hihg ph levels

[brenners]

help i have recently changed the water in my fish tank all my fish are very stressed and the ph level is very high what can i do to lower it ?

[doglady2]

You need to get to a petshop and get a water testing kit,it will help you decide what has caused it ,you may of had the water either too warm or cold as you dont say if your tank is cold water or tropical or marine.If it is marine you will need to get sorted a,s,a,p,if it is a tropical tank then you also need to sort it.If it is a cold water tank,then you wont have as much of a problem,but you DO need a kit.I would assume you have enough air going into the tank and you have a filter system set up,so if it is just stress,then they should settle in time.If you have a light keep it off untill things settle also!hope you get it sorted.When you do a water change.you are only suppose to do a third change,if you have done the lot then IT WILL take time to sort.Regards.

[brenners]

thank you doglady i have topical fish and i did a change of about half too three quarters i know you shouldn't but i was giving them a good clean out and thought if i put enough tapsafe in they would be alright but now i know better i have put their own rocks and plants back in with out cleaning them and i saved some of the old water so i have put about a bucket back in but i will also leave he light off fora week or so.

[Dr. Bigalow]

Your problem is a common one.
How long had it been before the last water change and the one you just did that spiked your levels through the roof? Did you compensate and do a little more that you usually do because it had been a while?
Bottom line is that your tap water has a high pH coming out of the faucet. Does the water around your area have a lot of calcium in it (do you have a lot white build up on your showerheads or sink faucets)? If you do, that is you problem!
In order to bring the levels down you will need a pH reducer. If it is a calcium based problem the best product to use is Seachem Acid Buffer. This converts the hardness into co2 and allows it to escape from the system. You will need to treat the new water each and every time in a bucket before you add it back to the tank for a water change.
IMPORTANT-- Do not fall for the stores trick and just buy a pH reducer if it is a calcium related problem. It will lower the pH for a day or a few more but it will spike again soon after that! They usually fail to mention that, if they really even know in the first place!
Well I hope this helps and if you have any other followup questions I'm happy to help!