co2 and lowering ph?

[Mgamer20o0]

I think I am lost now. I am new to my filter and stuff. I am in the middle of cycling. My tap water was 7.0 I think when adding the water to the tank. I am running a diy yeast co2 set up. I got floss to add to my canister. When I was done with that I closed it, started it, and went to bed. Around noon I looked at the tank and the water was low. I didn’t put the tubing in right. I filled the tank back up. I was going by a pets mart and I wanted to see if they test for KH and GH. I found out they don’t but they tested the ph and it said it was 7.8. I tested it yesterday cuz I added some water and it read 7.0. When I tested the water tonight it looked 6.4. I also tested my tap water tonight and it was solid blue so it could be higher than 7.6.

So what I am thinking is my tap water changed. It wasn’t long after filling the tank back up when I took a water sample. So I am thinking it’s the water not getting mixed up first.

I dont think I forgot anything, but if I did let me know. Sorry for the long message but I really want to figure this out, before I get my fish.

Tap 7.6 or higher ph
Cycling tank 6.6 ph
Other tank 7.2 ph

ps the lady at pets mart got a headack and got all mad at me when i told her what i was doing. it was really funny. it was hard not to bust up laughing.

[Dtman]

Co2 will drop your ph, but their are also other factors involved. Driftwood will also contribute to this. My tap is 7.5 and I have planted tanks as low as 6.2. I tried diy Co2 for a while, but found it difficult to control. As a result I had some drastic ph swings. I now run pressurized Co2 in all my plant tanks.

If you want an accurate ph reading. You should let it sit for a few hours before testing. Its probably lower than you think.

[Skittyfish]

Let me get this straight...your pH in your tank is lower than your tap Right?

You need to get your kh checked, can you buy a test to keep for yourself?

Mine is the opposite. My pH out of the tap is 6.4. Overnight after it gases off it jumps to 7.4. My kh is nearly non-existant. (my water company does a great job, considering we live on limestone!!!)

[Mgamer20o0]

i am planning on getting a pressurized system. but that might be a few weeks. i was planning on just ordering it from big al's but i think i would rather pick one up than have to wait for them.

as for Skittyfish i am not 100% what my 100 gal tank ph is. i tested it with an aquarium pharmaceuticals test kit. it read as 6.6 at night. but around noon i took a water sample to pets mart and they said the ph was 7.8. but that was right after i added water into my tank. but the water is now lower than the tap. i think the tap ph has changed from 2 weeks ago when i filled it up.