Help! What's happened to the tap water?

Help!!

So lots of debris were building up in Python's tank. I decided to do a 100% wc. Put Python in a cup, refilled the tank, conditioned it and was waiting for it to come back to temp. Decided to test the Ph and almost screamed! The water tested off the high range chart at 8.8!! I've never seen a purple so dark! So I tested the tap water and got the same result! The water Python is in currently is in the 6.0-6.4 range. So why the sudden change in tap Ph? I tested bottled water and it's the same Ph as Python's water. Can I safely use bottled water? Is betta water just a scam? I hate keeping Python in the little cup.

 

You can use bottled water but you need to add a declorinater, as far as I know that's all you need to do.

 

Is betta water just bottled water with a fancy label? And which would be better, distilled, spring, purified or another kind?

 

What is your normal tap water pH? I would test it again later today to see if has come down. Bottled water will do in a pinch. Sounds like a problem at the water plant. I would call your water supply and find out what's going on as that water is borderline dangerous.

 

The tap water tests at 8.8 (it could be higher but that's the highest the chart goes)

 

Assuming this is a random pH spike in your tap water... For today I would probably mix the bottled water and tap water. I would then do a super slow reintroduction, with him in a bag, maybe add 1/4 or 1/8 cup of water every 15-30 mI Utes over a couple of hours until the pH of his water and the pH of the tank water are within .5.
But really I would call others for help. CindiL, jdhef, Aquaphobia. Good luck.

 

Threads have been merged, please only create one thread per topic.

 

Threads have been merged, please only create one thread per topic.

sorry about that! wasn't thinking straight

Assuming this is a random pH spike in your tap water... For today I would probably mix the bottled water and tap water. I would then do a super slow reintroduction, with him in a bag, maybe add 1/4 or 1/8 cup of water every 15-30 mI Utes over a couple of hours until the pH of his water and the pH of the tank water are within .5.
But really I would call others for help. @CindiL, @jdhef, @Aquaphobia. Good luck.

I don't have a bag, would a cup work? or would Petsmart maybe give me a bag for free?

Update: the water Python is currently in
the water (purified, conditioned water) in the empty tank
and the tap water, straight from the sink

sorry about the back to back posts again! I'll try not to do it again

 

You haven't answered question of what is your normal tap pH? It's kind of important to know the answer to this question.

You can use bottled water but you need to add a declorinater, as far as I know that's all you need to do.

Bottled water doesn't have a chlorine residual in it.

 

You haven't answered question of what is your normal tap pH? It's kind of important to know the answer to this question.

before today the tap water was the same as Python's water Ph, I'm assuming. I had a weeks worth of water pre-conditioned and it ran out today

 

How about a ziplock bag? My worry with the cup is that it may insulate against temperature adjustment. But you know best.

 

How about a ziplock bag? My worry with the cup is that it may insulate against temperature adjustment. But you know best.

This is the cup (sorry Python!) It's for use with a Magic Bullet But I do agree that a ziplock bag would allow the temp to adjust better

How would I safely transfer Python to the ziplock?

 

I definitely would not use your tap water if it is normally in the 6.0-6.5 range.

 

I definitely would not use your tap water if it is normally in the 6.0-6.5 range.

I refilled Python's tank with purified bottled water only. It's a different Ph but not by much. I'll gradually adjust Python but I also have to leave in about 15 minutes so Python might have to stay in the cup until I'm home tonight. This is all just really bad timing. I was planning to buy a 1 gallon bowl and I'll fill that with purified water. I'm also going to put a small filter made from a vase, gravel, airline tubing, air stone, and a sponge in the 1 gallon. (I have more details on this filter on my 10 gallon update thread) It's not ideal but it's only temporary

 

You still need to call your water supply company. Going from a pH of 6 to a pH of 9 or higher is dangerous for their customers. And at a pH of 9 water can actually cause chemical burns.

 

As long as the water is not distilled or RO it should be ok for now. I would still acclimate him. You can a little water out of his cup every 5 minutes for about 20-25 minutes and put some of the new water in with him (same temp right?) and then move him.

