Ph problems

[mta]

Hi all,Im new to this Forum.Hope someone can help out.I have a massive 8 foot .I have 18 discus in there along with 50 Cardinals.My problem is that my ph is always at 7.4 and no matter what i do to reduce it to 7, it climbs back up again in a day.I have tried everything and the only conclusion i can come up with is the gravel.The gravel is midnight black.Does anyone no weather this gravel would be the problem.


Cheers

[Merrilyn]

Hello mta, and welcome to the forum.

Yes, I'm afraid it sounds like your black gravel is the problem here.

Simple test - 2 glasses of tap water allowed to stand for 24 hours, one with gravel and one without.

Test the pH of the water in both, and you should have your answer.

Then you need to decide if you want to remove the gravel, or try to balance things out with peat moss and large amounts of driftwood. Your discus will be much happier with a pH of around 7.

[pitchblack]

I agree with LR black gravel will raise your ph I wanted to buy it but then I found out what your going through at the moment and gave it a miss

[mta]

Thanks for the advice.Iwill try this out and see how we go.Cheers

[mcloughlin2]

Yeah i agree with the others....there are some gravels that are made for african cichlids....some add minerals as well as boosting the ph of the water so they are definately not a good thing to have in a discus tank....

HTH,

Sam.... :D

[endless]

yep i have 2mm midnight black gravel in my tank. Actually half my gravel is midnite black and half is normal inert gravel and yes it does increase the ph slightly. However i think it also keeps the KH at around 3dkh. If you're thinking getting co2 i would definately keep the gravel otherwise get new gravel or go half half like me

[rytis]

i was wondering if anyone can suggest a good advice on what sort of bag to use to put a bunch of peatmoss (for lowering pH purposes)... like something with holes small enough so that actual particles wouldnt come out?

been trying to figure this out for months....
sock is way too big holes, filter bags 1 side good, 1 side too big holes.... :?

[axelfaz]

hi rytis
try pantyhose it works well

cameron

[Merrilyn]

Now Cameron, how would you know that mate ????

Just kidding, yes, the good old pantyhose is the way to go. Put the peat moss in the panty hose, and run under the tap to remove any dust before placing in the tank.

[duck]

Maybe it PH bounce,You lower the PH in the morning the afternoon it's back up where you started from.
I keep 9 discus in a PH of 7.3 and no problems,I also keep 5 discus with PH 6.3 and i really don't see any difference,The tank's are close to each other so i look at one then the other without moving :roll:

[Ben]

Just don’t get caught like i did!!

Then you have to go down to the shops and buy your own, which i found a tad bit embarrassing!

Ben

[axelfaz]

lol dosnt everyone wear pantyhose its so smooth on your skin :shock:

[Bill T.]

This is just a thought, but have you checked your kH reading? Even a small kH reading will inevitably lead to pH slightly above 7.0.

[ozarowana]

It sounds like it could be the natural buffering (kH) of your water. It is typical for your pH to bounce back after about 24hrs. You need to find the right amount of pH down etc to add then take a measurement after 24hrs, repeat this process until you get the desired pH. Do in an water aging tank/container. Once you know the amount to add to get desired pH, remember this amount. After adding your pH will drop to below the desired level and then bounce back to desired level.

Since you have a large tank it would take lots of acidic compounds to "use up" the buffer and then be able to lower it. Also your pH may suddenly drop too low if you use that tiny bit too much.