driftwood question?

[gman]

I wanted to check up on this. Isn't driftwood supposed to lower the pH of water?
Ive got a huge piece of maylasian driftwood in my tank but the pH is still 7.2.

 

[HarpoGarza]

It's my understanding that drift wood over time loses its pH softening ability. How long have you had it in your tank?

 

[gman]

Ive only had it in the tank for about a month now.

 

[Siemens2]

What is your pH out the tap, and how large is the tank? Driftwood can only do so much. You might want to try peat in your filters.
Jason

 

[fishnutham]

maylasian drift wood what does it look like? some of the two tone wood isnt going to do squat to lower your ph too hard also how long has it been in .You need the soft bog wood that sinks on its own and it will reduce your ph .

 

[guppy]

Well cured hardwoods are not usually acidic. A few sprays of recently dried oak would work better

 

[fishkid99]

All i know is after a while drift wood could cause algae blooms

 

[HarleyK]

All i know is after a while drift wood could cause algae blooms

Howdy,

That's only the case if you use wood that is not suitable for aqarium use, like fresh wood that still rots. Real "drift"wood is great and does not cause any problems.

Regarding pH lowering capabilities of wood: I wouldn't count on that. As mentioned, that effect depend on the kind of wood, the age of the wood (how long it was in the water, even before you got it), the wood/tank ratio, tap water etc. Depending on the fish you keep, you may want to think about peat. There was a thread around just recently, you could search for it with our search option if you're interested

HarleyK

 

[paOol]

I wanted to check up on this. Isn't driftwood supposed to lower the pH of water?
Ive got a huge piece of maylasian driftwood in my tank but the pH is still 7.2.

i got some blackwater extract to lower my pH for my piranhas.
it used to be 8.5, and in a matter of a few days, dropped to 7.5.
i think its still dropping slowly .

 

[Ace Nick]

Alright....i have a 30 gallon supposed to be black water/amazon tank but my Ph is always going up and up and up.....i use black water extract and filter through peat moss....the tank is completly under control in all aspects, has the nice tea color tint... and is lightly stalked...only 2 fish.....and the water i use for water changes has a Ph of 6.4.....when i go to do a water change the Ph is around 7.6....after the weekly water change it is 7.2.....and by the next week its back up again.....can anybody help me out here>????.....the Gh is about 3 and the Kh 7.....no nitrates or ammonia.....this should be enough to buffer the Ph should it not????....and with time Ph should go down????....i really dont understand this....and i want the Ph in the acidic range? ???