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Big shock today, I bought a ph tester and a ph up kit, I tested my tap water and and it turns out that it is actually 7.6, so it is alkaline, meaning that tommorow I will go and return the Ph up, the rainbows current tank was at 6.0, but there are a' lot of fish in his tank and until this evening "after the test" his water change was a bit overdue. Just thought Id mention it.

I tested my tap water and and it turns out that it is actually 7.6,

Yes, having a reliable test kit and getting accurate estimates of your water parameters is essential before working out what you should keep in your water.

the rainbows current tank was at 6.0, but there are a' lot of fish in his tank and until this evening "after the test" his water change was a bit overdue

This will happen as the buffers in the water are "used up". The rainbow cichlid won't appreciate this, so it's a good idea to invest in both GH and KH test kits and see if your water could do with extra buffering, or just more frequent water changes.

By the way, those the "pH up" kits can be dangerous. A less risky solution would be to use a bag of crushed shell or coral sand in the filter.

It is quite likely your tap water is similar to mine given we live relatively close. I find that it drops after a couple of days.

Agree totally with racoll re pH up I use coral sand or shells to help avoid pH drops. It's cheaper, not as messy and easier, visually, to remember what tank is at what.

Jools

I am returning the PH up kit today anyway, thanks for the crushed shell and coral sand tip, do you know a place I can get a 'lot of these other than dead aquarium snails, I'll be using that idea when I set up the scape, but if I get rid of my Habrosus, Betta and Galaxy Rasboras tank (in spare breeding tanks getting in my way) then I may be able to set up a small 40 L on top of my computer desk for the rainbow meaning that I will be able to breed Kribensis in the community tank with an up turned pot and a hole smashed through one side, I will cover this with Eleocharis or/and java moss.

Just returned ph up kit, tomorrow I am thinking of getting a strip test kit for Ph, Kh, and Gh, so I will be more in control of my tanks, can anyone give me some tips on changing the Kh and Gh, I would also appreciate tips on bringing the Ph down as well "just in case".

To lower the pH use less of the crushed coral and increase the amount of water changes. If you add another chemical to lower the pH you will increase the TDS(Total Dissolved Solids). This chasing of the pH creates more trouble than it is worth.
Any substrate specifically meant for use in a reef tank will make a good material for raising the hardness and pH in a stable way.

tomorrow I am thinking of getting a strip test kit for Ph, Kh, and Gh,

Strip tests are not as good as the liquid tests.

I would also appreciate tips on bringing the Ph down as well

Sounds like your water is pretty soft, despite having some alkalinity there (water companies often add this to stop acid water dissolving their pipes), but the test kits will give you the information you need.

If you want an acidic tank, you will probably find the pH drops nicely by itself over time. In this case carrying out large scale water changes with alkaline water is a bad idea, so just aerate the new water overnight, and make smaller but more regular changes (e.g. 10%).

Thanks for that racoll, I was actually looking at master test kits on Ebay (new, of course). You are able to get them a 'lot cheaper than the ones in the pet shop, I'm also guessing that the Tetra kits are better than the API ones, Other fish keepers I know agree with you on the liquid tests, I think I am going to go with that, there more than £10 less if buying on-line including P&P, thanks for the advice guys, It'll be very helpful in the near future

I'm also guessing that the Tetra kits are better than the API ones

I've used the API ones and was very happy with them. This one looks like a good kit for water hardness.

I use the Mardel 5 in 1 test strips to quickly check that my electronic meters are accurate. Mardel's test strips are good enough for most hobbyists but I do not regard the other brands as highly. They must be kept tightly sealed when not in use.

I'll look in the shop tomorrow as I'm going to check their new stock.

HUGE turn around, am now going to get a 5 foot Fluval Roma 240 aquarium with a Fluval 305 external filter meaning there is a' lot more room for my fish, sticking to the original plan i am going to ask if the kribs would now be a possibility with the other fish, if not then that's also great as i am willing to go with the small group of rainbows, but I will be adding different mid and top dwellers if I do so ie. bigger tetras and a snake skin gourami for the top dwelling

The Roma 240 is four foot (approximately, my pedantic self says it's 47.25" or 120cm).

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Mats

I know, i just realized after i posted the comment, its still double the volume of my previous tank though, my previous tank is only a 120l

And it is still not a great idea to mix those Cichlids.

apistomaster wrote:And it is still not a great idea to mix those Cichlids.

I'd tend to agree.

Jools

no problem, ill just do the rainbows with the snakeskin and a larger tetra species, if i get the chance then I will isolate my rainbow cichlid and keep the kribs and hatchets etc.