# Ph To Low



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

I have a 112 gal with a 60 and 40 whisper power filter, i have 5-7" or 8" and 1-4" all rbp. My ph isny even registering on the api test if it is its really hard to see so id say my ph is definitely lower then 6. Since sept 11 ive done 95 gal of water changes and still it wont budge


----------



## MPG (Mar 14, 2010)

Too many water changes? How often/much you change per week?


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

i usually do 25% bi-monthly i only did so much trying to get ph up

oh wait nm lol i do it twice a month 25%


----------



## MPG (Mar 14, 2010)

Need more filtration (as a said last topic







)


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

ok perfect thanks a lot man


----------



## Guest (Sep 24, 2010)

Zeefs filtration has nothing to do with pH levels.

What is your pH right out of the tap? Also what is your substrate and what do you have in your tank, such as driftwood etc?

Until we know those answers I cant recommend anything


----------



## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

I agree with ksls

1) test tapwater and mayby ro water too
2) bring sample to lfs to make sure your test is still working right


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

Ok so my tap water is 7.2 I had this double checked at my lfs store too same result. I have 1 piece of driftwood not bogwood or nething that would really bring down the ph. I have 1 fake plant and about 1/2" of black substrate. O yah and a rock cave i bought at lfs.


----------



## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

did you double check the tank pH at a lfs?


----------



## I Can Mate (Apr 8, 2010)

i think something is wrong with your ph tester because a piece of wood will not change the ph from 7.2 to below 5


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

Yah i was going to my lfs first n he was doing all the tests and getting the same thing. He was telling me to do water changes on certain days n stuff trying to get it back up. Then i went and bought my own api test kit so i can know exactly what levels i have, tested it and i was getting the same ph reading as lfs


----------



## I Can Mate (Apr 8, 2010)

are you talking about the readings from the tank or the tap?


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

both i had the lfs check both to my results n they were same


----------



## flex fish (Aug 20, 2010)

If your doing monthly water changes that might be the problem, how often do you feed? If you don't keep up on water changes by how much waste they produce if you feed often over time ph drops from high nitrate build up because not enough water changes are being done, I could be wrong


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

what water changes should be done weekly? I usually feed them like every other day minus the lil guy i feed him everyday.


----------



## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

zeefs said:


> Yah i was going to my lfs first n he was doing all the tests and getting the same thing. He was telling me to do water changes on certain days n stuff trying to get it back up. Then i went and bought my own api test kit so i can know exactly what levels i have, tested it and i was getting the same ph reading as lfs


 if the lfs tank water readings are normal your test kit that you originally used is probably bad and you should get a new one. generally people will recomend you do weekly water changes of at least 10$ dependign on how hevily your tank is stocked, A large tank with baby p's will be fine for longer then a tank with some adult pygos which should deffinitly have weekly waterchanges or at least larger biweekly water changes


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

the readings at my lfs were the same as mine ph lower than 6.
I usually do a 25% water change ev other week but i do have a lot of adult sized rbp


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

I didnt have a test kit so i was only going to lfs and my reading was lower then 6, i went for 10 days trying stuff he said and nothing worked it stayed under 6. I went n bought my own test kit n then did my own reading and they were the same as lfs ph lower then 6. I also tested my own tap water and had it tested at the lfs and they too were the same ph 7.2


----------



## flex fish (Aug 20, 2010)

You have 5 rbp over 6" and one 4"rbp so a totall of 6 fish 5 adult and one juvie in a112gallon tank feeding every other day and your only doing water changes every other week, you should be doin atleast once a week waterchanges, if you don't have a nitrate kit you should get one I bet they would be alittle high based on your waterchange schedual and feeding regime, just my opinion


----------



## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

Don't worry about it, your pH is fine.


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

Ok yah thanks im going to do more regular water changes like once a week say like 10-15%. Im worried about being so acidic i know im lower then 6 and ive noticed some cloudy eyes happening and think that might be why


----------



## flex fish (Aug 20, 2010)

At least once a week it would be better to have a nitrate test kit to get a good idea if how many and how much water to change, I have a 14" rhom in a 210 I feed once a week somtimes twice and I do water changes twice a week and my tap ph is 7.4 aswell as my tank, I'm not sayin it has to be what your tap is but if it's droping and your not leaving food behind it's probably your nitrates, I had this problem a long time ago and if your ph is lower than 6.0 your bacteria source won't work well. If you don't already have these you need to get your self some API test kits, ammo, nitrite, nitrate, ph. If your fishes eyes are becoming cloudy you might have some ammo in your tank you never know, also get yourself some crushed coral that stuff works good to raise the ph then go from there


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

ok so my ph is under 6 
ammonia is 4ppm 
nitrite is 0 ppm
and nitrate im waiting to see right now


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

the nitrate is hard to read looks between 40 n 80 ppm


----------



## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

Yeah, yer tank needs to cycle, but your pH is fine.


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

Is there anything i should do? somebody said i should add more filtration like the ac 110 i have sitting on a shelf


----------



## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

The way I see it... if you have filtration sitting around, and a space for it on the tank... hook it up.
Ya can't 'overfilter.'

My 150 gallon pygo tank for example, has a rated 2,300 GPH flow.


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

dddddaMN that much yah i only got 500 right now i could go up to 800 to 1000 
do you use the carbon inserts?


----------



## flex fish (Aug 20, 2010)

A ph under 6.0 is not fine the bacteria tends not to work as fast breaking down waste, you need to do 20 precent water change to delute that ammo In your tank, and I believe your tank is cycled your only getting a ammo reading probably From feeding with that low ph once agin this is just my opinion. How long has your tank been running?


