stonedaquarium Posted May 25, 2015 Report Share Posted May 25, 2015 Which is more effective in lowering ph.? My water is weird even if i use ro water remineralized with mosura gh plus my water ph after a few days would change back up to 8.0 and stay that way. My water ph is 7.0 straight from the ro water container mixed in with mosura mineral plus the ph is still 7.0.. after a few days having the remineralized ro water running under an air stone the ph went up to 8.0... I dont really want to use chemical buffers as it might mess up my water chemistry sp i thought of indian almond leaves. currently have two leaves in one tank and the ph still is at 8.0. Should i add some more? Im afraid that i might mess things up again with my water chemistry. Would alder cones be a better option? Thanks Edwardnah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jadenlea Posted May 25, 2015 Report Share Posted May 25, 2015 I don't know how big your tank is, but I have a 20 L. I have a couple IAL and a few alder cones and see no effect on the ph. I think you would need a lot of either to bring it down from 8. Have you considered aquarium Peat? It can go right in your HOB or canister filter if you have either. I have read that it is pretty effective. . I am fiddling with it now trying to find the right amount in my HOB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2015 Initially i got a 10 gal and a 15 gal now with no effect. Peat... i have heard would reduce it but also softens the water which could also affect gh... i actually got seachem acid buffers. But lesson learned i dont want to add anything that might wnd up causing more harm than good. Reason i ask is could it also possibly affect shrimp survival? I mean my shrimp breed and berry ok in high ph but survival might be affected by high ph especially for neos? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyeGuy411 Posted May 25, 2015 Report Share Posted May 25, 2015 What are you using to test your pH? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2015 Api ph test kit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyeGuy411 Posted May 25, 2015 Report Share Posted May 25, 2015 Are you making your own RO, and is the unit new or has the membranes ever dried out? I doubt your pH is 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 26, 2015 I get it from a'commercial water purifying station that sells bottled water.... well water sources here in the phils are mostly from well water sources hence a lot of minerals and a high ph. It was explained to me that whatever the original nature of the water is it will revert to that despite it being ro water... as what i mentioned earlier water from the ro unit is 7 after rynning an airstone for a few days the ph went to 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyeGuy411 Posted May 26, 2015 Report Share Posted May 26, 2015 Have you tested the gH, kH and TDS of your RO water before you add anything to it? Soothing Shrimp 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2015 Tds is 002 to 009 gh is 1 did not test for kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyeGuy411 Posted May 27, 2015 Report Share Posted May 27, 2015 the kH of your RO water is very important that could be why the pH raises to 8. Hiatus and Soothing Shrimp 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 28, 2015 Will test it. What should the ideal kh be then to keep the ph stable? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyeGuy411 Posted May 28, 2015 Report Share Posted May 28, 2015 kH should be 2-8 for neos a little lower for tigers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyeGuy411 Posted May 28, 2015 Report Share Posted May 28, 2015 What kind of shrimp are you keeping in this tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 Ryeguy im keeping neos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 I tested my kh its 4.... so i dunno why but even with 3 ial in a 15 gal. The ph still stays at 8.0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyeGuy411 Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 RO water should be 0 kH, having a kH of 4 is why IAL has no effect on pH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 31, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2015 Ryeguy, what do u suggest i do with my kh? For ial to be effective? Increase my kh to what degree before i add ial to my tank. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyeGuy411 Posted May 31, 2015 Report Share Posted May 31, 2015 You need low kH for IAL to do anything. KH should be 0-1 Dendrobatez 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dendrobatez Posted May 31, 2015 Report Share Posted May 31, 2015 IAL won't lower ph until your kh is 0-1. CO2 will lower your ph without adjusting your kh. How well is your tank cycled, does it have ammonia swings? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonedaquarium Posted May 31, 2015 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2015 my tank is well cycled... didnt have any ammonia spikes... will try lowering my KH... i have seachem acid buffers... will that work? it says its supposed to soften the water... as it would eat up the carbonates in the tank... but how safe will seachem acid buffers be for shrimp tanks and would it keep it stable? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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