Understanding
aquarium water pH levels is important, not only to have an idea of what it is
but also to compare later with the tank water to judge how things are
functioning in the tank.
A simple aquarium water test kit will provide a
reasonably accurate reading of the pH. The
pH scale runs from 0 to 14, and for monitoring aquarium water, you need to work
in increments of tenths.
A pH value of 7 is the midpoint, which means the water is neutral. As the pH values go down from this midpoint, the water is increasingly acidic; as the value goes up from the midpoint, the water is increasingly alkaline.
A
change of one whole number (i.e., 7.5 to 6.5) actually represents a change in
acidity or alkalinity of 100 times. Many
aquarium fish that originate from South America prefer softer, more acidic
water, whereas fish from East Africa do best in hard, alkaline water. These are
just two examples.
Unless
you intend to breed a species that is very particular about water chemistry,
you will find that the stability of the pH in an aquarium is far more important
than the exact value. Large,
rapid changes in pH are often fatal to fish. Any change greater than 0.2 in a
24-hour period will cause physical stress for most fish.
