# 7.6 ph



## Simes (15 Jan 2019)

hi. My aquarium has a ph level of 7.6. I originally wanted Pygmy Corys and Amanos but i did a bit of research and realised my ph is too high. Do you generally avoid species that aren’t suitable for your ph levels or do you lower the ph somehow? I’m aiming to keep things as simple as possible really. Thank you


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## oscarlloydjohn (15 Jan 2019)

Honestly, I think both will be fine in 7.6 pH. My LFS keeps them both in that pH (tap water). It's often best to keep parameters stable instead of constantly changing them to get an "ideal" pH.

There aren't many ways to safely lower pH in a stable and consistent way, except remineralising RO water.

Hope this helps


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## Majsa (15 Jan 2019)

My impression is that the PH isn't that important, but "ideal" water is a combination of things, cleanliness being the most important.
For example, CPDs are "suitable" for a PH to up to 7.5 but I have now fry swimming in my tap of PH ±8.3. Other things must be OK then. 
I'd be happy with 7.6 out of tap 
I am sure amano's won't care at least, I have in them one tank and the females are berried almost all the time.


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## tam (15 Jan 2019)

I'd ignore ph, but check/give some consideration to hardness. I think fish that like very soft or very hard water are much more likely to be less happy in the opposite - although many fish are flexible. My remineralised RO tank water is always somewhere around PH7.8-8.4 but it's GH6, where as the tap ph is similar but the hardness is GH18+. 

Tam


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## Simes (15 Jan 2019)

This is good to hear. How do you keep things stable. Weekly water changes?


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## tam (15 Jan 2019)

I'm low tech, fairly low stocked and top up with RO so I water change about 20% every 10-14 days and things seem to stay even. Higher stocking, high tech etc. people tend to favour 50% a week. Depends who you ask what recommendation you get on duration/percentage  

If you look at your local water report that will tell you a rough harness - you could also chat to your local fish shop as they'll know what the waters like and what fish thrive in it.


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## akwarium (15 Jan 2019)

A pH that is to high or low is harmful, water chemistry has a direct effect on the chemistry inside your fish. 
Fish have ways to cope with different circumstances (in nature they also have to deal with it) but in the long term, keeping fish under less than optimal conditions will cause health problems and shorten their lives.  A pH that is too low is usually more harmful,  because it causes fish to lose minerals and makes it harder to absorb oxygen from the water.  Conditions that are too alkaline will have a negative effect on the slime coat, it makes fish more vulnerable for diseases en can damage gills, eyes and skin. High pH may also increase the  toxicity of other substances. For example, the toxicity of  ammonia is ten times more severe at a pH of 8 than it is at pH 7.

That said, 7,6 is not too bad,  do you know the (carbon)hardness of the water?


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## roadmaster (16 Jan 2019)

If substrate is inert,and not contributing to hardness which in turn affect's pH ,I would not fret .
More important as mentioned, that the water chemistry or pH is stable.You want water that you can most easily reproduce for source water which can be straight from the Tap.
Weekly or By- weekly water changes with this water will keep things stable IMHO.
My tap water pH is 7.6 straight from the tap,and 12dgh.and I have kept Amano and cherry shrimps along with many species of cory's who regularly spawned,but other fishes were quick to eat the egg's.
I would want to keep cory's and shrimps around 75 degree's F = ? C for they seem to burnout more quickly at higher temps.Fishes that might live but a few month's at higher temps ,might live for Years at cooler temps which are often not considered.
Opinion's vary.


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## Simes (16 Jan 2019)

Thanks guys. I will check my water hardness and get back to you


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## Simon Cole (23 Jan 2019)

Would you like some grindal worms? My pygmy corydoras love them.


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## zozo (23 Jan 2019)

I have a rather high pH from the tap 7.5 and depleted in the tank average 8 + depends on the light cycle, highest point 8.5 at max plant metabolism.
Kept Pygmy cory in this without problems still happily living after 5 years. This is my average low energy pH profile i do not know any beter and yet never encountered a fish experiencing trouble with it not even the wild caught specimen. Tho rather experience some plants do..

There are field research papers posted on this forum with Ph data from south american water ways.. Huge pH fluctuations were measured during 24 hour cycle, such drastic difference between morning and evening, in our aqauriums it would be deemed disasterous.

Ofcourse i'm not advocating replicating conditions like this in fish tanks, but it seems fish are highly resiliant to natural pH fluctuations and don't seem to care much about it. After all they evolved to live and survive in water and mother nature can be a B... they have been longer on this earth than we are..

I'm pretty sure, for the average community fish in the trade as long as you stay bellow pH8.5 you do not need to worry.  Strickt husbandry is a pre tho, regardless the values.


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## roadmaster (23 Jan 2019)

I believe fishes in the wild can travel freely from shallow warmer water, to deeper cooler water's  as they see fit to provide them some comfort.
Believe they can also do this to maybe find water with pH more to their liking in a stream where they might be gathered from.
This ability would not be so easy in an aquarium where water chemistry is what it is.
I have kept domestic Discus  in water previously mentioned without issue, but so many of them are tank raised, that they seemingly have little trouble adapting so long as the chemistry is stable.
I try to keep only fishes that I feel might do best with water I can most easily reproduce (Tap).
For more sensitive species I have cut tap water with R/O with good results.


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## zozo (23 Jan 2019)

That is the dark side in our hobby, mainly we can only speculate if a fish is realy happy in our aqaurium.. Even if it lives very long we can't say it lives in optimal comfortablility. Comparing it to human conditons, also people can live 90 years in a heavily by smog polluted city.

I often phylosophize about it looking into my tank.. And think as long as they show natural playfull display they must be happy.. But than again i think, what is natural playfull display?. I dunno for real, i assume more than i know.


