how do you bring Ph levels down in a fish tank?

Answer 1

The first question is why? If your fish are doing well in your tank don;t fool with the pH, no matter what any website, book or pet shop employee may say is the "best" pH for your fish. Most all fish will do very well in a huge range of pH values and trying to change the pH is in most cases far worse on your fish than simply leaving it "too high".

Remember, changing it in the tank will majorly stress the fish and assuming you get it to the value you want without killing the fish, you then must change the pH in the new water every single time you do your weekly water changes. Also, everytime you get new fish, you will have to slowly and carefully change that water to the pH of your tank before you can add those fish. Major hassles, lots of stress onthe fish and tons of chances for errors. Unless it's critical for the fish you are keeping, don't do it.

That said, if you find for some strannge reason that you simply must alter the pH of the tank, adding driftwood or peatmoss is the best and safest way to lower the pH. Use the driftwood as decor or add a small amount of peatmoss tot he filter in a filter bag or in a bag made from a piece of old nylons. This will drop the pH is a slow and controlled manner that will limit the stress on the fish.

MM

Answer 2

What is your pH level exactly? I doubt pH had anything to do with it and more to do with stocking levels. If you put four tetras and one danio in at once the biological filter will not be able to cope with the level of ammonia and hence it creates a spike in ammonia; which is toxic to fish. The reason I doubt pH had any major role in this is because danios would be the most likely to withstand high levels of pH as opposed pH sensitive neon tetras. Also consider the fact that danios feel better in a shoal and any amount of stress from being alone and inside a new tank could have been the determining factor in it’s death. It is also worth mentioning any container you used for storing your tested water in may have already had a high pH level if the soap/dish detergent residue wasn’t completely washed off. There are a lot of variables but I doubt pH played any major role but if you want to reduce your pH level then get your water tested again and test for the level of alkalinity. Alkalinity plays a major role in stabilizing your pH and will retard any attempts to reduce your pH level. Some pH reducer chemicals work but I personally find aquatic peat moss to be the most effective.

Answer 3

The easiest method is to put a ball of peat moss in your filter and let the water flow over and around it. The moss has to be replenished weekly to keep the pH low or it will rebound.

Why do you want to lower the pH of your water? If someone has told you that a certain fish needs a low pH, ask them if that fish has been imported directly from the wild. Most fish in the US today have been spawned and raised in local water and do not need the super low pH of their home lakes and rivers.

I have successfully raised and spawned angels (who come from pH 6.5 water in south America) in 7.4 water from my tap. The key is acclimating them to your water VERY SLOWLY!!! This doesn't mean floating the bag in your tank for 15 minutes and then dumping them in.

Here is how I acclimate a delicate, expensive fish to my water. Open the bag and roll the top down 4-5 times so there is a ring of air around the top of the bag to float the open bag in the tank. Every 10-15 minutes, take 1/4 to 1/2 cup of tank water and put into the bag. Continue doing this for AT LEAST an hour and a half. I have spent up to 3 hours acclimating very expensive fish to my water.

There is another method called the drip method where you put the fish in a container on the floor and start a siphon from your tank to the container using a length of air line tubing. Tie a knot in the tubing or use a clamp to limit the amount of water siphoning to just a drop or two per minute so it takes a long time to transfer water from the tank to the container. Keep an eye on it though, sometimes the flow increases on its' own somehow.

Answer 4

I know chemistry, but not fish. The pH scale measures acids and bases. A pH of 1 is most acidic while a pH of 14 at the other end of the scale is most basic. The neutral pH of 7 is in the middle which is what ordinary water is.

Now to neutralize the fish tank solution, I would test the pH and then add an appropriate amount of base solution to neutralize the the acid to bring the pH down to around the pH of 7 or whatever you require. This chemical reaction would produce water and a salt: I think. (I have not done chemistry in over 10 years, but it is basically correct.)

I do not have the slightest idea what kind of chemicals you should be adding to a fish tank since it is a living environment of both animals and plants. So I would advise you to contact you local pet shop or some one who specializes in selling pet fish and aquariums. I do know that different fish have different requirements and I am not an expert in this area.

Answer 5

automatic carbon in your filter and gravel vac every week