# Slate Rock and ph ?



## Adrian (Jan 12, 2010)

OK so i have just got a **** load of slate rock i was going to add to my tank. i have cleaned it and put it in a bucket over night with some tap water. now i did a ph test on the tap water i was using and it was 6.8 . the next day i did a test on the same water in the bucket and it was up to about 7.6 . now i know that cichlids like it 7.4 to 8. but over time will this make it even to high for my cichlids ??? like the ph is not going to keep going up by 1 every night .. right ??? plz help.. thx :?


----------



## liamthecoder (Jan 12, 2010)

iv currently got slate in my tank, not much but some because my cichklids like the flat surface

you can add some and yes it will raise your ph (the more you put in the higher it gets am guessing) but it has never doen my cichlids any harm.


----------



## smellsfishy1 (May 29, 2008)

That pH increase was likely caused by gas dissipation of the water and not the slate rock.
I have used slate rock in many applications and never found it to increase pH.
Hopefully your water just needs that little bit of aging overnight to stabilize.


----------



## Oscarlover (Jan 22, 2010)

where did u guys get ur slate rock?? I have been having a very hard time finding the right sized rock for my 108 gallon tank and Im running out of time finding it as I am almost ready to move my tank!!!


----------



## MalawiLover (Sep 12, 2006)

The ph will settle at some point. What that number is depends on the chemical make up of the slate. The higher the carbonate percentage (and what type of carbonate) will set the high point, but it won't ever go over that point no matter hopw much you add.

Take baking soda as an example. Baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) has a natural ph of 8.2. No matter how much of it you add to a bucket of water, the ph will never go above that 8.2.

Let your slate sit in the bucket for several day and just monitor the ph. As the chlorine (or chloramine) gasses off, the ph of the starting water will come up a bit anyway. Depending on acidic your water is natureally, it could take a day for the carbonates in the slate to change the overal ph or it could take a really long time (if your starting water was very close to the ph of the carbonates to begin with).

Personally, once the ph has been steady for a day or two, I would consider that the a likely end point of the ph rise.

Make sure you have checked the slate for other tank issues (some types of rock are not good for tanks aside from their ph status) and make sure its clean.


----------

