Hippoherder Posted March 8, 2011 Report Share Posted March 8, 2011 I am going to need to lower my ph into the low 6 range. My understanding is PH down is only a temporary solution unless you purify your water prior. It sounds like the peat pellets are a bit of a better solution. I've never had to lower Ph before so this is new territory for me. Can someone reccomend one over the other? Do I just make a makeshift bag to store the peat pellets in my filter? I would hope there are some kind of instructions but I'd be ordering this online from Big Al's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted March 8, 2011 Report Share Posted March 8, 2011 Probably the most reliable way of lowering pH is by mixing tap water w. RO, but peat will work as well. I always used to just put a bunch of peat in an old nylon/pantyhose and either toss it in the filter or the tank itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Posted March 8, 2011 Report Share Posted March 8, 2011 Probably the most reliable way of lowering pH is by mixing tap water w. RO, but peat will work as well. I always used to just put a bunch of peat in an old nylon/pantyhose and either toss it in the filter or the tank itself. I've never heard of the RO process reducing the pH significantly. I know my tap water pH is ~8, I'll test it after it goes through my RO system. I mix RO water and tap to reduce my hardness but if it also reduces pH, I better check as I might be making my tanks too acidic. Ron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted March 9, 2011 Report Share Posted March 9, 2011 Mix RO with tap water, then add CO2... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hippoherder Posted March 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2011 What does RO stand for? Mix RO with tap water, then add CO2... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rayfong Posted March 9, 2011 Report Share Posted March 9, 2011 Reverse Osmosis. RO water will be close to neutral pH with little hardness. You can use a seachem product called Discus buffer. I use it and I know syno321 also uses it as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BooUrns! Posted March 9, 2011 Report Share Posted March 9, 2011 Reverse Osmosis. RO water will be close to neutral pH with little hardness. You can use a seachem product called Discus buffer. I use it and I know syno321 also uses it as well. What's the difference between Seachem's Acid buffer and Discus buffer? I bought some of the acid buffer to try and alter water parameters down to around ph 6.0 aswell but wasn't sure if it worked of if my digital ph meter is unreliable. I got the initial readings down almost instantly but checking a few hours later I got higher readings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hippoherder Posted March 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2011 From what I have been reading, it sounds like additives don't work well or for long unless the water is reverse osmosis or purified first. I don't know for sure because this is my first time doing any of this. Peat is supposed to be a more stable solution...again from what I am understanding from my reading - not fromexperience. Reverse Osmosis. RO water will be close to neutral pH with little hardness. You can use a seachem product called Discus buffer. I use it and I know syno321 also uses it as well. What's the difference between Seachem's Acid buffer and Discus buffer? I bought some of the acid buffer to try and alter water parameters down to around ph 6.0 aswell but wasn't sure if it worked of if my digital ph meter is unreliable. I got the initial readings down almost instantly but checking a few hours later I got higher readings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted March 9, 2011 Report Share Posted March 9, 2011 The rate that peat softens and acidifies the water depends on its original hardness. Hard water may not change much at all unless you're using a prohibitive amount of peat. You should still look at RO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevinLa Posted April 21, 2011 Report Share Posted April 21, 2011 Can someone help me please?I add half arro and half tap to the 75 gal tank and add some p. H down but it seem like is not staying down. I tested last night was 6.8 now this morning read at 7.3 plus my discus seem dark and has a cloudy eyes. And always hiding I don't know what to do to bring their colour back please help me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syno321 Posted April 21, 2011 Report Share Posted April 21, 2011 (edited) Can someone help me please?I add half arro and half tap to the 75 gal tank and add some p. H down but it seem like is not staying down. I tested last night was 6.8 now this morning read at 7.3 plus my discus seem dark and has a cloudy eyes. And always hiding I don't know what to do to bring their colour back please help me. You are proceeding correctly by trying to lower the water softness using RO water. This will also help to acidify the water when using additives. I prefer Discus Buffer by Seachem as I don't get the pH bounce that you got. Are you lowering the pH to attempt to breed your discus? If not then softening and lowering the pH is NOT necessary to keep discus alive and well. They have bred for me many times in the past in our normal tap water, which is usually a sign of good maintenance. If you are adjusting the water parameters for breeding the adjustments will definitely aid in egg survival and hatching. Edited April 21, 2011 by syno321 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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