Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)
Hi,
John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.
I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.
With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.
I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.
If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.
I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.
I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.
Thank you
Darragh Sherwin
coconut shell and aquarium water PH / Help
- dub320d (Derek)
- Offline
- Junior Member
-
- Posts: 14
- Thank you received: 0
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- igmillichip (ian millichip)
-
- Offline
- Moderator
-
- Posts: 3366
- Thank you received: 536
But that does not mean it will lower the pH in your main tank (for reason of volume and alkalinity and initial release of acids from the shell)
Normally, I wouldn't use Coconut shell specificcally for lowering pH or for any other change in water.....although it will tend to lower the pH if the alkalinity is not too high.
Coire (the husk from around a coconut) is used in some tanks as a substrate (especially for fish to breed in or to help raise small critters for fry to eat);
the shells are great breeding caves for fish that breed in caves.
In those cases, the fish happen to love low pH anyway.....but if it doesn't lower the pH then I'm not bothered.
What fish are you hoping to lower the pH with? and do you really need to lower the pH ? (my guess is that you don't need to lower the pH at all really)
ian
Irish Tropical Fish Society (ITFS) Member.
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- JohnH (John)
-
- Offline
- Administrator
-
- Posts: 6067
- Thank you received: 857
I have used coconut shells for years and years and have never found them to have have any lasting effect upon the pH in the water but quite obviously your experiment, as explained, must disprove this.
It will be interesting to hear the observations from other Forum members on this matter.
John
Location:
N. Tipp
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.
ITFS member.
It's a long way to Tipperary.
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- Eric (Eric Corcoran)
-
- Offline
- Premium Member
-
- Posts: 613
- Thank you received: 107
I used a shell in my 120L tank for about 6 months and it had no affect at all on the pH. I reckon the tank was to large for just one shell to have an affect. They do look well tho with some moss growing over them
Eric
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- igmillichip (ian millichip)
-
- Offline
- Moderator
-
- Posts: 3366
- Thank you received: 536
pH is a concentration effect......so a drop of 0.5 pH units means an increase in acid concentration of about 3.
You can not relate the pH in a bucket experiment to the pH you would get in, say, 100 litres especially with the types of acids in coconut shells.
So......this is in keeping with what JohnH has found and what I find (which is why I see no reason to use coconut to specifically lower pH.....but it may be useful in very small tanks).
ian
Irish Tropical Fish Society (ITFS) Member.
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- anthonyd (Anthony Debesne)
-
- Offline
- Premium Member
-
- Posts: 670
- Thank you received: 131
Anthony
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- hammie (Neil Hammerton)
-
- Offline
- Platinum Member
-
- Posts: 1204
- Thank you received: 184
As Ian said tho, fry love them as a safe haven and some fish use them for breeding in!
Im looking for more to put into my fry tank for the brisslenose pleco's to keep them happy along with the terracotta pots I already have in there!
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- swai (Simon)
- Offline
- Senior Member
-
- Posts: 315
- Thank you received: 64
Marino, Dublin 9
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- dannyb (Daniel Byrne)
- Offline
- Junior Member
-
- Posts: 204
- Thank you received: 34

Please Log in to join the conversation.
- dub320d (Derek)
- Offline
- Junior Member
-
- Posts: 14
- Thank you received: 0
Finally Ian I get a little bit of light brown algae on the glass now and then / have you any ideas what may be the cause . Derek
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- dub320d (Derek)
- Offline
- Junior Member
-
- Posts: 14
- Thank you received: 0
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- swai (Simon)
- Offline
- Senior Member
-
- Posts: 315
- Thank you received: 64
Shamrock peat moss has no additives in it and is irish made.
Marino, Dublin 9
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- igmillichip (ian millichip)
-
- Offline
- Moderator
-
- Posts: 3366
- Thank you received: 536

Increasing pH can be due to a number of reasons......here are a few reasons:
www.irishfishkeepers.com/index.php/forum...hange-simple-listing
If pH increases then check ammonia as a first port of call anyway.
CO2 in combination with certain rocks can increase pH.
High photosynthetic activity in soft (KH Soft) water of generally acid conditions can produce rapid and massive increases in pH (in fact so high that it can easily kill fish).
ian
Irish Tropical Fish Society (ITFS) Member.
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- dub320d (Derek)
- Offline
- Junior Member
-
- Posts: 14
- Thank you received: 0
''High photosynthetic activity in soft (KH Soft) water of generally acid conditions can produce rapid and massive increases in pH'' is certainly catching my attention. The room where my Aquarium is located has a large bay window ( 3sides) and the curtains were broke hence it gets sunshine & daylight all day long. Anyway now that I have fixed the curtains I can now fully control the amount of light that my aquarium gets and I will let you know if this step does stabilise the ph in the aquarium. Thanks again Derek
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- dub320d (Derek)
- Offline
- Junior Member
-
- Posts: 14
- Thank you received: 0
Please Log in to join the conversation.
- platty252 (Darren Dalton)
-
- Offline
- Moderator
-
- Posts: 2309
- Thank you received: 127
I get a little bit of light brown algae on the glass now and then / have you any ideas what may be the cause . Derek
This can be from silicates coming from the tap water.
You can use a silicate remover but these can have a direct effect on KH. So I wouldn't use it if there was any issues with KH or PH.
Otocinclus catfish love this brown diatom algae.
Darren.
Please Log in to join the conversation.