What is the best way you've found to get the Ph level down in a freshwater aquarium?

Question

I've tried the Ph down you can buy at the pet store but it doesn't seem to do any good.

Answer 1

Normally it isn't the PH levels that kill fish, it is usually drastic drops or booms in water parameters that kills the fish. It is alot better to have a high constant ph rather than a constantly moving low ph. So as long as you can keep the ph level where it is, the fish will be fine, it is also recomended not to drastically lower the levels while fish are in the tank, or they will die. Hope that helped.

Answer 2

I found this link
http://www.aquahobby.com/articles/e_adjusting_pH.php


And here is the most informative paragraph.
Lowering the pH is a more extensive task. If you simply add a product such as “pH Down” this will not work. Your buffering system will simply very quickly raise the pH back to its original state. You must remove the buffering ions from your tap water so that you may lower the pH. The best way to accomplish this is to purchase a Tap Water Purifier unit. These units filter the water from your faucet using an ion exchange resin. The resulting water is free of the salts and minerals which buffer your water. Aquarium Pharmaceuticals makes a nice compact Tap Water Purifier specifically designed for aquarium use. This is the only reliable method I know of to reduce the buffering ability of your aquarium water and to lower pH. Without purified water, you may be able to lower your pH for a day or two, but without first removing the buffering ions your pH will climb again to natural levels. This fluctuation in pH is much worse than having the wrong pH to begin with. As an additional option, I should mention that many hobbyists use peat to soften their water. By running peat in your power filter, or by placing a layer of peat under your gravel, you will soften your water. This technique can work well, but is more complicated, less predictable, and probably best avoided by the inexperienced hobbyist.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Dirty water,but seriously,try setting up a filter that contains a mesh bag of peat moss,do the change slowly,it will turn the water tea colored,but if you are trying to raise Amazon fishes or Killies they will like this just fine. You will need to experiment with how often to change out the peat moss,and the pet store prepackaged kind is quite expensive,but gardencenters have peat moss that may not contain stuff that will kill fish. Experiment on cheap fish first. This will bring the ph down slowly an safely. Another way to go would be reverse osmosis machinery,it will yield water that you will have to rebuild to whatever specifications you need,expensive,but very effective. The other way out is to keep fish that will thrive in high ph water,African cichlids,Mexican and Central American livebearers,or saltwater,ph 8.3. But forget about anything but the hadiest of plants. Hope this helps,good luck. PeeTee

Answer 4

As you have found it is very difficult to effectively modify the pH of water.

I recommend that people never try to change the pH of the tank unless they have a very specific need, such as wanting to breed discus.

Fish are very sensitive to pH changes in a tank and it is far better for the fish to have a stable pH, even if it isn't "optimal" for the fish.

You don't say what your pH is but the vast majority of fish available in stores today will do fine in virtually any hard water tank.

Answer 5

If you were using the product actually called pH Down, it won't lower below 7.0. To get lower than that Seachem makes a product called Acid Buffer that will lower pretty far. If you're needing to go below 5.0 (you shouldn't unless you're keeping discus), they make a product called Discuss Buffer that will lower it even further. Tetra makes a product called Blackwater Extract that will help keep the pH down. Make sure when you are testing pH that you use a test kit instead of litmus; litmus just tells whether it's acidic, basic, or neutral, but doesn't tell you how much.

Answer 6

Nitrate - replace extra helpful extra helpful water. objective for a component under 30ppm. Nitrite - The water adjustments will additionally help this quickly, as nicely the easy certainty that it exhibits an difficulty with your filtering or nitrogen cycle. because of the fact the nitrate is extreme, that would desire to component out that the tank is cycled, yet in step with threat does now no longer have sufficient filtering, or too many fish. Nitrite might desire to all be converted into nitrate with the aid of technique of the filter out gadget, then you definately definately do away with that with the aid of technique of fixing the water. be useful the ammonia component as nicely, it would desire to be 0, extremely with the pH that top. A extreme pH makes ammonia extra helpful poisonous to fish. Hardness / alkalinity - it relatively is delivered approximately with the aid of technique of you having "no longer person-friendly" faucet water. extremely some dissolved minerals. there is now no longer some thing you're able to upload to restoration this, you want to take some thing out of the water. person-friendly ideas-set is to be conscious opposite Osmosis filtered water. in case you combine R/O and faucet water at say 50/50 ratio, you gets water with a 150ppm hardness. Or in spite of ratios to get the hardness you like. in case you bypass down this music, you want to combination each and each and each and all the water you make the main of indoors the tank to shop matters good. Ph - it is extreme because of the fact the water isn't person-friendly, the dissolved minerals are alkaline and bring the pH up. don't be tempted to be conscious products like pH down, it is barely battery acid. the resultant water will although be no longer person-friendly, in basic terms now it is have been given battery acid in it, and the pH wont be good as nicely. a extra helpful useful determination is to choose fish that particularly desire no longer person-friendly water. African Cichlids or Mollies are difficulty-loose ideas there. Ian

Answer 7

Don't worry about your pH, concentrate on your waste levels. Don't use chemicals to control parameters in your tank.