dfrap

The pH in my tank water right now is reading 6.0 on my API master test kit. I tested the water from my tap (city water) just because I was curious if it was low, and it read 7.0. I use Prime when I do water changes to take out the chlorine, chloramine & ammonia (says on the bottle that it does not affect ph). Also, I have AMMO-CARB in my filter cartridge. Does anyone know why my tank ph could be low? Has anyone else ever come across this? So far my guppy is fine, so I'm not going to worry too much. And I don't use any other chemicals (to alter ph, etc.). I just read that most kinds of fish prefer a ph to be around 7.0 and I do plan to get more fish in the future. If anyone has any clues to this, I'd appreciate it.

Gunnie

Don't worry about the ph in the tank as far as what your fish prefers unless it's extremely high or low. What is a concern though, is there's a big difference in what it is out of your tap and what it drops down to in the tank. This could be extremely dangerous to your fish if you do a large water change, because the ph would change too drastically in the tank. What you probably need to be doing is small frequent water changes instead of larger ones, or "age" your water by placing it in a bucket or barrel overnight with a powerhead or airstone in it. Your ph changes because it "gasses out" after being added to the tank, so when you age your water, you gas it out before adding it to the tank, and the ph should remain the same. You will also have to put a heater in the bucket or barrell so the temp. difference is also not too drastic.

dfrap

Thanks for your reply to this one too