Rising pH
- Thread starter ggrowney
- Start date
your ph will change as your water sits out. We have several water chemistry experts around here that could explain exactly why...but I'm not one of them. I say trying to keep it as steady as you can is your best deal. Messing with your ph by any chemical means is never a good ideal.
Did you just set the tank up? sometimes during a cycle the ph will go a little wonky here and there but will eventually hit an even level.
Did you just set the tank up? sometimes during a cycle the ph will go a little wonky here and there but will eventually hit an even level.
Cycle
As a matter of fact, my tank is in week 4 and I have hit a point where my nitrites are finally decreasing (at 0.25 and heading down). I do have a book that is very anti-chemical but says you should add some buffers if you have low buffering. In theory it would stabilize any pH. I have followed the no additive philosophy to date and will continue until I hear a good argument for. I agree with you.
As a matter of fact, my tank is in week 4 and I have hit a point where my nitrites are finally decreasing (at 0.25 and heading down). I do have a book that is very anti-chemical but says you should add some buffers if you have low buffering. In theory it would stabilize any pH. I have followed the no additive philosophy to date and will continue until I hear a good argument for. I agree with you.
Water fresh out of the tap is usually higher than normal Co2.The Co2 drives the pH down. Once the water is released form inside the pipes it will equalize gas levels with the air. As the co2 levels drop the pH rises. There can also be some additinal issues with municiple water sources, some of them phosphate buffers whach can be unstable and allow swings also.
Set you tap water out overnight and see what it tests in the morning. If it equalizes and does not increase then there is something in your tank dissolving and rasing the pH. At the pH reading you have, I would lean more towards the Co2 in tap idea though.
As far as the cycle, Carbonate is consumed by our bacteria and especially in the fishless cycling method if we start with low Kh (corbonate hardness) levels, the process of ammonia to Nitrite to nitrate will deplete the KH which then leads to a pH drop and quite often a stalled cycle.
You do not need to worry about such an occurence at all. The pH levels you are listing normally indicated a high KH level (pH and KH go hand in hand). So the chance of depleting Kh is slim to none in your case. If you see pH drop down to the 7.0 range or below, I'd be quite concerned.
dave
Set you tap water out overnight and see what it tests in the morning. If it equalizes and does not increase then there is something in your tank dissolving and rasing the pH. At the pH reading you have, I would lean more towards the Co2 in tap idea though.
As far as the cycle, Carbonate is consumed by our bacteria and especially in the fishless cycling method if we start with low Kh (corbonate hardness) levels, the process of ammonia to Nitrite to nitrate will deplete the KH which then leads to a pH drop and quite often a stalled cycle.
You do not need to worry about such an occurence at all. The pH levels you are listing normally indicated a high KH level (pH and KH go hand in hand). So the chance of depleting Kh is slim to none in your case. If you see pH drop down to the 7.0 range or below, I'd be quite concerned.
dave
