How to fix low water buffer?

[jkh772]

I just got the ACO test strips and found my buffer is very low.  My tap water is already high hardness (max) and high pH (>7.5).

I have 3 tanks, and my big tank (55g, sand substrate, floating plants- cichlids) the buffer dropped very low and the pH has gone below 7. My other 2 smaller tanks (5g, 18g, sand substrate, planted tank w/ guppies) seem to have decent buffer but the pH has remained ~ 7.5, high hardness. 

Any recommendation to raise buffer if the hardness is already high? I presume if i raise the buffer and use regular water changes with my high pH tap the tank will eventually correct pH but i don't want to do it too fast. 

Thanks!

[Tony s]

You’ll be fine doing just water changes. If you’re concerned, do several smaller changes over the week. It will correct itself. I’m guessing water changes have gotten away from you in this tank. It’s not a problem, happens to most people from time to time 

[jkh772]

Thanks! I did recently have to move the tank which required a near 100% water change 2 weeks ago so that may have threw things out of whack. The fish in the tank are looking just fine so i'll just start with some smaller water changes.

I was just surprised since my parameters were very stable for a long time and I've never seen my pH drop below 7 before. I was starting to look at chemical buffers but wanted to get some ideas from the group first before i start chasing numbers. 

Thanks!

[jkh772]

Brief update I’ve been doing 20% water changes daily but my buffer still shows as zero and pH around or right below 7. I retested my tap water and pH coming out is still mid 7s and buffer is very high on the test strips.  

Should i be concerned that something in the tank is dropping the buffer so much? I purchased some crushed coral to add buffer since my hardness out of the tap and in the tank is still very high, should be coming in from ACO next week. But not sure if there is something i should be looking for that is dropping my buffer so much. Tanks are about 6 mo old, was very stable with mid/high buffer for months. Switched to testing weekly just for nitrates with the API test kit.  I just recently got the ACO test strips and realized my buffer was so low. 

Thanks!

[Mmiller2001]

I would first ask, why do you want to raise KH?

[jkh772]

Haha maybe I should have started with that. I'm a long-time fish keeper but only recently got into testing. you guys can tell me if this is a case of chasing numbers but I am over-reacting. 

My understanding was that KH increases stability of pH and reduces the chance of big swings which could be bad for the fish. I was concerned that my pH dropped relatively suddenly- was stable 7.5+ (similar to tap) but dropped to < 7 in a few weeks.  When reading about it (and because its on the test strip) i was able to see the KH had also dropped from very high out of the tap to very low/undetectable in the tank. 

So far my fish have been behaving just fine, I just wanted to make sure i'm not missing a potential big crash if something is brewing in my tank and is a precursor to my pH dropping even more. 

 

Thanks!

 

[jkh772]

Not sure if also relevant- but my tanks are planted- a ton of floating plants (amazon frogbit) and some starter water wisteria and anubias. Not sure if the plants affect the kh as well. I am relatively new to planted tanks. I keep mostly fake plants in the big cichlid tank but I like the look of the frogbit and the cichlids seem to leave them alone. And cuts down on the algae a ton!

 

Thanks!

[Tony s]

Yeah, i honestly wouldn't chase any of ph gh or kh. fish will adapt to those numbers just fine. even most sensitive species. Some people forget that 85% of the US has slightly hard to very hard water. using what's available is the best policy. now ph gh kh will factor in what will actually breed for you, if you're interested in that. Kh is, as you said, the buffering agent that reduces violent swings in ph and helps to stabilize the ph of your tank. There is a thing called old tank syndrome, where the ph and kh gradually lowers over time. this is usually due to break down of organic matter. usually from an tank that needs serious amount of cleaning. sounds like you're on top of things though. possibly increase to bigger changes until it matches your tap again

my plants dont usually affect kh, but my lack of time really does

Edited February 7 by Tony s

[Mmiller2001]

I agree with @Tony shere, unless you are wanting to go down the rabbit hole, doing more frequent water change will keep you plenty stable. If you do want to increase KH, using K2CO3 (potassium carbonate) is the way to go in planted tanks.

[jkh772]

Thanks! That is very reassuring.  Appreciate everyone's input!