Can oscars live in black water?

twentyleagues

Bronze Tier VIP
MFK Member
Apr 5, 2017
6,674
9,876
463
Flint town!
Thank u tlindsey waht about leaves will the go on lowering the ph or stop at certain point I know they have to be change once a month
This will depend on the gh and kh of the water. Kh will affect the acids from the leaves ability to lower the pH. If kh is high enough it will do little to the overall pH of the water. Keep in mind that regular waterchanges need to be made to replenish the kh levels and obviously remove the bad elements. I have a tank that honestly I'd not need to do waterchanges on ever except for the fact of the kh being depleted and causing bad pH swings. I do weekly top offs and monthly 30% water changes. Luckily my kh and gh are over 14dkh and I think that finally after 5 years of being in and out of water the very large piece of drift wood is starting to stop affecting the tank and giving off tannins.
 

duanes

MFK Moderators
Staff member
Moderator
MFK Member
Jun 7, 2007
21,052
26,418
2,910
Isla Taboga Panama via Milwaukee
Agree with the above
Where I lived in the US, the KH (calcium hardness) of my tap water was very high, and Total hardness at about 250ppm, so in tandem, the alkalinity was also high, all together, resisted pH change.
Fot certain fish I added leaf littler and tannins from B78EC393-CF80-4021-89A9-F47FB8D0F26F_1_201_a.jpeg
soaked leaves, and it would barely drop pH by more that 0.20.
I used the leaf litter and tannins more for their anti-bacterial quality, rather than the mediocre drop in tap water pH.
When you snorkel in low pH leaf littered areas, you might find the litter is up to a foot thick, and cover an area of a city block from constantly dropping tropical vegetation.
This is the kind of accumulation that actually can influence the lowering of pH of the surrounding water.
 
Last edited:

Punjabiking1500

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Nov 9, 2020
462
194
51
24
Thank u everyone for helping
U guys are always around and help a lot
 
  • Like
Reactions: tlindsey
zoomed.com
hikariusa.com
aqaimports.com
Store