Fish enthusiasts are always talking about changes to aquarium pH. But most times the concern about pH changes really isn’t that necessary, or something to worry too much about. In the wild, fishes survive in a wide spectrum of pH levels and are not the worst for it. In the pet shop too, the store owners have too many fish to care for and are not too concerned about the levels of pH in their numerous tanks.
But when the fish arrives in our homes, because we have read too many tips and guides, we begin to acclimatize them to a perfect world where the water temperature is near perfect, water is crystal clear and pH is tested like a lab technician would. This only makes them less hardy to fluctuations.best fish tank filter
Adding chemical agents to increase or decrease the pH is never a good idea. These chemicals function by suddenly changing the water pH and it is this drastic change that is detrimental to the fishes health. However, there are some things that you can do to adjust the pH levels slowly. To lower pH levels, add a piece of wood as aquarium decoration and to increase the levels instead, add some corals or a sea shell. Doing this will not drastically alter the pH level of the water and will give your aquatic life time to adjust itself.
Sometimes there might be a sudden change in pH levels in an established aquarium. The sudden changes that happen can be detrimental to the fish and needs to be solved urgently. What you should be focusing on is to identify and eliminate the cause and not fight against the effect. The first thing to do is check the source of the water. If it came from tap water, test it to ensure it is not the source of the water that is contaminating the tank. Usually it isn’t the source that’s the problem but it is always good to be certain.
Next, have you placed anything new into the tank? A new decoration, new gravel, new filter media, anything? It is usually the introduction of something new that causes the rapid pH change. Take out the items that you think is causing the pH change, perform a 50% change of water, then monitor it for a couple of days. This will in most cases solve your pH crisis. The water change will buffer the pH back to near neutral levels.
It is always best to avoid pH changes. After all, isn’t prevention always better than cure? And it is actually easier than some experts say it is.
Firstly, minimize the number of chemicals you dump into the aquarium water. Most of the chemicals fish breeders use in their fish tank isn’t that important, so just add in the important stuff. Consult an expert on what is necessary and what is a waste of time.
Next, don’t keep changing the tank decoration. After adding something into a tank of water, it will take sometime to adjust to the conditions of the water and changing deco too frequently will only upset the balance that you have achieved.