 

As long as the water is not distilled or RO it should be ok for now. I would still acclimate him. You can a little water out of his cup every 5 minutes for about 20-25 minutes and put some of the new water in with him (same temp right?) and then move him.

Just left the house, won't be home until tonight. So the temp should definitely be the same by then. Today was not a good day for this to happen

 

Bottled water doesn't have a chlorine residual in it.

I went full stupid I was thinking of tap water from town supply, I'm not sure why I got confused by that. Thank you for correcting me.

 

Python is out of the cup and back in her tank. I have some purified water and I'll be getting more tomorrow. I'll also test the tap water again tomorrow.

Can someone explain acidic and alkaline? it's always confused me. I just know 6.0 is drastically different from 8.8

 

What information are you looking for? At an acidic ph your nitrifying bacteria all but stop reproducing and doing their job which is not a good thing. A ph of 6.0 is too low not only for the bacteria but for most fish. On the other hand most fish will do just fine with a ph from the high 6's to the low 8's. The nitrifying bacteria actually thrive in more alkaline water vs acidic water.

They key with fish is to keep stable parameters and not strive for a perfect ph.

 

it seems to stay at about 6.4 (well, at least before today) I'd go back to using tap water but would be concerned the Ph could fluctuate again. Purified water will get expensive pretty quickly. Is there anything that I can be or, more importantly, should be doing about the Ph? (reading from about an hour ago in the tank using purified water was around 6.4) would spring water be safe to use? Is there anything I can do about the tap water Ph? It would save a lot of money if I could use tap water again. (sorry for my rambling!)

 

Betta's are fine in a ph from upper 6's to low 8's. My last betta lived for over 3 years and my ph is 8.2. Its more important that the ph is stable from week to week.

If your ph has consistently been lower then its probably just a temporary thing with your water supply. Just keep your eye on it and test frequently before the next water change. Spring water if from a consistent source can work out fine too.

 

Just don't use distilled water because all the mI earls, etc have been removed. Hopefully your tap water will return to normal quickly. Thank goodness you checked!

 

Just don't use distilled water because all the mI earls, etc have been removed. Hopefully your tap water will return to normal quickly. Thank goodness you checked!

it was by chance that I did check! I wasn't really planning on doing a 100% wc yesterday but I'm so glad I did! Otherwise I would have pretreated a week's worth of water and not had a second thought about it. Always testing the tap now!

 

I think it has always been there, but overtime the ph changed in the tank. Mine is between 8.8-9.5 at tap. Either way, you should measure you kh. If its like mine, you have to manipulate your water.

To make your life easier. I would just buy nestle pure life gallons and seachem equilibrium + fresh trace and neutral regulator (or alkaline buffer) and follow those instructions. Do those for water changes.

Alternatively you can hope he can adapt and just put in alkaline buffer in your tap + conditioner(if your kh is low)

 

how much would all this cost? I've spent a lot on this fish (or rather my mom has) and I would like to cut costs wherever I can.

 

I don't think that is necessary at this point

 

well, neutral regulator would be the simplest and you do not need to use a water conditioner with it. So that is the cheapest way, and easiest, if you do not have plants.

Just when you dose follow the directions, do not overdose... Unless you have a TDS meter. And continue your water changes, just as you normally would. It would not reduce that, in spite of seeing the PH is unchanged.

9.00 should last at least one month.



Keep in mind that if you have an algae eater, that it is going to inhibit that growth that it needs.

 

is that sold at Petsmart or Petco?


Also: Update: just got 5 gallons of purified water. It'll fill the 2.5 tank and hopefully last me for water changes for a while. Hopefully the tap Ph goes back down soon

 

well wait, don't put him in there without putting other stuff in the water too.... however you can drink that.

And yes it is sold at petsmart or petco

You can also use the API version, but I don't think it has a water conditioner in it. Just make sure you put those in tap water

OR you are using seachem fresh trace and seachem equilibrium with the purified water + neutral regulator. This is the healthiest for the fish but the most work and you may not notice any difference in your fishes health.

I was thinking, you can probably get away with using half purified water + half tap water + only the Neutral regulator. This is in between.

