Discus/Angels in planted tank. - South Western Ohio Aquatic Plant Enthusiasts (SWOAPE)

steel1212 · 03-06-2006, 04:16 PM

This may seem like a stupid question but I'm still a plant nubie. Anyway, if I'm doing 50% water changes for the plants and my ph in my tap water is 7.4 or around there and I'm running 2 DIY co2s do I need to use buffer to bring it back down to around 6.8 or so? The only reason I'm asking is I ran out of ph test in my test kit.

JRJ · 03-06-2006, 04:29 PM

Just my opinion, but I've learned to leave my water alone. The fish really don't seem to mind what I do with it. I think the weekly 50% water changes put them in heaven. The only reason I'd do anything is if you aren't' seeing any pearling, then I might add a small amount of baking soda or a buffer like Seachem's Alkaline Buffer (this might seem counter intuitive with discus, but the key phase here is 'small amount). Now in KY you might have very different water than I, but 7.4 seems like you've got decent water to start with. Mine is 8.2 out of the tap.

There are some folks in SWOAPE with discus who will undoubtedly chime in. Jim?

-Russ

Troy McClure · 03-06-2006, 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steel1212

This may seem like a stupid question but I'm still a plant nubie. Anyway, if I'm doing 50% water changes for the plants and my ph in my tap water is 7.4 or around there and I'm running 2 DIY co2s do I need to use buffer to bring it back down to around 6.8 or so? The only reason I'm asking is I ran out of ph test in my test kit.

Proper CO2 injection will drop the pH so you won't need any chemical to adjust that. Most fish won't care what pH you put them in as long as they are adjusted properly. The only time I've heard of it causing any kind of problems is for breeding.

What is your kH and gH?

steel1212 · 03-06-2006, 05:00 PM

I'm a nobie and have no idea. I need to get a master test kit with all that in there.

MatPat · 03-06-2006, 07:37 PM

Jim (molurus73) is breeding Discus in Middletown tap water! I don't know the specifics of Jim's tap water but the fish breed regularly so they must be pretty happy with it

Maybe he will give you some advice!

Troy McClure · 03-06-2006, 09:43 PM

Hit up Jim about discus questions. He's our resident discus guru! Actually, I think he's more of a marketing tool for Cincinnati Discus. When we first got there Sunday, the guy working there says to Jim, "Ah, bringing in another one?"

As long as you are matching temperatures and using dechlor, your tap water -should- be just fine for discus.

If you come to the next meeting, bring a tap water sample with you. Matt might be able to run a series of tests on it (not to volunteer you or anything, Matt.)