PH Buffer, Die Die must. Period. Options

[mountain]

splitted from thread here.
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I think for PH crash it might be misleading to have SODIUM BICARBONATE as 1st line of treatment .. SODIUM BICARBONATE is for buffering water, and not for treatment of fish's health plus if the PH crash, HB wouldn't advised you to dump 2 teaspoon of BS into the water immediately

[goldrush]

I think for PH crash it might be misleading to have SODIUM BICARBONATE as 1st line of treatment .. SODIUM BICARBONATE is for buffering water, and not for treatment of fish's health plus if the PH crash, HB wouldn't advised you to dump 2 teaspoon of BS into the water immediately

Hi Mountain

I agree with you that sodium bicarbonate is an excellent buffer..Never dispute that.But in event of pH crash which to me is an equivalent to medical condition of SHOCK,we have to address the problem with urgency.pH is prone to crash in unbuffered aquasystem.The fall may be attributed to the following reasons
1)accumulation of CO2,
2)decay fishes and plants not removed
3)Other waste products(feces ,,rotting uneaten food)
4)oxygen depletion(due to increase increase intro of fishes,night falls)

The chemistry of nitrification can be best summarized by simply:
Nitrifying bacteria comsume O2 and gives off CO2 which converts to Carbonic acid and lower pH.Concurrently the reduction process of NH3(Ammonia)to NO2(Nitrite) gives off H+ ions which inevitablby reduces pH.Another contributing factor to CO2 addition comes from normal respiration process of fishes and its aqua inhabitants.Thus the over all effects of all the above factors,if not sufficiently offset by other components in the the aquaculture causes pH CRASH
You simply don’t have time in case of ph crash to make change gradually.Remember it is equivaleny to an EMERGENCY..A teaspoonper40 litres is a good start and don’t worry too much of over dosing.Check the pH after ½ hr and it should be rising.Maximum
achievable is probably in the region of 8.
In conclusion pH is the among most important test to run when trouble surface.Watch out,be prepared.for it

Cheers
Goldrush