Tips To Determine PH of Aquariums Using Digital PH Meter

Aquariums house a lot of aquamarine animals like fish, star fish, sea anemone, sea horses and a variety of sea life that are commonly seen in water bodies. Most fishes come from a different water body and therefore they are accustomed to survive at different PH levels. There is no fixed PH level that suits the entire class of aquamarine life. So it is important to check the count of the aquarium water and take necessary steps to change it if required. This is the count of acidic or basic level of liquids. If the meter reads 7, it means that the liquid is neutral. If the count is below 7, it indicates acidity. Lower the count is more is the acidity. If the count is more than 7, the liquid is basic or alkaline which increases with the count. There are various reasons that affect the PH of aquarium water. The biological processes of the water animals, changing of water and the temperature changes are some reasons that cause the change in count. This change is rapid and sudden, so it is important to keep a note of the same. For the health of your fish, you should maintain a consistency of the meter. If the PH shows sudden changes, it means there is probability of chemicals being released from the fish body. More often than not, it is ammonia and that turns the fish tank toxic. This is harmful for the fish and that is the reason PH meter should be maintained. If you have a wall length tank, check the PH once every two weeks and if you have a small tank, you can use the PH meter once a month. More fish means more contamination and hence the extra effort. This effort should also be given, if a fish in the tank is sick. Sick or dead fish release toxic chemicals that affect the other fish as well. A digital meter is commonly used to measure the PH of the water in these tanks. You need to first calibrate the instrument using two liquids, one with low PH say 4.0 and with high PH level say 10.0. Insert the probe in the acidic solution and set the reading to 4.0 as is. Repeat the same step with the basic solution and mark the probe at 10.0. You must take special care not to cross contaminate the PH solutions. These are also called the buffer solutions as they are used to mark the low and high points of the PH meter. The probe is actually an electrode that is made of very thin glass. While calibrating, using and cleaning it, handle it with extra care so that you do not break it. Once you have the acidic and basic calibrations done, insert it in the aquarium to check the PH of the water. Depending on the volume of the aquarium, you must decide the frequency of testing the PH. It cannot be said how and why the PH count changes.