Water probs

[mark]

anthony said:

Gh has nothing to do with youy ph. Highering the kh will raise our ph a.d vice versa.
Bare in mind that a kh of 1 of less is bound to lead to ph crash.
Here is a tip. Keep fish that are happy living within your water parameters.
Match the fish to the water and not the water to the fish. Most ph reducers are useless and only temporary.

i agree if your fish are happy and healthy i would not try to mess with your ph,i would just keep up with weekly water changes and your tank should settle.

[dumpystig]

Here's a quick update on my water:
pH is around 7, but after a 40% water change it crashed to 6 and I had to add sodium bicarb again, any ideas on this?
Got Nitrate (10-20), Nitrite (zero) and Ammonia (zero) all down for two days, then all three started to increase yesterday, tonights readings are, respectively, 20-40, 0.5, 0.25.
To be honest it's all doing my head in, seems like trying to get my water right is taking over my life (she aint happy either!). Maybe I'm doing something wrong, if anyone has any more ideas I will gladly take them on board.
Cheers

[karen]

Have you tested they ph of your tap water yet?I would continue to do 20% water changes 40% is too much to be changing in my opinion.

[dumpystig]

Hi Karen, tap water is ph 7, 2dGH, 1dKH, very soft! Todays readings are back down again so I will do another 20% and test again tomorrow (been testing minimum twice a day for past 10 days) just can't figure out why its fluctuating so much. But I am getting the lower results I want, so hopefully its nearly there, the water does seem to be settling down a bit compared to 12 days ago

[jackpike]

Are u using dechlorinater in new water or are u filling aquarium straight from the tap. if so because u are doing big water changes that could be causing your ammonia and nitrite to fluctuate. Your big piece of bog wood is causing the dropping Ph the only way to stop it is by removing it.

[dumpystig]

Hi Jack, I use 5ml Tetra Aquasafe per 10L bucket, added whilst the tap is running. Will be using Interpet Tapsafe soon, does same job and 1/5 the price.
I boiled bogwood for 3 hours on Friday night and left to soak in clean water for 24 hours. I will remove it now and do another 20% tomorrow, minus bogwood, and let you know test results.
Cheers mate

[jackpike]

try to avoid those big water changes too, no more than 20%

[dumpystig]

Will do. I decided on 40% as I didn't seem to be getting anywhere with 20%, but I'll keep doing 20% (without bogwood) and get back to you tomorrow

[jackpike]

N1, I'm sure u will see results soon

[dumpystig]

Sorry about delay but been very busy, and wanted to wait in the hope of getting more consistent results.
The water has settled down a lot more now, pH is remaining at 7.0 even after a 20% change, which I am now doing every 2 days.
Ammonia zero, Nitrite zero, Nitrate 20, and its been like this for the last 6 days so I think I'm nearer to having it all sorted out.
A few days ago I noticed the filter (Fluval 305) output was very weak. It turned out the polyester wool in the top basket was completely blocked; I had obviously put too much in at the start and it was a semi-solid mass blocking the flow. So I binned it and re-connected the filter, primed it and started it up. Jeez, the crap that shot into the tank was unbelievable! Due to the much reduced flow through the filter all sorts of detritus had built up in both hoses, so I flushed them with garden a hose into a bucket and it was amazing how much more filth came out. some of it was even ribbed the same as the hoses. So another lesson learned!
So I'm hoping after another few days it should be settled and I can get into the routine of only having to do water changes and tests once a week.
Thanks for your help so far, being a novice no doubt I will be needing it again soon.


BTW I think the 'Word' game is great!

[jackpike]

U should change your polywool media once a week because it does start getting clogged up with dirt. Your ammonia and nitrite are down to zero and should stay there now, so there is no need to do daily water changes, Doing a 20% water change once or even twice a week will suffice from now on. Well Done dumpy

[dumpystig]

Cheers JP, thanks once again for the advice. Got another prob so I'll start another post (or is it thread?), just gotta find where to put it.....

[karen]

Well done dumpystig all your hard work has finally paid off

[dumpystig]

Good news folks, all tests (twice a day!) are now constant, pH 7, Nitrite zero, Nitrate 10 - 20, although Ammonia is either zero or 0.25, am I correct in thinking this is acceptable?
I reckon the bacteria is finally becoming established, so this is when I hope it all starts getting easier to maintain my tank and fish.
All your interest and advice has been really helpful, so a BIG
From me and my fish

[karen]

Your ammonia should be 0 at all times but your tank is coming to the end of cycling so it will eventually settle down but do continue with your water changes till you get it to 0.