Water parameter problems?

[afroturf]

I have a 25ish g tank that has been set up for 3-4weeks, it is waiting for a pair of wild A. iniridae although I'm having some problems with the ph, gh and kh.

I am using R.O. water and have been doing frequent 1/3 of the tank water changes made with 90% R.O. water, my tap water is around ph8-8.5 gh15 and kh7

The tank has been set up with plenty of bogwood and some almond leaves and a play sand substrate, and has had some peat added to the filter for about 5 days now. The levels are now ph7, gh around 7 and kh around 3. I am happy enough with the kh but would like the ph and gh to be lower especially with the apistos being wild.

Is there anything i can do to alther the ph and gh other than what i am already doing?

Cheers.

[genes]

You can add more peat. However, peat looses their effectiveness to lower the ph easily. So you will have to change the peat every month or so depending on how fast it leeches. Alternatively, there are black water extract products that you can use.

I'm not sure if ADA aquasoil is easily available in your country. Many of us here use this brand of gravel to lower and maintain the pH.

[afroturf]

I wanted to use sand as it gives a nicer look in the aquarium than the aquasoil and also the cost of 9l of aquasoil is £28 over here.

I don't have the greatest knowledge of ph, gh and kh but i have read that peat/almond leaves etc are useless if the water is to hard, would the 7dgh in my tank be considered to high for peat/almond leaves to be effective?

also what could be causing the gh to be quite abit higher than the kh?

[celticfish]

@ afroturf (btw i like your nick, sounds kinky! )

anyways, back to your question.
IMHO peat is good candidate IF your water is not so "hard".
but with your water parameters i feel that Sera pH Minus might be a more cost effective way to bring down your pH.
dedicated pH reducing water treatments generally affect the kH and gH effectively.
you can still supplement the tank water with peat for the "blackwater" effect.
but i do feel trying to take your water down in pH, though very possible, may not be cost effective.

in summary, take your pH down with the treatment before the water change (less time consuming and cost effective).
then supplement the tank with peat for a blackwater effect (staining the water).

[afroturf]

Hi celticfish I have considered the possibility of using a product like Sera ph minus, but i feel this may not be that cost effective.

However over the past few days i've been carrying out more frequent water changes with pure ro and the ph has fallen to 6.5 and kh 2-3 and gh 4-5 which is alot closer to what i want. Although i would like levels to be even lower i.e ph 5.5ish, gh and kh<2 as the wild iniridaes come from the softest and most acidic region of the amazon.

I think i just had to be a bit more patient after adding the peat, and after speaking to a local breeder he said it could consider the careful use of phosphoric acid. But this is just if the ph doesn't fall any further.

also how oftern should i replace the peat in my filter?
and should remove the almond leaves once they start decaying?

Cheers

[celticfish]

doh! i just realize you're in the UK...
you should have access to oak or beech leaves.
from what i read they don't breakdown as quickely as almond leaves (aka ketapang leave locally).
that might be a cheaper alternative to even peat.
and can help recreate a leaf litter biotope.

my local water is kh 4 and gH 2 with pH 7.
i tried sera minus once and "burned" my apisto.
peat or almond leaves are just nice for me though peat is less messy.
but considering how hard you base water is i suggested the idea of using sera minus is to hit the hardness quickely.
once its kH and gH (like mine) get to more manageable levels you can use to for a more "natural" adjustment.

i have a small bag just hanging on the side of the tank.
usual water changes are about 25&#37; and i do so about 4 times weekly.
the peat is changed about 3 months or so.
i can get away with this because of the soft water we have here.