breeding ph

what is optimum breeding ph?

depends what fish, where they came from (wild or tank) what they where used to and what they feel comfortable in...

if where talking commons then they will usally go in most water ph as long as there comfortable...

but generally from 6.5-7.5 i would say...

common albinos

Commons are less demanding as regards pH and anywhere between 6.5 and 7.3 is suitable. Although they have been known to breed at higher pH breeding can be less regular.

ok maybe she is just not ready yet

ya was a little high put some ph down in the tank

How high was it and what does the "pH down" alter it to

Is the pH rising in the tank or is it high when it goes in

If it was only a little high then I would have added some more bogwood or a few alder cones rather than adding chemicals. Stable pH, even if it is slightly high, is better than constantly altering it with chemicals.

agree with the bogwood......

as a rule unless your going to pre mix batches of the same ph water its generally not worth using ph down......

if you do need to bring the ph down i would start to look towards using ro or hma water mix...much easier....

dont use pH down, its more trouble than its worth! i would suggest you would have better luck with breeding at a higher pH than using chemicals to lower the pH. as mentioned, filters are a much better option

Commons need pH around 7.0, although mine are doing fine and regarding spawning they are regular clockwork in pH 7.5 water.

Be careful with changing pH - either up or down - in order to avoid pH shock.
Fish will become lethargic, they stop eating, etc. After a few days if the pH shock continues then the fish will usually die.

it only lowers it a little bit a a time. i don't have any bogwood or alder cones. and the ph is 8.1
and idk what this is? ro or hma water mix.

Havn't you got any wood in the tank at all ?

What is the pH of the water that you are using for the water changes and what kind of decor and substrate are you using. Unless the water your using for water changes is 8.1 pH then there is something in your tank causing it to rise by releasing carbonates.

Are you saying that there is no bogwood in your tank, BN's need it as it is believed to aid in digestion and they will often be seen rasping on it.

no i have wood in there its just i don't have more to put in it. i think the ph of the water from the tap is already tht high

That seems high to me.Have you tested the water from the tap and in the tank?Like Jim asked what else is in the tank apart from wood and fish?

regular aquarium gravel and some pvc pipe for breeding

are drift wood and bogwood the same thing?

Bogwood as its name suggests is wood that is found in bogs and has been preserved due to anaerobic conditions. Driftwood is the wood that you find on the sea shore.

If you have driftwood in your tank this could be the reason for the high pH, it could have absorbed salt and other things which are now being released. Some types of gravel can also have a high calcium content.

First thing check the pH of the water coming out of your tap, do a couple of tests, one straight out the tap and then test the same sample again severel hours later if it's less than 8.1 then its probably one of the other two.

but its not from the ocean its from a lake.

Have you got a picture of the wood?

Your water seems unusually high for just tap water. A trick I learnt is to leave a bucket of treated tap water with a ph down buffer (seachem discus buffer is good) and leave it for a couple days and use that for your waterchanges. Ph should lower to desired amount after 3 or so water changes. There are natural buffers like bogwood and peat moss but iv never had a problem with powder buffers. Some people dont like chemical buffers but iv never had any problems. Hasn't effected my discus and I buffer the waterchange water every time. Changing too much ph too soon can stress the fish tho so little bits at a time is recommended.

Brandon O wrote:

no i have wood in there its just i don't have more to put in it. i think the ph of the water from the tap is already tht high

All right, to put things straight, I would like to ask you to do the followings:
1) Check the pH level of the tapwater, as it comes out.
2) Check the pH value of the water you use for WCs (assuming you let the water "rest" for 24 hours, at least, so Chlorine has time to get out)
3) Please let us know what kind of substrate/gravel is in the tank.

When you have these data, please come back to this topic, because until we have detailed information of the conditions, we could only guess, hence give ideas, which may lead to further complications.