Substrates & PH

Hey all...

I have an issue with my PH. My 2 BN tanks which have the same substrate (black gravel) and every other reading is Puuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurfect! But my PH is up around 7.6-7.8

My tank with my guppies and a "natural"gravel in it is also happy as larry but with a PH of 6.8-7

No matter what i try (added driftwood, water changes) i can not get my PH in my BN tanks to lower for more than 12hrs.


So my question is - Is it my substrate that is buffering the ph??? it is the only thing that is different between the tanks.

And if it is how do i go about changing the substrate in a tank with BN eggs & fry? - Dad is still in the log in one tank and the other tank my trio are getting very playful...

And (last one i promise) What do i change it too?


Ideas?

if it is the same black gravel that i used to have then it may be buffering it higher. I used to have it in my 4ft tank and it looked really good but after a while i began to notice the pH going up and the phosphate levels through the roof. after some experimentation with some distilled water I found that the gravel had gone from being rather inert to both buffering the pH higher and dumping phosphate into the water. Not what I wanted!

So I swapped it over for silica sand. Never looked back. I use it in all my tanks! Completely inert and looks good too.

Don't worry so much about the dad on the eggs, its only once they hatch you have to be careful. if he hasnt booted the eggs by now then i doubt he will. I can carry my males from room to room with eggs no worries as long as the eggs dont hit the air...fungus city!

Yeap thats what the gravel is doing to me.

Where is the best place to get this silica sand from Doug?
and how much pre-prep does it need before going into the tank...?

I dont think dad will come off the eggs or boot them, He has been really good with me doing water changes & splishing water everywhere... He comes out & gives me that "look" as if to say "will you buzz off, I'm working here!"

clark rubber is the best bet. It needs to be washed a LOT before use, massive dust in it!