How to keep PH stable?

Hello! in a normal day without rain my tap water comes with a ph of 7.5-7.8 and kh of 5 but when starts to rain (I live in a tropical country) the ph drops to 7! I want to know if a can add baking soda to the water for the water chance to keep PH stable! I think but not sure that baking soda bring the PH to 8.2 so that will be the stable ph! what do you think friends? hope you can help me thanks

 

Hi, welcome to the forum

So you're saying your tap water ph falls to 7.0 when its been raining? Does the KH fall as well? Assuming your KH is still at 5, I wouldn't worry about doing water changes up to 40% with the difference in PH. You can add baking soda to the new water if you want to but I don't know if its necessary. About 1/2 tsp per 20 gallon of new water.

 

Yes I check and KH also drops from 5 to 3! so I don't need to worry rigth?

 

I wouldn't worry but I think I would add the baking soda when that happens to keep your PH stable.

 

Do you know your usual ph? Note that ph is higher when it comes out of the tap, then it normally drops over a period of 24-48 hours. You might want to leave some tap water out for a day, test it, then maybe test it again after another day just to be extra sure what it is. Mine is naturally acidic, and to get it up to about neutral I have been using crushed coral aggregate (I got it at petco, in the saltwater section, though it's fine for freshwater too). I put some in a little sachet made out of filter media mesh, and it has kept my ph remarkably stable. I personally prefer this method because it stays in the tank, but baking soda does help if you want to take that route. Either way, monitor it regularly!

 

Do you know your usual ph? Note that ph is higher when it comes out of the tap, then it normally drops over a period of 24-48 hours. You might want to leave some tap water out for a day, test it, then maybe test it again after another day just to be extra sure what it is. Mine is naturally acidic, and to get it up to about neutral I have been using crushed coral aggregate (I got it at petco, in the saltwater section, though it's fine for freshwater too). I put some in a little sachet made out of filter media mesh, and it has kept my ph remarkably stable. I personally prefer this method because it stays in the tank, but baking soda does help if you want to take that route. Either way, monitor it regularly!

In glad coral has worked so well for you. It helps so many people in these type of situations. Just wanted to mention that PH often is lower when it comes out of taps especially where well water is the source. This is due to CO2 in the water that depresses PH. As it off gasses the PH rises to its natural state. My own is a good example. It comes out at 6.8 and rises to about 8.0.

 

Is that what I said? *facepalm* what I meant was, acidity drops over time. In the case of OP that may be a good thing as rainwater is slightly acidic. I'm in New York (Delaware water supply), and our tap water is awesome, but it's on the soft side. Hence my need for buffers. I'm actually not sure what was making my ph drop in the aquarium, but it was really low, like possibly below 6. The coral works wonders!

 

PH will drop in the aquarium due to the nitrogen cycle (which is acidic) if your KH/alkalinity is too low/soft. Coral increases it, increases KH and PH which is why it works so well.