sit untreated for 2 days it dropps to a ph of 7. once in my tanks it can drop down to 6 but i think that might have something to do with the drift wood and substrate. try testing your tap water for a day by not treating it and just letting it sit on the counter and see what it does. some times its best to just let it age for a while befor adding to a tank be it fish or shrimp


----------



## MochaLatte (Nov 19, 2011)

I breed and raise angelfish and in my bare bottom fry grow out tank the PH dropped to 5. Granted I did add prime to it to make it safe but I didn't think that would alter the PH.


----------



## wicca27 (May 3, 2009)

you could just have really soft water. i would still test just the tap water as it ages though and be sure to check dates on your test kits if you have had them a while. i was at the lfs the other day and they had some that were out of date and they didnt even know it. im not sayin that is what is happening but that the tests can go bad. only thing i know to do would be to add crushed coral a little at a time till it keeps the ph where you want it and to check the tank all the time or get some of the ph adjuster stuff made for shrimp tanks


----------



## sbarbee54 (Jan 12, 2012)

Yeah for water starting out at 8 to 8.5 to drop down to 6, something in the tank has to be buffering it that low, substrate or some other additive in the tank. because letting tap water sit will lower a little, and will let some of the chemicals evaporate out, but it will not strip the GH and kh to allow it to drop to 6


----------



## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

Couple of thoughts/ideas/food for thought...

How do you measure pH and KH? Do you have some NIST calibrated precision instrument, or do you go off some strips/drops? Why do I imply such thing? 

Well, if your KH is indeed 3, then your pH should balance out to about 7.4, considering that atmospheric CO2 dissolves in it, with a result of ~4ppm CO2. This is not true if your tap water contains large amounts of phosphates (which is added by some water co's).

You also said that the RO water from your friend had a high pH, which is another indicator that something might be wrong with your measuring equipment. 

Don't worry about the pH of the water that comes out of your tap. It might contain or lack things that make it appear that way, what count is the pH after it "degasses". Have you left out a cup of water for 24 hours and measured the pH afterwards? That would be the "real" pH. I think you said you did, but perhaps that is after it was in the tank for 24 hrs.

There can be several reasons why the pH in your tank would drop to 5. A KH of 3 would not really be one. Now if the KH is lower, like if it gets consumed in your tank, then yes, possible. Most of us would be very happy with that KH. However, if you want to raise it up anyway, baking soda (NaHCO3) should work well, because it will not raise your GH.

Before you do, I would suggest you verify that your pH meter is giving you correct information.


----------



## wicca27 (May 3, 2009)

what would dolomite do to gh?


----------



## GEM 35shrimps (May 1, 2012)

Soil is the best, safety and the most sustainable way to stable pH, adding under gravel plate beneath it twice the effective(but will lower the lifespan of the soil)


----------



## MochaLatte (Nov 19, 2011)

I have a glass of tap water sitting on the counter now. Will test the PH later today when it gets closer to being out 24 hours.

@sbarbee54 The tank only had a sponge filter in it. Nothing that would cause the PH to drop so low.

@wasserpest I have all API liquid test kits. The dates are still good on them. Even in my main tank all I had in it was plain petco gravel and live plants and plastic tree stump decor and kept having the PH dive. Nothing that would alter the KH or PH or whatever. I have taken my water to my LFS they have liquid test kits also and my readings are the same.


----------



## elwray (Mar 9, 2012)

wicca27 said:


> what would dolomite do to gh?


My guess is dolomite would raise both KH and GH, since it is a magnesium carbonate as opposed to something like limestone which is just a carbonate rock and has little to no magnesium.


----------



## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*Your Water Chemistry*



MochaLatte said:


> Sorry for all the questions lately. Right now I'm scratching my head wondering how you keep your PH semi high and stable with such low KH. I am going to be redoing my shrimp tank and want to steer clear of crushed coral.
> 
> My tap water is
> PH 8.8
> ...


Hello M...

