ph problem

1562 Views 10 Replies 3 Participants Last post by DKRST, Nov 16, 2013

silvershark

Discussion Starter · Nov 13, 2013

hi everyone
i have been doing a 60 ltr water change once a week with buckets for the past year now and i have been having problems with low ph, i have a 200ltr community tank with LIVE PLANTS AND 16 fish left out of 22 since last year, i have been struggling to keep the ph up to 7.0 or more, at last i have got round to doing water changes with a hose (emptying and refilling) and things are much easier now,
my ph was below 6.0 and for the last 4 days i have been doing a 60 ltr water change, and it is now 6.4 everything else is fine (ammonia 0ppm nitrite 0ppm nitrate 5.0 ppm) i also added 5 ml of ph up on the first day but haven't added any since, SHOULD I CONTINUE DOING DAILY WATER CHANGES UNTIL I GET THE PH TO 7.O, ALSO I HAVE BEEN ADDING STRESS COAT DIRECTLY INTO THE TANK JUST SECONDS BEFORE I FILL WITH TAP WATER IS THIS OK DOING IT LIKE THAT. ANY ADVICE MUCH APPRECIATED, THANK YOU.

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DKRST

· #2 · Nov 14, 2013

We need more info. Test your water from the tap - what's the pH, GH, and KH?
What is your tank setup? Size, decorations, substrate, plants, etc? Filters and types? All this will help us recommend things that will help, but we need more information to be most effective.

I know you listed some info, but specific on fertilizers, Co2 if used, etc.

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DKRST

· #5 · Nov 15, 2013

Ditto - my planted tanks all run around 6.5, which is perfect for most aquarium plants. I think you are fighting a battle that doesn't need to be fought! If you had cichlids or certain Australian Rainbows, that's different, but your pH is fine overall for what you have.

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DKRST

· #7 · Nov 15, 2013

might want to drop the temp a tad. What species of corys do you have? many like it a little cooler, 76-78F is a good compromise.

If you have lost fish for no apparent reason, it could be protozoan or parasites occasionally popping up - any signs/symptoms you noticed with the fish that died? Many, many fish from "big-box" and local stores come with some parasite issues, including internal worms. No knock of the stores, it all originates from the mass-production fish farms. Can't really blame them either, we all like our fish less expensive...but inexpensive sometimes comes at a cost.

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DKRST

· #8 · Nov 15, 2013

silvershark said:
i have 16 fish 2 silver sharks-5 angelfish-3 platys-3 corydoras-3 mollys.

Shoot, I wish Byron still hung out here, he was always great with the fish advice. Well, I'll take a stab at it. First possible issue is the mollys - they can be fin nippers and may harass the angels. Second, by "Silver Sharks", do you have a better description or a picture?

The angels, corys, and platys should get along fine, and if the molly's haven't caused an issue, don't worry about it. Only other note is that mollys often do better with some salt in the water BUT DO NOT ADD SALT - the corys and plants will not tolerate salt well at all.

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DKRST

· #11 · Nov 16, 2013

silvershark said:
hi
I do mean bala sharks , and the corydoras are 2 albino-2 bronze and 2 pepper, also I have lowered the tempeture to 77f I bought a chineese algae sucker and a white dotted pleco and 2 bonze and 1 albino corry today and everything seems fine now I also know I will have to rehome my silver or bala sharks as soon as possible, thanks again for advice, bye for now.

First, ditch the Chinese algae eater ASAP - not suited long term to a community tank. Good decision on the Bala sharks. Possible bad news for your plants also, plecos are not plant friendly to all plants (even BN plecos will eat some plants). If you don't have broad leaf plants like swords, you may be ok for a bit. Not certain what you mean by white spot pleco, but I'm assuming a BN (Bristlenose/bushynose)?

Nor certain what products you have locally, but if you just added new fish without using a quarantine tank, I'd recommend a prophylactic treatment of the entire tank with a copper sulfate produce. I use CopperSafe, and usually follow that up with an anti-nematode treatment of Flubendazole (dewormer) before fish get near my main tanks.

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