Tap water Ph gone wild

[H&K.45]

Ok, i always test my water before i do a water change(both the tanks and the fresh H2O about to go in) , for as long as i can remember my tap water sat at a relatively high 7.8- 8.0, and i would blend it with RO untill it sat at 6.4....my tank stays at 6.4 and all is well, well today i went and filled my barrel after the WC with my blend as usual and it came out 7.5, odd i thought so i tested the direct tap water and it was off the charts, it maxed out my high range ph test at 8.8+ ....so i pumped some water out of the barrel and i am currently waiting on more RO to bring the Ph down to 6.4, at this rate it looks like im going to be mixing in a very high RO to tap ratio to keep my water right, has anyone els had this happen to their tap?

[jaykne]

Is the water for breeding discus?

[H&K.45]

no, its my community tank...unfortunately i dont have the space to house a breeding operation, i just like to keep it as nice for the fish as possiable

[William Palumbo]

I never had my tapwater ph fluctuate much, if at all. I live in Chicago, and I am on Lake Michigan water(Liquid Rock) If your fish are in a community tank, is there any specific reason why you are lowering the ph? Usually Discus do best in a STABLE environment, and tapwater that is not desirable for breeding, is very good for growing them out...Bill

[H&K.45]

well i keep my tank stable, always 6.4-6.6 ph , but i like to blend my tap with the RO/DI water that i make because central texas aquifer system sits on a giant slab of limestone, and has incrediably hard water with an average Ph of 7.8 but the TDS is super high (perfict for african cichlids) but i figure i would use some RO/DI water to make it a bit more tolerable for the discus, especially now since the PH is over 8.8 :shocked: may be this is all because of the drought we have had of late?

[poconogal]

I've had my tap PH rise up to 8.2 during the winter months, but I'm on my own well. In the spring/summer it would come down to 7.6. This past winter, it stayed at 7.6 for some reason though.

[Jhhnn]

Might want to check with you local water utility. They know what's going on with your water better than anybody else. Lots of water providers have websites, too- I know Denver Water has a really comprehensive one...

It's smart to test your tap water regularly, either before or after blending. Right now, you may be in the position where letting your pH come up to something in the neutral range might be a good answer, depending on just how much RO it takes to drive it lower...

Dunno what other fishes or plants you keep, but some of them may be more sensitive than the discus, who'll apparently thrive (if not breed) in fairly hard water and pH anywhere below 8.2 or so. George Garcia, for example, says he rears his youngsters in very hard Phoenix tap water with a pH above 8.0, and others apparently do, as well...

I count myself as lucky to get the excellent commodity that Denver Water delivers so inexpensively- the water out in some of the 'burbs is atrocious...

[H&K.45]

Nice, well i might try slowly raising it up more tward the neutral zone, could squeeze some more life out of my RO filter that way.

[ifixoldhouses]

This
happened to me this weekend, the tap water went to 8.8, I called water company and he said it was probally from living on a dead end st, they came out and flushed the fire hydrants and it went back to 6.8

[Chad Hughes]

Do you know if the TDS has actually shifted or just the Ph? If the TDS is still about the same I wouldn't worry about it too much. It's likely you just have an increase in the dKH, nothing more.

Best wishes!

[Scribbles]

My tap water comes from multiple wells and springs so my PH can vary. I just check it before wc so I can adjust the amount that I change if neccesary.

Chris