pH- Post 1

What is pH?

pH is a number that expresses whether a solution (in our case, our aquarium water) is more acidic or basic.  For our purposes it isn’t necessary to have a thorough understanding of the chemistry involved, just simply a basic knowledge of what it is, how to measure it, what is ideal for the type of environment we are creating, and how to achieve it.  Fortunately none of this is nearly as complicated as textbooks might make you feel. 

The numbers you’ll see expressing pH are between 1 and 14.  Pure water is neutral at pH 7.  If the number is higher than 7 then the water is more basic or alkaline and lower than 7 indicates acidity.  Our aquarium water is not pure water, but rather a solution of water and many other chemical compounds that are dissolved in the water.  The pH decreases if acids are dissolved and increases with bases.    

The “buffering capacity” is the ability of the water to neutralize acids and maintain a steady pH.  Acids are introduced into the water from fish, corals, decaying food, etc. so a good buffering capacity is important in keeping the water from becoming too acid and toxic to our fish.

Now that you have an idea of what pH is, next we'll discuss how to measure it.