Really high ph??

[fatfatfish]

hi, I am new to this ...although that may be obvious seeing as I am in the begginners thread...but I have a question about ph..
I kept fish a LOT when I was younger (I am now 26) and this my first tank that I have set up in a long long time. I found out about the nitrogen cycling and everything..which I am in the processes of doing. I am about one week in. Everything is going well. I have a 9 gallon tank with a few small tiger barbs. I have been testing, and everything is going as planned with the cycling..but something I have noticed is that my ph is super high! Between 8.0-8.2. This seems very high to me, but I have no idea why this would be. I am scared for my fish and am wondering what I can do to bring the ph down. My tank water is from the tap (dechlorinated). Why would this be happening?Thanks to everyone in advance.

[emc7]

If your fish are happy and healthy, please don't mess with the pH. It is very easy to kill fish by dropping acid (pH down is HCl) in their water. pH varies with the water source. Water from wells where there are minerals in the ground (such as limestone) often have high pH and hardness. Since your water changes will be from the same water source, if you alter the pH of the tank, the water changes will change it again. Aquarium fish slowly adapt to wide variety of pH and hardness levels, but a rapidly changing pH can kill and will definitely stress your fish.

[JustOneMore20]

That pH isn't extremely high. Most fish can adjust to just about any pH. When you try to change it, that is when you run into problems, so I suggest just leaving it alone. Chances are the fish you get from LFS are in the same pH as you have, if the LFS is close.

I would suggest getting a larger tank sooner rather than later. The Biorb tanks are NOT good for Tiger Barbs. Even a 10g rectangle tank is too small for Tiger Barbs. Go for atleast a 3ft 30g tank.

[The Tick]

Greetings, chum! Your question has been pretty well answered, but I always like to get as many opinions as possible, so I'll offer mine, which basically completely agrees with what's been said above. Unless you are keeping a very specialized and delicate type of fish like discus, and even with them there is much debate as to their ability to adapt, pH stability is far more important than hitting the "ideal" pH range for a fish. I'm also going to have to agree with Kristin about upgrading that tank. BioOrbs look mega cool, but if you're a fish in one of things, man oh man does it suck! When your barbs turn in to strappin' young lads, they'll sure appreciate the upgrade!