[APD] RE: peat moss / ph

["Steve Pushak" <teban at powersonic_bc.ca>]

Anna R. Dunster wrote:
> ok - when I do a water change will I need to "pre soak" it with a bit
> of peat?

No, if you follow my suggestion, then you are putting peat into your
substrate. What you are proposing sounds like no peat in the substrate
or in the tank but instead soaking your water change water in peat. This
is bad because it removes minerals from your water change water that you
want. Also you do not have the benefit of CO2 generation from
decomposition in the aquarium. I could tell you how to extract organic
acids from peat but I think you need to consider the pH problem in
another light. Rising pH is a symptom of something else.

> I'm using flourish excel for co2...

I can't & won't comment on Flourish Excel; this is a commercial product.
Perhaps you can talk with Greg Morin of SeaChem.

Your lighting is moderately high so I would recommend you to inject CO2
as a gas. If your pH is rising, its a symptom of insufficient CO2 in
your water and the plants are using biogenic decalcification. If you
have sufficient CO2 in your system, then don't obsess about the pH as
long as it stays constant. If it doesn't stay constant but rises to 10
or 11, you need gaseous CO2 injection.

Steve

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