# Ph to acidic??



## gman34 (Mar 31, 2008)

My Ph is currently at a steady 6.2-6.3 i know that my red bellies like a more acidic water but is it to acidic? They have been acting fine very active but just looking for some advise new to piranhas


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## JoeDizzleMPLS (Nov 5, 2007)

that's actually a good place to be, if it dips below 6, then you'll wanna raise it up a bit


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## gman34 (Mar 31, 2008)

joedizzlempls said:


> that's actually a good place to be, if it dips below 6, then you'll wanna raise it up a bit


Thanks for the help!


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## Dr. Giggles (Oct 18, 2003)

As mentioned make sure it does not dip below for several reasons. Worst case scenario would be a pH crash, next worse cas scenario would be a bacteria die off and last but not least acid burn. If you stay on top of your water changes it will stay stable. If your tank is stocked heavily multiple weekly water changes may be needed.


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## smithgrind_who (Mar 26, 2004)

As stated all ready, I have few question about the aquarium. What kind of substrate, how long has the aquarium been established, and is there driftwood in it?

I know if the aquarium has been established for some time anaerobic bacteria can grow in deep gravel or sand which can lead to the formation of hydrogen sulfide.


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## gman34 (Mar 31, 2008)

smithgrind_who said:


> As stated all ready, I have few question about the aquarium. What kind of substrate, how long has the aquarium been established, and is there driftwood in it?
> 
> I know if the aquarium has been established for some time anaerobic bacteria can grow in deep gravel or sand which can lead to the formation of hydrogen sulfide.


I have had the tank for only about 2 months now and there are two decent size peices of driftwood in it it is a 75 gallon tank. I am also having some problems with amonia.


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## JoeDizzleMPLS (Nov 5, 2007)

gman34 said:


> As stated all ready, I have few question about the aquarium. What kind of substrate, how long has the aquarium been established, and is there driftwood in it?
> 
> I know if the aquarium has been established for some time anaerobic bacteria can grow in deep gravel or sand which can lead to the formation of hydrogen sulfide.


I have had the tank for only about 2 months now and there are two decent size peices of driftwood in it it is a 75 gallon tank. I am also having some problems with amonia.
[/quote]
ammonia is something that you should worry about... what are you ammonia problems?


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## gman34 (Mar 31, 2008)

joedizzlempls said:


> As stated all ready, I have few question about the aquarium. What kind of substrate, how long has the aquarium been established, and is there driftwood in it?
> 
> I know if the aquarium has been established for some time anaerobic bacteria can grow in deep gravel or sand which can lead to the formation of hydrogen sulfide.


I have had the tank for only about 2 months now and there are two decent size peices of driftwood in it it is a 75 gallon tank. I am also having some problems with amonia.
[/quote]
ammonia is something that you should worry about... what are you ammonia problems?
[/quote]

i am having some ammonia levels (1.0) that just dont seem to go down even with a good water change but and nitrates and nitrites are at 0


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## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

Define "Good water change."
What percentage of water are you changing out at a time, and how often?


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## gman34 (Mar 31, 2008)

Piranha_man said:


> Define "Good water change."
> What percentage of water are you changing out at a time, and how often?


A good 35-40% change 2 times a week


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## JoeDizzleMPLS (Nov 5, 2007)

if you aren't showing any nitrates at all, that's not a good sign, in a cycled tank, there should always be nitrates present. i'm assuming that your tank was cycled before you put your fish in there, even if not, it should be cycled by now if it's been up for two months, so something probably messed up your cycle. what do you have for filtration on that tank?


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## gman34 (Mar 31, 2008)

joedizzlempls said:


> if you aren't showing any nitrates at all, that's not a good sign, in a cycled tank, there should always be nitrates present. i'm assuming that your tank was cycled before you put your fish in there, even if not, it should be cycled by now if it's been up for two months, so something probably messed up your cycle. what do you have for filtration on that tank?


I have 2 marineland emperor 400 gph each


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## JoeDizzleMPLS (Nov 5, 2007)

how often do you clean your filters and do you clean them all at once or do you space it out a bit?


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## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

What size tank?
Got a photo?


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## smithgrind_who (Mar 26, 2004)

gman34 said:


> i am having some ammonia levels (1.0) that just dont seem to go down even with a good water change but and *nitrates* and nitrites *are at 0*


What is the time line for those Emperor 400 bio wheels? Were you able to establish a bio filter in the wheels to handle the load created by your fish?

The only reason I ask is because your water parameter of zero nitrAtes. An establish bio filter would create nitrAtes near levels of 10ppm.


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