how does water pH affect goldfish?

Answer 1

Water quality conditions are issues that need to be taken seriously. It is necessary to check not only the pH level, but the amount of ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates to maintain a proper balance for your fish. When putting tab water into your tank, you must remember to dechlorinate it first. I recommend using a declorinating chemical available at your local pet store. It's also necessary that you eliminate all the toxins in the water that can be equally harmful to your fish. There are bottled chemicals on the market that remove all with one shot. i.e., the ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, chlorine, and chloramines from fresh or saltwater, without interfering with the biological cycle. I like to use Kordon AmQuel+. It costs between $12-$14 for a 16 oz. bottle. Only 1 tsp. (5ml) of AmQuel+ is needed per each 10 gallons of water.

New tanks- Ammonia is a problem when setting up a new tank. There is not the well-established bacteria present that would help in removing the ammonia. A tank will, over several months, begin to develop beneficial bacteria (Nitrosomonas) which will automatically break down this toxic ammonia into the somewhat less toxic nitrite. This process, however, is usually not sufficient to eliminate all of the ammonia, although it is of some benefit. Using this beneficial bacteria to its best advantage can be done by adding a biological filter. A new tank will not have developed any of these beneficial bacteria, and this is why it is so important to allow your tank to sit for at least 2 weeks before introducing fish (although it can take as many as five weeks for the bacteria to form in significant numbers). Eliminating all the toxic chemicals with the AmQuel+ will maybe be sufficient if you are in a hurry to set up your aquarium ASAP.

Test Kits are a very important step in good aquarium management. I recommend investing a little money in these. You can monitor the water's condition and prevent many health ailments among your fish.
PH is an issue to keep under watch (especially if your tank is crowded). It is measured on a scale of 1 to 14 to measure the acidity or alkalinity of your tank's water. Goldfish thrive at the 7.2 - 7.6 range (your pH testing kit will come with a colored chart to follow). You will want to keep the pH levels in line or you could have dead fish. Goldfish are able to stand variations in pH much more so than other fish, but you should make an effort to maintain their water in this range. Over time, the water in your tank will become more acidic. Being aware of this and doing partial water changes is generally all that is needed to maintain the pH.

PH too low results in acidic conditions. This can be caused from too much fish waste in the water (this is less likely to occur in a well-established tank). At pH levels below 7.2, ammonia is ionized to ammonium and is less toxic to the fish. Acidic water can cause your fish to weaken. It is best to do routine water changes to keep from having this type of problem. Symptoms: anorexia, excess slime, isolation, fish resting on the bottom of tank, and then finally blood streaking in the fins and death (known as Acidosis).

PH too high results in alkaline conditions. Ammonia is more likely to be toxic when the pH levels are high. Symptoms: Fish will produce excess slime, and gasp at the surface. Losses can be severe. Once this takes place (Alkalosis), it is hard to reverse.

Answer 2

Goldfish, like every other living species, maintains a certain pH in its body to survive. Change the pH by a little bit and the biological processes change completely.

Answer 3

Hey there. Goldfishj are pretty tough, but pH levels to high or to low will kill any fish. Trust me, I learned the hard way, and it cost me a bunch of money. Look it up on the net. Try key words like fish, fresh water fish, thats where I found loads of info. Good luck, with that, and if you ever try salt water, do a lot of home work first. D

Answer 4

pH is a scale. Acid to one end, base to the other. In the middle (7) is neutral. If a gold fish were in water at either end of the scale it would die.

Probably between 6 and 8 and it would do fine, but move the solution of water toward either end and it would become more toxic or poisionous to your fish.

Answer 5

Not sure, but from my experience, Goldfish are pretty tough and can live in just about any conditions- except over chlorinated water...

Answer 6

they're living things of course they react different to different ph levels

Answer 7

Acidity of the water, probly effects them alot...