View Full Version : Lowering pH using peat...
Grrrr.... (Just to show my frustration before begining the thread... :D )
I purchased a product called Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss, which looks almost like a light (weight-wise) soil, pretty dark in color.
As some have suggested, I used the coffee filter to try to get some water with significantly lower pH than my tap water. (KH is only 2, so it shouldn't take much effort). I put some peat into the coffee filter, then sealed it with a wire so that it looks like a ball of about 2 inches in diameter. I let it soak in boiling hot water (about 2L) for 5 hours and checked the pH. Grrr pH is still around 7. It went down alright, but not where I want it to be. My natural tap water after 24 hours is around 7.2, so obviously I need to something more drastic!
So I got my wife to give me what apepars to be the diaper clothes. (Don't want to think about what we did with this clothes years back! :D ). Cut it into a good size, and this time, made a larger ball out of it, about 4 inches in diameter. Again, I soaked it in a hot water in a small bucket and I noticed LOTS of dirty particles coming out of it. Basically it looks like a muddy water. I'm going to let it sit for few hours to let particles settle down at the bottom but can't help but to feel I am going towards the wrong path....
Am I doing this the right way?
PumaWard
12-20-2003, 5:18 PM
The coffee maker worked great for my brother. He put about a cup of peat where you would put the coffee and used the coffee filter to keep the peat from going down into the coffee pot. He then put 12cups of water in where you usually do if you were making a pot of coffee. He turned off the coffee pot and let go, worked great.
hth
ctenopomaA
12-20-2003, 6:15 PM
two ways to do this.
1. let peat soak in water for days or weeks. doing it the way you talk of will work faster, not much.
2. filter water with peat. I use a clean plactic trash can fill it with the water I need( a water change on a 20gal tank you will need 5gal of new water) i do 25%changes. I use a hot magum with peat, let it filter for an hour then check every hour till its where you want it. this may take 1 hour - 24 hours depending on your water.
P.S. why not use ph down?
PumaWard
12-20-2003, 6:20 PM
P.S. why not use ph down?
pH down isn't the best idea. It works too quickly to let the fish slowly acclimate and it's less stable. Peat is more stable and also, as a benefit, softens the water.
Originally posted by PumaWard
The coffee maker worked great for my brother. He put about a cup of peat where you would put the coffee and used the coffee filter to keep the peat from going down into the coffee pot. He then put 12cups of water in where you usually do if you were making a pot of coffee. He turned off the coffee pot and let go, worked great.
hth
Unfortunately, I have one coffee maker and its off the limit for me... I'm sure my wife will not appreciate eating peat while drinking her coffee... :D
Looks like if I soak the peat held by clothes for couple of hours will drop pH down to around 6.6 or so which is not bad... BUT I had to wait until everything settles down before I can use it. I'm lucky that I don't need too much of this stuff since I am trying to bring down the pH on a 5.5g breeder tank.
Since this tank contains no filter (I am doing alot of WC to trigger spawning behavior, plus bioload is super low), I can't use it to filter peat...
Looks like I'm stuck letting dirt settle down then carefully scoup up the top layer of water...
ctenopomaA, as others have suggested, I'd rather not use any chemicals if I can avoid it at all... Peat filtering is proven to work, and it works for others, so I'm trying to find a reliable way for it to work for me...
Still welcome if anyone has better suggestions... :D
ctenopomaA
12-20-2003, 6:30 PM
I didnt mean add ph down to the tank. add it to the water before you add it to the tank.
marsupialvomit
12-21-2003, 12:16 AM
I have an Emperor filter and I was wondering if i could put it in the media cartridge. Also after reading all the posts over again I don't understand how I can use peat. can't I just rap the stuff in mesh and throw it in my tank or in my filter media cartridge.
Tim Bo
12-21-2003, 6:11 AM
A few things come to mind when reading your posts.
yhbae, I would be careful with your Kh level, being as low as it is. Peat treatment will lower this even more and cause the pH to become unstable...your fish and plants will not appreciate this. I test the water before, during and after as a means of comparing values of pH and Kh. Fortunately, my Kh hovers at 4-6 with a pH that I basically can choose with peat treatment.
I have written a page on peat that you might find useful - I mention a few techniques in it as well. Be aware that soft water fish are not necessarily low -pH fish but rather low TDS fish and peat treated water can significantly increase TDS and possibly do more harm that good. Many dwarfs do not like high TDS water IMHE.
http://hjem.get2net.dk/Best_of_the_Web/peat%20page.html
Tim Bo, thanks for the info. By the way, what does TDS stand for?
I do test for pH in this tank twice a day and so far, the drop is pretty small (I'm getting about 0.2 drop per day). Also, this is a breeder tank, so basically I have only 2 fishes in it, and even that is a temporary home. No plants in this tank...
Tim Bo
12-25-2003, 2:31 AM
Sorry for the late reply - it's Christmas...
TDS stands for Total Dissolved Solids. TDS basically and very untechnically means that things likes salts, water softeners, peat can increase the amount of junk and particle matter in the water. RO (reverse osmosis) will lower TDS levels as well as hardness, GH and KH.
So if I understand correctly, you are saying that I should use RO water instead of peat for triggering spawning of these species?
Thanks for your insight... :D
Tim Bo
12-26-2003, 8:09 AM
That is a good question :) and one I find difficult to answer precisely since there are many variables that come into play...peat properties (type of peat, how the peat affects your water, before and after TDS levels etc), general water chemistry, bioload, water changes,..the list is very big. However, as a ball park answer, yes, RO water will help maintain TDS levels at a favorable level. A mixture of both has worked for me though this has entailed much tiral and error, experimentation, and lots and lots of testing. I would suggest keeping it as simple as possible to begin with and gradually 'work your way up' - especially if you are only beginning to dable in manipulating your water chemistry. It can take a lot of effort and discipline but once you get the nack of it, the rewards are encouraging.