30 gallon aquarium ph level?

Question

i just restarted my fish tank and the ph level is 7.6
im getting neon tetras and they have to live in 7.0
how do i change it?

i have a bio filter and i cant waste anymore money. where can i get peat or co2? do i just breath into the water?

i just breathed into the test ph tube and it turned to 7.0 lol

where do i get driftwood?

Answer 1

7.6 should be fine for neon tetras its close enuf to 7.0 and Ive had many many fish and a lot of then had neon tetras and they were all fine in 7.6

Answer 2

The best idea is to leave it alone as long as the pH is 6.0 or higher. If it is lower than that, I would suggest a small amount of crushed coral in the filter. Maybe about 1/4 cup if that much. Once the hardness is up, the pH will stabilize at a higher level and also be easier to adjust. Remember though, this will require you to adjust and stabilize the hardness and pH of the replacement water for every water change and that can take a few days to happen. Remember too that your fish love a low pH and plants from that area should do well i a pH down to 6.0 or even a little less. Hope this helps and if I can help further drop me an email. MM

Answer 3

I agree, the fish should adjust.
CO2 is a pretty expensive way to deal with a pH problem.
Peat moss or driftwood would bring the pH down.
There are 2 articles about driftwood at petfish.net.

Products like pH Down are a temporary fix, and frankly, the bounce down, then the bounce back up are more harmful to your fish than having to adjust to a pH that is not ideal.

To understand pH and carbonate hardness, and why it is what it is, and how to keep it stable, read the article at this link-
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/june2002/chem.htm

This is a long, involved read, but it is something that every serious aquarist should understand.

Answer 4

If your tank is planted you want to steer clear of ph down or proper ph *.* altogether. These are phosphate buffers and not advised. CO2 injection will lower your PH and it is fantastic for the plants. With a DIY yeast setup you'll even spend less on it then a 500g jar of Proper Ph 7.0.

If it is not planted, planting it is worth considering as the plants can control algae and they consume the nitrates produced at the end of the nitrogen cycle (bio-cycle)

There are 2 common ways to inject CO2:
~Pressurized CO2 systems (CO2 gas in a tank)
~DIY yeast CO2 systems (CO2 production with yeast & sugar)

Both are perfectly acceptable, and generally do the same thing: Add CO2 to your aquarium.


Keep in mind that water surface agitation allows disolved CO2 to escape into the open air. Any wet/dry type bio-wheel is inevitably going to cause a lot of water surface agitation. (Not neccessarily limited to the large water surface across the top of your tank) Recommeneded are canister filters. They are sealed to the outside air and also be used to completely dissolve all produced CO2. Just point the end of the CO2 tube into the intake pipe ot the filter.

I use the DIY method. It is up to you. Here are a couple links to get you pointed in the right direction(s?).

http://www.plantedtank.net/articles/DIY-Yeast-CO2/7/
http://www.floridadriftwood.com/product.asp?0=217&1=252&3=1053

The Plantedtank.net link I posted here has broken links.
Sample DIY CO2 diffuser:
http://www.plantedtank.net/articles/DIY-CO2-Diffuser/8/
Sample DIY CO2 reactor: http://www.plantedtank.net/articles/DIY-CO2-Reactor/2/

DIY CO2 generation is very cheap, comparable to the price of a branch of driftwood, shipped. Co2 will not leech tannin into the water and discolor it. (Some folks like the color, however.) And finally, what better way to cure a minor Ph problem than creating a beautiful, balanced envronment for your fish.

Answer 5

they dont have to, there is no set rule, but yes u are right, they do like more acidic water.

But common day fish are bred to handle the higher ph.

Unless u are getting these fish from the wild, they will be fine in 7.6

But if you must, try adding peat moss to the filter, and water conditioners like ph down or amazon water additives.

Answer 6

I agree, don't try to change it. While books will tell you neons are from acidic waters, yours are not. They are from fairly high pH ponds in Florida most likely and will do just fine in your 7.6 pH water. The only time you might even consider adjusting it would be for breeding.

MM

Answer 7

the fish will be fine. as long as the pH doesn't get above 7.8 they will adjust.