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

since the 11th ive done 90 gallons of water changes as told to do by lfs n their eyes are still cloudy


----------



## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

The only use carbon has really is to remove chemicals from the water.
_(I personally like to have some carbon present when cycling...)_

I often fill extra filtration areas with peat, but this preference is not shared by all...


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

i was told to use the just the sponge and the bio max inserts in the ac 110 think thats ok?


----------



## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

Sounds good to me...

And again on the topic of pH, ammonia and cycling... the toxicity of ammonia is also largely dictated by your pH. 
The total ammonia in your tank is a combination of ammonium ions (NH4+) and ammonia (NH3). The pH of your water is the major factor in the relative concentrations of these two compounds.

More ammonia (the more toxic of the two compounds) will be present in alkaline water while more ammonium ions (the less toxic of the two compounds) will be present in acidic water. 
Therefore, you need to remember that as you raise the pH, you are making the any ammonia in the tank more toxic to your fish. It is because of this that pH adjustments during the cycling phase of your aquarium are not recommended.

After the cycle is completed, there should not be any ammonia in your tank anyways.


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

Ok yah sounds good man thanks so much yah i dont wanna go up to much just to 6 atleast or atleast whatever will help the fishes eyes clear up


----------



## I Can Mate (Apr 8, 2010)

Piranha_man said:


> Sounds good to me...
> 
> And again on the topic of pH, ammonia and cycling... the toxicity of ammonia is also largely dictated by your pH.
> The total ammonia in your tank is a combination of ammonium ions (NH4+) and ammonia (NH3). The pH of your water is the major factor in the relative concentrations of these two compounds.
> ...


x2 and maybe your kh is real in the water is low so the ph swings up and down alot


----------



## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

I keep my tanks around a PH of 6.0 as well, check out this link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackwater_river think you will be suprised.


----------



## FEEFA (Nov 19, 2007)

zeefs said:


> Ok yah sounds good man thanks so much yah i dont wanna go up to much just to 6 atleast or atleast whatever will help the fishes eyes clear up


I think that the high ammonia is the reason for the foggy eyes.
Do at least 30% W/C EVERYWEEK AND DEF ADD THE extra filter and yes without the carbon will be fine.
Do you only have the pads for mechanical filtration in your 40 and 60 filters? You need biomedia for bacteria to thrive on.
How often do you clean them? They should only be rinsed in tap water aswell as the biowheel if there are any.
I would test everyday and do small frequent w/c of about 10-15% till the ammo goes down then do a weekly 30% as I said before


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

OK so update ive added the ac 110 and immediately i noticed a difference the not only in the flow of the water but the clarity too. I did a test of all my levels ph was now up at 6 n climbing slowly, ammonia .50ppm, nitrite 0ppm, nitrate 80 ppm. 
Yah when i put in the aC 110 took out the whisper 40 and went to put in the media in the ac 110 and realized there wasnt any foam or anything like that just the regular carbon pad, i always thought it had a foam sponge in it. ne ways thanks for the help everyone!


----------



## FEEFA (Nov 19, 2007)

You should leave the 40 on there aswell, now you may get an ammo spike again because you removed an established filter for a new one that wasnt.

You will need the foam insert in the ac110for mech filtration, the carbon is useless


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

i basically left the 40 in just inside the ac110 shell so i didnt lose that beneficial bacteria


----------



## Johnny_Zanni (Nov 8, 2009)

Theres no reason to take the 40 out.

While we are on the topic... As P_Man said the lower the PH is the less toxic ammonia is. Your PH being so low is probly the only reason your fish ONLY got cloudy eyes.

You should really never mess with PH. A stable low/high PH is always better then one thats fluctuating all over the scale...


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

Well i didnt wanna run 3 filters so i just took all the media out and put it in the new filter so im still using the 40 technically just inside the ac 110.
O yah i know i got lucky my ph was so low when i had all those toxins in the water or theyd be dead i think. I know i dont want a steady ph its just it got so low it has to come back up. Its not that i have it low and want to raise it.

i meant i know i want a steady ph. lol my bad


----------



## Johnny_Zanni (Nov 8, 2009)

Having all 3 filters would be best. My pygo tank has 4


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

o yah ok thanks a lot man. yah everything is better now besides the high nitrates id say r 80ppm or lil higher. If the filter will help im down to try it


----------



## Johnny_Zanni (Nov 8, 2009)

The filter will probly help. Most nitrates are taken away with waterchanges and from plants.


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

I just did a 20% water change at 3 then tested my water at about 5 and it was still the same


----------



## Johnny_Zanni (Nov 8, 2009)

Keep up with them and the nitrates should go down. Nitrates are a lot less toxic to fish so its not the end of the world if they are a little high. Also you can test your water for ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates right after a water change. You don't have to wait.


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

should i do like 15% water change every day or whaT do you think?


----------



## Johnny_Zanni (Nov 8, 2009)

For nitrates I wouldn't bother with daily waterchanges. 80ppm won't kill your fish.


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

Ok thanks man ill stick to 20% weekly


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

do u think id be ok without adding the whsiper 40 back in?


----------



## zeefs (Jul 26, 2010)

only because all that was in the 40 was a pad with carbon and i have that inside the 110 i put in so the only difference is the 200 gph. Or is there ne beneficial bacteria that are on the filter shell itself?


----------