 

You do not not want to use purified water as mentioned by a couple people above because it lacks minerals. How about mixing your tap with it 50/50 which will lower the super high and temporary (we hope) ph but add minerals back in. Spring water you could have used but purified water is distilled or RO etc and is ok to drink but not ok for fish to live in as the minerals have been removed from it during purification.

You can safely raise your ph in your tank if its under 6.5 by mixing in 1/8tsp of baking soda with a little tank water and adding it to her tank a little bit at a time over 30 minutes (because its such a small tank). After an hour goes by test the ph again.

I think its important you find out what your Gh/Kh are unless you know. You can take your water sample to the local pet store and ask them to check those numbers for you. Write down the actual numbers.

I think uncclewis you're assuming that her KH is low which we don't know. Her tap ph is normally not high like it is currently, this, to my understanding is a new and unique situation.

Her ph didn't fall, it is that her tap ph rose significantly she said.

 

I recommend what @CindiL does, use half tap + half purified water. Neutral regulator would keep your ph at 7, which in such a small container can swing more quickly.

Plus it would ensure it is consistent when you do complete water changes.

It would ensure that the ph is closer to what you fish likes.

Plus it also conditions the water.

Plus it reduces algae growth

Just do not overdose it, your fish likes soft water and if you overdose, then it not be able to take in some elements from the water.

 

thought I heard someone say purified was fine! oops! I'll mix it with the tap water. Python is in Purified water now(conditioned with Prime) but I'm currently not home. Will she be okay temporarily?

 

hmm, awe... Perhaps... right now she will be fighting a lot of water going into her body, and then also using her element reserves... The Ph can definitely swing in there, too- because there is nothing holding the ph anywhere. But long term, it is bad for sure. Just get to it as soon as you get home, if sooner if you can.

purified water is great!... if you add seachem equilibrium and fresh trace and some kh. like neutral regulator.

 

won't be home until tonight I feel like a terrible fish mom. But if I mixed half purified/tap that would replace all the minerals right? I almost bought spring water too... darn it

 

Spring water is still too low too, and it would not have much kh at all. However if you had to chose that is better if it is the only thing you are using...

half mixed purified should + neutral regulator, is best. if you are ever concerned about elements you could add seachem fresh trace (which is a mix that is ideal for fish- which is definitely not what our tap water is), but if you feed her a varied diet- she should be just fine.

 

how varied? I tried freeze-dried bloodworms but they make her poop look weird(gross, I know) so she only gets those a couple times a month. and I have 2 different brands of pellets(Aqueon and Omega One)

Also, would a fish-in or fishless cycle in the 2.5 be best at this point?

And just to clarify, if I mixed tap+purified I just need to buy Neutral Regulator?

 

yes, but if you are worried you can use a dose of seachem fresh trace. Yeah see different types of foods will contain the trace elements, so when you put it in the tank it gets disbursed. Plus she will use them when eating them. This assumes there are some in there already though..

I use bloodworms + pellets + algae wafers + flakes, for all of my fish. It doesn't make my fishes poop look weird. Odd.

If you add tetra safe start then you can put him in there right away, just keep an eye on the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate and change the water when it gets high. I have noticed that seachem fresh trace greatly accelerates my cycling (when adding tetra safe start or seachem stability).

 

I fed her 2 Aqueon pellets this morning before I left. She fasted part of saturday and all of Sunday and she got a pellet on Monday(I read somewhere that helps their digestive system) (Usually it's just saturday and sunday but I accidentally fed her Saturday so I extended it.)

Unfortunately TSS is out of my budget. But I do have Stability, would that work for a fish-in cycle? And I'll be out of town for a few days during the last week of this month(which really worries me, I was hoping to have her in a cycled, filtered tank by then!)

 

Well, I think so.. stability should be fine. But if it is not working, I would buy fresh trace because either the bottle is bad [exchange it] OR there is something lacking for the bacteria (could be CO2- should not be an issue if there is a fish in there, carbon- should not because you are feeding, oxygen- if so the fish is dead, ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate [these would be here if it is failing and so they would have these] or elements- those are the options).

They do have temp and ph preferences, but these are generally within tolerances of the fish.

However it is just failing by a tiny bit, like just small amounts, then that is kinda expected because it takes a little bit of time. However, bacteria given those conditions replicate extremely fast (days to billions).