Best way to decrease pH and keep it stable

H

hhgtrillian

AC Members
Dec 2, 2006
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I've read that adding a filter bag of peat to a canister filter can help with this as well as a piece of driftwood, but I don't want to get brown tannin stained water. I'm also not sure if the pH lowering chemicals are a good choice either since I've read that some may introduce phosphate to the aquarium and encourage undesirable algae growth. I played with the Jungle Brand pH correct tablets but the water seems to always go back to a higher pH indicating there is a strong buffering capacity? And this kind of messes up the "keeping a stable pH", which I know can be hard on the fish with things changing so much. Below is the water tests for the water in my area that is released by the city. As you can see, I'm dealing with pretty high pH. Most other measurements are in mg/l. Thanks for your help.


pH-8.56(pH units)
Alkalinity (Total)*-116
Phenolphthalein Alkalinity*-13
Total Hardness*-158
Calcium (as calcium carbonate)*-82
Magnesium (as calcium carbonate)*-76
Sulfate**-76
Total Dissolved Solids**-290
Turbidity-2.1 Nephelometric units
Fluoride**-1.02
Free Chlorine-1.8
Total Chlorine-2.1
Chloride**-32
Iron**-0.10
Manganese**-<none detected
Silica-21.4
Nitrate/Nitrite/Amm-none detected
 
the 3 ways i know is co2 crushed coral and baking soda.

baking soda brings it down right away but needs more each time new water is added.

crushed coral put in your filter or in a bag in the tank lowers it over time and i think its a little more stable. you will have to replace it over time.

co2 might cost a little more but has the most control.

i never have had to do this before and i hope i got all the info right. stable ph is always better then the "right" ph.
 
Hmmmm...I thought coral would increase the pH? Also baking soda? Would that increase it or decrease it? I thought that might be an increase too?
 
hhgtrillian said:
Hmmmm...I thought coral would increase the pH? Also baking soda? Would that increase it or decrease it? I thought that might be an increase too?
Click to expand...
still can edit my post but wont. baking soda and coral raises and co2 lowers. forget a few words in a post and it changes everything.
 
But will that water end up stained brown/yellow from tannins? I guess that's a concern of mine, since I've read that in the past.
 
peat will most likely stain the water..sounds like you may want to invest in a RO unit and use buffers to control pH.

I know breeders who do this..one guy has a storage unit for the Ro water..then transfers the ro into a different unit to add the buffers. from there the water is used in water changes.
 
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