How to raise PH in tank Ways to Raise Your pH As stated above, it is generally a better idea to acclimate your fish to the pH of your water than to adjust your water to suit the pH preference of your fish. However, some people still like to match the natural environment as close as possible or have a pH that is way outside the range that is acceptable to their specific species. If this is the case, there are several methods you can use to raise the pH level in your tank. ● Water Changes – Over time, the pH in your aquarium will drop. The most effective method to raise it back up to the level of your tap water is to simply perform regular water changes. If you do not regularly do water changes, you may need to do several smaller ones rather than one large one (each separated by 24 hours) so that you do not shock the fish by making them go from a low pH to a high one immediately. Vacuuming all of the uneaten food and waste will also help to counter the tendency for the pH to drop over time. ● Rocks or substrate - Add some rock work or substrate to the aquarium that has the effect of raising the pH. For example, crushed coral is used as the substrate in many African cichlid tanks (African cichlids prefer a high pH). Limestone and petrified coral will also do the trick. If you do not want to add these rocks to your aquascaping, you can add a bag of crushed coral to your filter or hide some of these rocks behind the rocks you do want to showcase. Be very careful when using this method, however, because it could raise the pH in your tank beyond the appropriate level. ● Aeration – Increasing the oxygen concentration in your water will serve to drive down the carbon dioxide concentration. As discussed above, less carbon dioxide translates to a higher pH. Therefore, you can increase the aeration in the tank to raise the pH. To read about aerating your aquarium, reference the article entitled Properly Aerating your Aquarium in the article section of this website. ● Baking soda – Adding baking soda will raise the pH, but remember that this will need to be constantly added (you cannot just add it once and forget about it). You also need to be careful not to add too much at one time and cause a severe spike as this could kill your fish. It is best to gradually adjust the pH if you decide it must be adjusted. A general rule is 1 teaspoon per 5 gallons. Dissolve the baking soda in some water before adding it to the tank. Also remember that the above ratio of 1 teaspoon per 5 gallons is just a rule of thumb. For your specific case, take it slowly so you do not shock or kill your fish. ● Shells – Adding shells to your aquarium will raise the pH. ● Removing Anything that May be Lowering the pH – Below is a list of ways to lower the pH in your aquarium. Study this list to see if you are accidently using any of these methods and getting a low pH as a result. For example, maybe you placed a piece of drift wood in your tank without realizing it would lower the pH. If this is causing you problems, remove the drift wood. ● Chemicals – There are several commercial buffers currently available on the market. However, these are generally not recommended as they can lead to large spikes in your pH and usually only serve as a temporary fix. They will not in general, maintain the pH in your aquarium. However, if you have tried everything else and nothing is working, the buffers may do the trick.
Posted on: Sun, 30 Mar 2014 14:51:24 +0000
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