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## Tim Harrison (23 Jan 2019)

Generally speaking fish have evolved a degree of plasticity in response to changing environmental conditions. However, under normal circumstances I doubt immediate environmental conditions alone are much of a stimulus for moment, I think that behaviour is largely driven by the need to find food, avoid predation and mate etc.
In the context of the planted tank, maintaining critter health has very little to do with the pH, and hardness of tap water and far more to do with good tank husbandry; regular water changes, keeping the filter clean, good O2 saturation, and ensuring good plant health which in turn provides all sorts of benefits to the health of aquatic animals.
And in response to the OP I've kept pygmy corys and Amanos in rock hard water with a pH of 7.6 -7.8 without any problems whatsoever, and both appeared perfectly happy


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## roadmaster (23 Jan 2019)

I would agree that the fishes in the wild, or in our tanks, evolve or adapt,or they become sickly and die.
I single handedly killed untold number's of fishes in early years by assuming that they should adapt .
To environmental condition's being stimulus for movement,,,Oxygen is primary IMHO lest they struggle tobreath.
Warmer waters hold less O2 than cooler water's.Moving water holds more O2 than stagnant conditions.Freshwater holds more O2 than salt water.
Fishes in streams don't have you or I feeding them each day like the fishes we keep in our tanks,so they must search it out,or position themselves where food comes to them with little energy exerted.
As to hardness or pH and adaptability, I am not as comfortable as others to dismiss them too completely.
I have noted however that over the years that tropical's most often found in stores here in US are becoming less an less hardy than they were just 10 yrs ago.


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## DutchMuch (23 Jan 2019)

Simes said:


> hi. My aquarium has a ph level of 7.6. I originally wanted Pygmy Corys and Amanos but i did a bit of research and realised my ph is too high. Do you generally avoid species that aren’t suitable for your ph levels or do you lower the ph somehow? I’m aiming to keep things as simple as possible really. Thank you


lol i used to keep cories of different types in a pH of 7.8 and they thrived 
Of course i did a 2-4 hour long drip acclimation period but i always do this.

Now you cant do this with *All* type's of fish. Corys particularly are a pretty hardy sp. for example, if you did this with discus, you'd have many issues most likely...


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## dw1305 (23 Jan 2019)

Hi all, 





DutchMuch said:


> Of course i did a 2-4 hour long drip acclimation period but i always do this


You have to be really careful with _Corydoras,_ they are <"very prone to self poisoning">. 

For this reason I'd strongly recommend not drip acclimating _Corydoras. _I've now come to the conclusion that the best method of transferring any fish, from its transport bag into the tank, is fairly rapidly. 

cheers Darrel


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## DutchMuch (23 Jan 2019)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all, You have to be really careful with _Corydoras,_ they are <"very prone to self poisoning">.
> 
> For this reason I'd strongly recommend not drip acclimating _Corydoras. _I've now come to the conclusion that the best method of transferring any fish, from its transport bag into the tank, is fairly rapidly.
> 
> cheers Darrel


interesting! Personally i have never encountered any issues nor symptoms- but dully noted!

However i must sort of disagree with the: Bag-> tank immediately thing... Multiple reports say that is stressful, and sometimes Very stressful. Personally when i acclimate i get a 5 gallon bucket (clean of course) and slowly empty the bag into the bucket. Slowly over a as said 2-4 hour period having a 1dps into the bucket from the tank. Have i had any issues doing this over the years (to both inverts and fish)? Not so far.


Edit:
via the link he says he acclimated them for 1.5 hours and says when he bought them, the bag was milky and in bad condition. But in my case i buy from reputable breeders, etc. i do see the point in that thread that adding them ASAP is a solid method. However i have personally experienced more negative things (and seen more negative reviews) in doing that, than drip acclimating. Even with evidence on both sides (drip vs immediate), both seem to have equal numbers of pros and cons.


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## zozo (23 Jan 2019)

DutchMuch said:


> interesting! Personally i have never encountered any issues nor symptoms- but dully noted!
> 
> However i must sort of disagree with the: Bag-> tank immediately thing... Multiple reports say that is stressful, and sometimes Very stressful. Personally when i acclimate i get a 5 gallon bucket (clean of course) and slowly empty the bag into the bucket. Slowly over a as said 2-4 hour period having a 1dps into the bucket from the tank. Have i had any issues doing this over the years (to both inverts and fish)? Not so far.
> 
> ...



It also depends all a bit on several things.. How many fish in the bag, how long have they been in it, the temperature etc.

Cory's have that defence system to also secret a poison when in stress.. Others not secreting poisen secret excess waste in form of ammonia when in stress.. Name it sh^t their pants.. All this accumulates in this small volume...

In many if not most cases get them out off it asap is beter than a so called aclimatize to be put in what obviously should be healthy pristine tank water. 

A healthy fish takes that without issues.. If it doesn't don't blame it on your actions, because likely it wasn't healthy in the first place.


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## dw1305 (23 Jan 2019)

Hi all, 





DutchMuch said:


> Even with evidence on both sides (drip vs immediate), both seem to have equal numbers of pros and cons.


Yes, there is definitely proponents of both approaches. 

If you are successful with drip acclimating keeping on doing that, I don't buy many fish (and often not from shops when I do)  so I only have limited experience of introducing new fish/shrimps to the tank. 

My original rationale was that the water in my tanks is going to be a lot lower in ammonia and higher in oxygen than the bag water, so I'm going to aim to get the fish into better quality water as soon as possible. 

cheers Darrel


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## Simes (25 Jan 2019)

Interesting points. I currently have 10 zebra danios and 4 amanos. They all look happy enough. It’s interesting watching their behaviour


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