You're making things much too complicated, I think. You don't need to turn things into a chemistry lesson. The vast majority of aquarium fish will adapt to the majority of public tap water. You don't need to age the tap water, put in the water treatment and make sure the new water is close to or a little warmer than the tank water. Your fish will appreciate new water that's a little warmer.

Don't worry about pH or hardness or any of that. Again, the fish will adapt. Don't try to change the pH with chemicals. Chemicals stress fish. If you want, put in a piece or two of driftwood. This will lower a high pH naturally.

Just a couple of ideas to consider.

B


----------



## GeToChKn (Apr 15, 2011)

BBradbury said:


> Hello M...
> 
> You're making things much too complicated, I think. You don't need to turn things into a chemistry lesson. The vast majority of aquarium fish will adapt to the majority of public tap water. You don't need to age the tap water, put in the water treatment and make sure the new water is close to or a little warmer than the tank water. Your fish will appreciate new water that's a little warmer.
> 
> ...


Here you are pitching that again, when we're dealing with shrimp. Some will NOT adapt to different waters and die. Some will live but never breed. Certain shrimp need certain water. There is no way around it. Put some Bee shrimp in 5pH water, they will thrive. Put in some Neocardina species and more than likely they will all die. Put Sulwasi shrimp in there, watch them. Put Neo's or sulwasi's in a 8pH tank, they'll do great. Put Bee shrimp in there and watch them probably die. Tigers like it somewhere in between.

Aging tap water lets the gasses gas off and the pH get to it's true value, so it's always good to age to get an idea of the water you are adding. Warmer than tank water, not good for shrimp. Cooler is better as it can help indicate breeding and get them molting.

Sorry but don't try and translate whats good for fish, is good for shrimp if you don't keep shrimp and don't know.


----------



## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*Water Chemistry & Shrimp*

Hello G...

I have kept Ghost shrimp with my "Livebears" and Corydoras. The tap water wasn't aged, just treated with the standard chemical to remove the additives the municipal water people put in it so we can drink it. The replacment water has always been a little warmer than the current tank water, and a little standard aquarium salt added to keep the "Livebearers" happy.

B


----------



## GeToChKn (Apr 15, 2011)

BBradbury said:


> Hello G...
> 
> I have kept Ghost shrimp with my "Livebears" and Corydoras. The tap water wasn't aged, just treated with the standard chemical to remove the additives the municipal water people put in it so we can drink it. The replacment water has always been a little warmer than the current tank water, and a little standard aquarium salt added to keep the "Livebearers" happy.
> 
> B


10 cent ghost shrimp are a lot more hardy than a $50 Taiwan Bee shrimp or $30 a piece CRS SSS+. In my fish tanks, I don't bother testing ph/gh/kh or anything, dump in some water and done.  With shrimp it's different though, and you do need to pay attention to these things.


----------



## MochaLatte (Nov 19, 2011)

Well I finally was able to test the PH in the tap water that has been sitting on the counter. It tested out at 7.6 KH is still 3. I don't understand as I know for a fact the PH will drop to 5 over a period of time.


----------



## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

Perfect, 7.4-7.6 should be where it balances to, so that means your measuring stick works. :fish:

Have you tested the kH in your tank? Does it remain at 3? If it is used up for some reason it might explain the pH dive.

This happens rarely, but certain plants can under certain circumstances (high light, no CO2 injection) get their carbon fix from the kH of the water, and then the pH can go down/crash.


----------



## MochaLatte (Nov 19, 2011)

The PH dives even in tanks with only water and a sponge filter and cheapo lighting.

I'm going to run a test with my spare 5 gallon tank. I'm going to fill it with tap water and run an air stone in it and see how long it takes for the PH to crash if it even does. Then will test the KH.


----------



## wicca27 (May 3, 2009)

sounds like a good start. i have kinda the same thing going on in one of my tanks too. been set up a yr now and its dropping to a ph of 6. there is nothing in the tank to make it drop. now i do have miracle grow organic potting mix under a sand cap but have that in other tanks as well. they all test at ph 7.6 but for some reason this one tank drops lower. my kh in all tanks is 2 and gh in all is 7 and that is out of 17 tanks


----------

