Low pH, can I use a buffer???

[DogLady0142]

Hi all
After trying to help my tank by adding pothos on the top, my ph is getting too low, like 6. I've been adding baking soda after water changes, but I don't think it's enough. I've been looking into using buffers for cichlids, seachem has a few products, do you think it's axolotl safe?

I noticed today, one of my girls seems to have a red spot. I'm assuming because of the low pH??

Thanks

 

[wolfen]

ph buffers should be fine, limestone and crushed shells/coral will work as well as will using holtfreters solution.

 

[DogLady0142]

Sorry I forgot to mention, I tried a bag of

ph buffers should be fine, limestone and crushed shells/coral will work as well as will using holtfreters solution.

Crushed coral. I waited a few days and retested, my ph went lower???? Should I have given it a bit longer? Another strange observation, the red blotches on the axolotl gas gone by the afternoon. Maybe she rubbed up against the area and caused the redness? If it was from low ph, stands to reason it won't disappear.

 

[wolfen]

what's your ph and nitrate levels

 

[DogLady0142]

what's your ph and nitrate levels

K I just tested, I have no idea why I'm getting numbers all over the place? Ph is 7.6 (ideal I know) high ph is 7.4, nitrite is 0, nitrate 0. I don't have the coral in anymore, and I need to do a water change. I try to on a weekly basis. It's a 75 g with 4 females. Maybe the plants just needed to "kick in". I thought it was normal for plants to lower pH. Just the other day, the pH was at 6.

 

[wolfen]

it isn't that plants lower ph they mostly prefer low ph water, this is most noticeable if using co2.
ph can be decreased due to the nitrogen cycle (which is why it's important to keep an eye on the ph when cycling a tank) if possible test the kh gh of the tap water.
although your nitrate is low stick to weekly water changes as the kh may not be high enough to keep the ph stable.

 

[DogLady0142]

it isn't that plants lower ph they mostly prefer low ph water, this is most noticeable if using co2.
ph can be decreased due to the nitrogen cycle (which is why it's important to keep an eye on the ph when cycling a tank) if possible test the kh gh of the tap water.
although your nitrate is low stick to weekly water changes as the kh may not be high enough to keep the ph stable.

Is there an article or YouTube video you can recommend to understand more about KH and GH? I'm still trying to understand it better.

 

[wolfen]

both these explain a bit about kh gh ... Water Quality Explained: How It Can Affect Your Axolotl's Health - WSAVA 2015 Congress - VIN Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity
with drip tests each drip is 1° (one degree), so if it takes 5 drips to change colour then it is 5°, with stick test the result is in ppm, so if the result is 150ppm then to get degrees divide 150 by 17.9, ie.. 150ppm ÷ 17.9 = 8.37° or 8°.

 

[DogLady0142]

both these explain a bit about kh gh ... Water Quality Explained: How It Can Affect Your Axolotl's Health - WSAVA 2015 Congress - VIN Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity
with drip tests each drip is 1° (one degree), so if it takes 5 drips to change colour then it is 5°, with stick test the result is in ppm, so if the result is 150ppm then to get degrees divide 150 by 17.9, ie.. 150ppm ÷ 17.9 = 8.37° or 8°.

Thanks wolfen