Do I add baking soda??

[fishymommy]

I have been having problems with the pH in my aquarium. I have a 20g aquarium with fish that would appreciate a pH around 7 but it recently dropped from 7.6 to 6.0! My tap water is 7.6 so such a change was unexplained for me. ugh!! Some users suggested i find a kH test to test my tap and tank water. After testing both, I have discovered that my kH/alkalinity is below the recommended on the bottle. It says I have around an alkalinity of 80ppm... the bottle recommends 120-150ppm. I'm not sure what 80ppm means. Most people were telling me about having a kH of 4 or something... Also, I've been reading/told that baking soda will raise the kH/alkalinity of my tank water. Is this a good idea? If so, how much do I add?

Please help!!

[fishymommy]

Hewwo?? Anybody have any suggestions?? :o)

[smaug]

Adding baking soda will raise your kh.The number people are reffering to with kh and gh is in number of drops needed to change the regent in the api test kit.Your water has a very low buffering capacity which means for you that you will forever be fighting ph swings.I would recomend a mix of alkinlinity boosting substrate such as what is sold for cichlid tanks,I say a mix as you wouldnt want it to be all that as it would raise your ph too high.A good starting point would be 25% I would think.Until then baking soda should do the trick.

[fishymommy]

Ok. Thank you for clearing that up. So how much baking soda should I add?

Also, the substrate you are talking about, is that similar to crushed coral?? Soem people mentioned putting some in my filter or in the tank

[smaug]

[Only Registered Users Can See Links.] something like this.
Start with a teaspoon of baking soda,wait 24 hrs and retest.

[fishymommy]

Ok, Thank you. So, does the baking soda wear off so I should get a substrate soon?

[Evil Slimy]

A kH of 4 should be enough to hold your pH where it is. A 1.6pH drop is huge, especially considering you are not injecting co2.
I would try to find out what caused it to drop that much first. A lot of rotting/decaying food in the tank? decaying dead fish? Very dirty filter? Adding buffers now doesn't really address the problem at the source.

[fishymommy]

well, we found out that my new huge drift wood could have done some of the damage and I was a little over due for a WC so the waste could have brought it down more... other than than, I can't think of anything else that changed that would have caused it...

Also, my kH isn't at 4 right now, thats just what people suggested I should have but my test only measures in ppm so thats why I put that in there earlier. No dead fish though some have died recently but I always removed them as soon as I found them the next morning (they usually got sick in the afternoon and died during the night). But none have died for a week now... all of my dwarf gouramies died

[smaug]

it doesnt matter how big of a piece of driftwood you add,it wont drop ph more then .3-.4.Your trouble does stem from a low gh/kh,buffer adjustment is without a doubt called for.

[fishymommy]

ok. well, I just tested the pH again and from my water changes the past few days it is back up to pH of 7.6 same as my tap water. So, do I still add the baking soda to help my buffer become stronger so that it won't change drastically again? Also, is there any way to maybe get it a little lower than 7.6and stay consistant? I've been reading that neons like 5-7 and I'm sure the ones I have now will be fine but I need to get more and am curious if they will be ok with a high pH

[smaug]

As many will tell you a constantly high ph is better the a wildly fluctuating one.however 7.6 is very high to attempt to introduce neons.with a very low kh i am hesitant to recommend any acid buffers as many of them will actually lower kh.try the soda for now but don't add it right now while your ph is up, test your water everyday until you see it dropping again and when it starts then add the soda otherwise you could sent your ph through the roof.Seriously your best bet is the buffering substrate it is the only way you will stay stable.

[fishymommy]

Ok. I've been reading and a lot of sites say that the substrate has the same calciumish traits as sea shells. I have many shells from florida that I collected off the beach. Do you think these will help keep the pH stable until I can get the substrate or even replace the substrate??

[smaug]

Ok. I've been reading and a lot of sites say that the substrate has the same calciumish traits as sea shells. I have many shells from florida that I collected off the beach. Do you think these will help keep the pH stable until I can get the substrate or even replace the substrate??
Why not,it certainly wont hurt to try and it should work.Good luck with it.Keep us posted.

[fishymommy]

Thanks for the help!!

[smaug]

Thanks for the help!!
You are welcome.