zim64half
Fri Sep 14, 2007, 01:35 AM
Howdy.
I have a 72 gallon tank, which has 3 medium to small discus in it.
I have been doing water changes, and when I do, I am using my home's tap water.
My tap water is being treated by a home water softener, and also comes out with a high pH - around 7.8
I have been adding "discus buffer" to the water to bring it back to around 6.8 when I do a re-fill.
But even though I am able to get the pH to come down (I should probably get it to go lower too) I am not able to affect one reading on my water chemistry test strip. "Alkilinity" which is a different reading than the pH.
My alkalinity is always pegged at the high end of the chart - 300 ppm KH.
Is this stressing out my fish? If it is, how do I get it to come down?
(My fish are not exactly thriving. 2 look ok. The biggest one is growing slowly - the other isn't - and the 3rd looks beat up all the time.)
Also - is there a reasonable way to get the pH to come down, without spending $15 a bottle on discus buffer - which is only enough for about 2 water changes?
Thanks in advance!
-Zim
I have a 72 gallon tank, which has 3 medium to small discus in it.
I have been doing water changes, and when I do, I am using my home's tap water.
My tap water is being treated by a home water softener, and also comes out with a high pH - around 7.8
I have been adding "discus buffer" to the water to bring it back to around 6.8 when I do a re-fill.
But even though I am able to get the pH to come down (I should probably get it to go lower too) I am not able to affect one reading on my water chemistry test strip. "Alkilinity" which is a different reading than the pH.
My alkalinity is always pegged at the high end of the chart - 300 ppm KH.
Is this stressing out my fish? If it is, how do I get it to come down?
(My fish are not exactly thriving. 2 look ok. The biggest one is growing slowly - the other isn't - and the 3rd looks beat up all the time.)
Also - is there a reasonable way to get the pH to come down, without spending $15 a bottle on discus buffer - which is only enough for about 2 water changes?
Thanks in advance!
-Zim