PH difference

[xpotato]

I am going to receive my discus this weekend.

I want to know how can I make my discus adjust to my tank's PH (6.4-7.0)
the breeder's PH is 7.7

[ronrca]

Slowly! ;)

One of the most importants things you can do for your fish when you first receive them is properly acclimate them. There are various methods around however I have found 1 particular method that works very well.

Supplies need:
- A container: 5G pail or similar! Size does not really matter except if you get lots of discus in one order you may need more or larger containers
- Airline hose
- Airline valve

When first receiving your discus, most , if not all are shipped in plastic bags containing X number of discus! Gently place the discus and water into the container from the bag. Connect the airline hose to the valve. Place one end of the airline hose in the tank that the discus are going to be calling home (other end will be connected to the valve). The other hose place into the container (Basicly, its a siphon setup). By siphoning the tank water into the container, you will slowly acclimate the discus to your tank parameters. The valves will enable you to adjust the flow rate. In the beginning, set the flow rate to only a drip until you roughly doubled the volume in the container. Then you can slowly increase the flow rate. Depending on the difference of water parameters, it will determine the lenght of acclimation. I would recommend nothing under 2 hours just to be cautious. I never use the plunk method even if water parameters are close. You may also want to add a heater once the container is half full. Once the container is full or you have added 5-10x the volume of water, net and place in your tank. If the container is full and you still need to add more water, just remove the water from the container via siphon or little container.

So far, this method has proven bullet proof and I prefer it over the float/add water/dump method.

[Carol_Roberts]

I would raise the pH in my tank to 7.5 with pH up or something similiar (even baking soda).

Then you can put your new arrivals directly in the tank.

I would do several small - 10% water changes per day with your low pH water. Within a couple of days they will be happily swimming in your tap water.

[xpotato]

Hi Carol,

Baking soda seems to be the cheapest WAY to bring up the PH.
I don't need any chemcial buffer, right?

[Carol_Roberts]

Baking soda dissipates quickly. You had better experiment to see how much to use and how long it will elevate the pH.

[xpotato]

Thanks Carol and all other ppl.

I have been this site foe 3 months.

After all u ppl's advice, I feel much more comfortable to have my first tank of discus.

thank you very much!!!! :D