littlejsm

I am having problems with a low pH in my tank. All other parimeters are zero/normal but the pH is sitting about 6.0 to 6.3 ish and I just cant get it sorted. I haven't a test kit of my own (ordered and on it's way) so going to LFS daily to check it. Have now lost 4 guppy's and a skunk cory (didn't last 'the week'). Haven't got the tap water checked yet will do that tomorrow. Any ideas of what I can do?

Mike19

Im kind of clueless, the only thing i can think of is PH up although you dont have any acess to it. where im from i think the ph is around 7.0 (Tap Water).

littlejsm

The pH of tap water is about the same here too - supposedly. I really dont know why it is so low...

sirdarksol

I'm going to throw a guess out here: Do you live near a peat bog? That would explain the ph.

That's not horribly low. Actually, it's ideal for a few types of fish. You may want to look at keeping things like tetras, which live in water like that. In fact, I've been desperately trying to get water like that, so I can try to breed some of my fish.
Otherwise, you can get products like this that add minerals to the water. It will up the pH a bit, and add a buffer, which will keep the pH steady (which is the most important).

littlejsm

I have just tested our tap water and it is 7. Go figure.... The pH is still around 6.0 to 6.3in the tank, all other parims normal. I guess this is all part of the mini cycle I forced on the tank with changing the filter pad...

jdhef

Cycling shouldn't affect ph, as far as I know (but I could be wrong). Do you have any driftwood in your tank by any chance? Driftwood will lower your ph.

sirdarksol

Driftwood, rotting plant matter (which is pretty much what driftwood is) or an excess of fish waste could all lower the pH if your water supply isn't buffered.

soldieroffortune1974

Good link sirdarsol. The Seachem Equilibrium is a good water buffer adding lots of trace elements as well as good buffering capacity.