Tap water has low pH.

[Fishguy679]

My tap water has a pH of around 5.5(I tested today) I am debating on artificially raising it or just letting my fish get used to It. The tank is going to be a cichlid community with pretty hardy fish so I don't see how it would be too much of a problem, I just need to know if it's so low that it would hurt my fish or if it's acceptable. Also, I plan on doing a salt tank too, I'm pretty certain I'm gona have to artificially raise the pH in it beacause saltwater fish and corals are much more sensitive to pH but the salt tank will be much smaller than the freshwater 180 and it will cost a lot in chemicals(I also heard you can use baking soda to raise pH but that seems like a bit of a hassle) to raise the pH in. also my tap water comes from a well. So I don't need any of that water conditioner stuff to counteract chlorine.

 

[tlindsey]

That ph would be good for a few SA species, but some cichlid may adapt. Personally I don't use baking soda or ph up but now try to keep species that will thrive in my tap water ph which is hard.

 

[Richard203]

use crushed coral that's wat I used to raise my ph. my tap is low too

 

[JeffT123]

It would probably be fine for the fish to just get used to that imo, but if you wanted, crushed coral or a buffer from a pet store would raise it a bit.

 

[Yuki Rihwa]

Don't use PH buffer cause most of them content high phosphate and your tank will have an outbreak with algae bloom.

 

[Beetlebug515]

My tap water has a pH of around 5.5(I tested today) I am debating on artificially raising it or just letting my fish get used to It. The tank is going to be a cichlid community with pretty hardy fish so I don't see how it would be too much of a problem, I just need to know if it's so low that it would hurt my fish or if it's acceptable. Also, I plan on doing a salt tank too, I'm pretty certain I'm gona have to artificially raise the pH in it beacause saltwater fish and corals are much more sensitive to pH but the salt tank will be much smaller than the freshwater 180 and it will cost a lot in chemicals(I also heard you can use baking soda to raise pH but that seems like a bit of a hassle) to raise the pH in. also my tap water comes from a well. So I don't need any of that water conditioner stuff to counteract chlorine.

Where do you live? I would kill to have tap water like yours. Embrace it! So many awesome blackwater species you could keep perfectly happy. Neon tetras, angelfish, rams, uaru, severums, several geos species including daemons if you could find them. Not to mention all of the blackwater plecos you could go with. Green phantoms are my favorite. Don't mess with your water. Get species that will enjoy and thrive in it and you will have an enviable tank indeed.

 

[duanes]

I would get cichlids that live in and like that water. As suggested above, many Amazonian species would fit the bill perfectly, (Uaru, some Geophagines, etc) as would some west Africans.
"Not" rift lake Africans, or most Central Americans.

 

[Fishguy679]

I wanted a mix of larger as and can cichlids like jack Dempseys anf Oscars Texas cichlids DVR and am still debating on artificially elevating it or leaving it. Would my fish have major problems in 5.5 pH or would they get used to it

 

[Beetlebug515]

The Oscar would be fine, probably better than fine, the jack and Texas would most likely not. What size tank are you running?

 

[pops]

I would not worry about it, playen with your ph can do more harm than good.