Baking soda question.

[barbarossa4122]

Hi,

My Ph is 6.6 and I would like to rise it to 7. How much baking soda do I need to add to my 55g tank? I will only do this once a week with my WC. Btw, my Kh is 1 and Gh 3 after WC. I am already using Equilibrium and the ultimate Gh booster. Or, should I leave the Ph alone? I have heavy planted goldfish tanks.

 

[Gbark]

pH seams ok to me, i run mine at 6.3 to 6.5 and this climbs to 6.8 to 6.9 with lights off. Adding baking powder will also increase your kH as well.

 

[Philosophos]

I'll second not worrying about it. pH really isn't a big deal to plants so much as we like to think, and raising the KH isn't a nice thing to do if you've got soft water fish.

 

[barbarossa4122]

I am thinking to add about 2tsp with wc.

 

[barbarossa4122]

I'll second not worrying about it. pH really isn't a big deal to plants so much as we like to think, and raising the KH isn't a nice thing to do if you've got soft water fish.

Hi Dan and Gbark,

OK, advice taken. Thank you.

 

[csmith]

Adding baking powder will also increase your kH as well.

X baking soda times Y water = Z kH rise.

Can someone fill in the variables please?

 

[deucebiggss]

I read somewhere that 1 tsp of baking soda will raise 50 liters (13gal) of water by 4 degrees.

 

[Tug]

Don't Worry - Be Happy

Hi barbarossa,
1tsp of NaHCO3 will raise KH by one degree in a 55 gallon tank. I'm trying real hard not to have an opinion about this. So, here is a link to a calculator. Find out how much, "X baking soda times Y water = Z kH." Go to, http://www.dataguru.org/misc/aquarium/calKH.asp for more information.

 

[barbarossa4122]

Hi barbarossa,
1tsp of NaHCO3 will raise KH by one degree in a 55 gallon tank. I'm trying real hard not to have an opinion about this. So, here is a link to a calculator. Find out how much, "X baking soda times Y water = Z kH." Go to, http://www.dataguru.org/misc/aquarium/calKH.asp for more information.

Hi Tug,

Thanks.

I'm trying real hard not to have an opinion about this

I think I can guess what your opinion is

 

[Biollante]

pH And KH Maybe GH Certainly

Hi,

I also do not think it makes much difference though goldfish (GF for Detritus Mulm) tend to like the water a little harder.

In this case I think it is the general hardness I am concerned about, a heavily planted tank with fish noted for robust growth, I think bumping the general hardness 4-6 degrees would be helpful. :gw

Biollante

 

[barbarossa4122]

Hi,

I also do not think it makes much difference though goldfish (GF for Detritus Mulm) tend to like the water a little harder.

In this case I think it is the general hardness I am concerned about, a heavily planted tank with fish noted for robust growth, I think bumping the general hardness 4-6 degrees would be helpful. :gw

Biollante

Hi Bio,

I am bumping the Gh with 1 tsp of Equilibrium and 1 tsp of Ultimate Gh booster at every WC. My plants are doing great and the goldies are really, really tough. At least mine are for some reason.

 

[ibnozn]

Straight baking soda is bound with Co2 so it'll lower your ph initially.
Baking it first gets rid of the Co2 but I like the pearling.

Try this calculator:
http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/chemcalc.html

 

[barbarossa4122]

Straight baking soda is bound with Co2 so it'll lower your ph initially.
Baking it first gets rid of the Co2 but I like the pearling.

Try this calculator:
http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/chemcalc.html

Hi,

Thanks

 

[Biollante]

How Long?

Hi Bio,

Hi,

It can take months for general hardness deficiencies to show themselves, especially in healthy stock.

Three dGH would be marginal at best for goldfish, particularly in a heavily planted tank and though local dogma holds that pH is meaningless, goldfish like water that is a little higher pH, a little salt does not hurt either.

As to the addition of baking soda, the rise in pH should be immediate. If you are mixing with distilled or deionized (DI) water or using in large quantities, pour out the baking soda on a cookie sheet and place in a 325 F (165 C) oven for an hour to dry and drive off CO2, also effective if you live in a humid climate.

Biollante

 

[barbarossa4122]

Hi Bio,

Hi,

It can take months for general hardness deficiencies to show themselves, especially in healthy stock.

Three dGH would be marginal at best for goldfish, particularly in a heavily planted tank and though local dogma holds that pH is meaningless, goldfish like water that is a little higher pH, a little salt does not hurt either.

As to the addition of baking soda, the rise in pH should be immediate. If you are mixing with distilled or deionized (DI) water or using in large quantities, pour out the baking soda on a cookie sheet and place in a 325 F (165 C) oven for an hour to dry and drive off CO2, also effective if you live in a humid climate.

Biollante

Hi Bio,

Thanks for the reply. I always boost my Gh to 7 or 8 after wc (according to my uncalibrated cheap test kit) using Gh booster and Equilibrium. My tap water is very soft but, we cover this before and you guys gave me good advice on dosing Ca , Mg and the Gh booster.:0

Can I dose baking soda dry ? I also learned that goldies like Ph around 7.2 or a little higher. I did add 2 tsp (dry) and the Ph is 7.4 now. One more thing..........in 9 months my Ph was never below 6.5.

 

[Biollante]

Goldfish, Strong Bones, Strong Fins, Good Scales--Got GH?

Hi,

I do not think adding the baking soda dry will hurt, but I always mix it in aquarium or change water first.

I do not think ammonia test kits pick up the ammonia bound in chloramines, NH2Cl, to test for it in your tap water I think you would need first to treat the tap water with SeaChem’s Prime at label strength then test.

For goldfish, a good rule, based on my experience (probably something I was told along the way) is to start with general hardness at least 7-dGH, making sure I have raised it at least 2-dGH myself. I never worry about testing for this purpose, I have a reasonable idea what comes out of the tap and I know what I add.

Biollante

 

[barbarossa4122]

Hi Bio,

I do use Prime and only add baking soda after wc. I did treat the tap water with Prime and did a test...........it shows 0 ammonia. Btw, tanks are OK now.

 

[Philosophos]

I do not think ammonia test kits pick up the ammonia bound in chloramines, NH2Cl, to test for it in your tap water I think you would need first to treat the tap water with SeaChem’s Prime at label strength then test.

Prime is tricky. It's hard to tell if you're reading sequestered ammonia or getting a false positive from excess as happens with hydroxymethanesulfonate. I haven't seen anyone test the issue.

Either way, a water report usually answers the question. One of those failing, a great method for figuring out if your tap water contains chloramine would be treating with sodium thiosulfate then testing for free ammonia.