pH Problem

[B. Flaherty]

Hello all, I am new here and before I ask my question, you probably would like to know about my tank.

It's a 75g freshwater. Right now it is stocked with 2 Marble Mollies, 2 Bala Sharks, and a Cherry Barb. There used to be another Cherry Barb and Two Emperor Tetras, but the Emperor Tetras died suddenly, and I had been struggling to figure out why and that's why I came to this site. My mother (who the tank is for) and I made a terrible mistake and put some seashells in the tank. I'm pretty sure that they slowly caused the pH to rise well above the liking of the Emperor Tetras. Everyone in the tank now is doing fine and the seashells have since been removed.

My question however is, what's the most effective way to lower the pH of the tank? First I tried Petco's suggestion, which was a powder pH neutralizer, which doesn't seem to have done any good whatsoever. I have now begun to do water changes and have done two so far, each about 25%-30% of the water.

All other readings in my tank are fine. Any and all help would be much appreciated

[Sea-Agg2009]

Did they tell you to use pH buffer? That is the only powder stuff I could think of. If that's the case, (excuse the redneck metaphor), it's like closing the gate after the cows get out. pH buffer does exactly that, buffers the pH. Basically, it will keep it from going up or down, but once it is up there, it can't fix your problem.

Link

This is the stuff I would use.

[B. Flaherty]

The product is Neutral Regulator by Seachem. Says it is supposed to adjust a high or low pH to 7.0. I put in as much as the directions prescribed, and there has been no effect. I even did a side test in a small bucket of aquarium water, and it had no effect there. The pH of my tap water is what I would like the pH of the tank to be.

Thanks for the help.

[Peppee]

If your tap water is at the right pH, then I would do 25% water changes every day until your tank is at the right pH.

[GoodMike]

stop worrying about ph. A slow ph raise isnt going to hurt anything, and the shells wont raise it much, especially if you are doing waterchanges on a regular basis. I would bet that something else caused your tetras to die off. Again, stop worrying about ph so much. A stable ph is MUCH better on your fish than one that varies because you keep dumping chemicals into the water.

[emc7]

Once you put a buffer in, it gets harder to move the pH. It may take a really large water change (80%) to budge it. But since mollies actually prefer hard, alkaline water, and your other fish are fine, I say leave it alone, it will go back eventually as you do regular water changes.

How long has the tank been set up? Nitrite spike are more likely to kill suddenly that a gradually increased pH.

[B. Flaherty]

So if I want to add other fish and I acclimate them to the water, will they be okay with the high pH? It is up around 8 while my tap water is closer to 7.

[justintrask]

I wouldnt recommend adding any fish until you test all of the levels: nitrate, nitrite, ammonia. There may be a reason the fish died off that you aren't seeing with a pH test

[B. Flaherty]

Originally Posted by B. Flaherty

All other readings in my tank are fine. Any and all help would be much appreciated

I have tested everything and am using the API Master Freshwater testing kit. I have even taken the water to Petco and had them test it. pH is my only problem in the tank at the moment.

[justintrask]

Well if your pH is at 8, it all depends on which type of fish you want.

Let us know and we can tell you

[B. Flaherty]

Well therein lies my problem, but I guess my mother will have to make some sacrifices.

We really would like to add some Angelfish. However, I believe the pH is too high for them. Hence why I would like to bring it down.

[emc7]

What is your tap water's hardness (gH, kH) or TDS. Most water systems buffer their water to 7.0, but whether it will drift up or down from there depends on the hardness.

If your water is very hard, it will take a lot of "acid buffer" or 'regulator' to keep the pH down and you will most likely get a cloudy tank as well. Or you can use RO or DI water in a blend with your tap water.

If your tap water is soft, then you just need a huge water change in the tank. But be careful not to shock your fish.

Angels can live in 8, but they prob. won't breed successfully. Look at gouramis and central American and African cichlids.

[GoodMike]

angels wont care...they will breed in nails. Ive bred discus at 8.0 ph, and angels breed in our tap water here which is about 7.8. Relax...they will be fiiiiine

[B. Flaherty]

Will gouramis and central American and African cichlids be compatible with the other tank inhabitants?

2 Bala Sharks
2 Marble Mollies
1 Cherry barb

So angelfish will be fine as long as I acclimate them to the water slowly? Depending on the pH of the tank I purchased them from?

Thank you all for all the help.

P.S. will most likely be getting more cherry barbs so that they can school.

[Sea-Agg2009]

gouramis, probably. any cichlids...no. Bala sharks are very docile, as well as the others in the tank, so gourami's should work. Cichlids are exclusive, and can't be mixed with anything else.

As for the angel fish, just use a drip method to acclimate them. Maybe 2 or 3 hours should be fine. As said before, angelfish are tough little guys. If my mother can keep them, then they can stand pretty much anything.

[Obsidian]

I know the Gourami will be fine in there, but I am not sure about the Cichlids since I do not know much about them.

I have a Ph of 8.2 in my tank and my fish who "like" a Ph of closer to 6.8 are fine. The only ones I have had problems with are my Rams, which I will solve by not getting any more of them and find a more appropriate match.

I also have to be more careful about how I acclimate to the tank. I forgot to drip with my Cories and lost half inside 2-3 weeks. They can handle the Ph okay but the sudden change stresses them out which can cause other problems. So that is the biggest thing to worry about with high Ph.

I test the water in the bag and then rise it slowly accordingly. I have a little bucket/container thing that I use for that purpose because it allows me to add more water over a longer period of time than the bag does.

[trashion]

If I were you, I'd lose the Balas. They get very large (1foot+) and do best in schools of 5+. Meaning a VERY large tank, as they are skittish little guys that like to dart back and forth. That opens up your stocking options a wee bit more.