pH regulator

[Krys10386]

I bought a bottle of Wardley's Essentials Bullseye 7.0 Neutral pH regulator since te pH was extremely high. Is it safe to add tot he newt tank while they are in there? or should I take them out?


Thanks!

 

[Kaysie]

You should not use pH regulating products. What is 'extremely high' pH, and what's the cause of the high pH? It's best to settle the issues causing pH values rather than causing fluctuations in pH by using pH regulating products.

 

[Jennewt]

My normal tap water pH is about 8.0, and I have no problems with using this water for keeping and breeding newts. As Kaysie mentioned, there may be something in the tank that is raising it (like shells or certain kinds of rock), and the best approach would be to remove the source of the problem. If you do decide to add the product, it should be done very gradually - I have heard a recommendation of doing no more than a change of 0.2 pH per day.

 

[Abrahm]

I have been keeping newts in high pH (~8) for nearly three years now. They don't have a hard time adapting, but they do have problems with constantly shifting pH values. Shifts of 0.2 or so a day should be fine.

Lowering pH is a very difficult task. Normally when you have high pH it is because you have high carbonate (KH) in your water. Carbonate and its sister bicarbonate are an acid and base and act as a buffer and at their highest levels keep the pH at about 8.4 or so. Buffers are chemical groups that keep pH from changing much. They "soak up" acids or bases when you put them in and cause only a small change in pH.

Products like Wardley's Bullseye are usually a mixture of buffers and other compounds. If you add this to an aquarium with high pH (which almost always means high KH) it will have nearly no effect because your water is already well buffered. Using other chemicals that cause quick declines in pH will cause nearly no change before causing the pH to plummet like a rock. This is really bad for your animals.

The best way to lower the pH of water is to first run your water through a reverse osmosis (RO) filtering system. This strips out most of the carbonate, bicarbonate and pretty much any impurity in the water. The pH of the water will probably be really low now. To this you should add the buffering system, like the Bullseye (or you can make one at home) and then a solution of trace minerals. This isn't really worth it in the long run for caudates as most are not sensitive about pH.