What would a very low PH do to fish?

CoralWealth

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For whatever reason my PH has dropped to 7.3 today. I recalibrated 2 probes and they both still say 7.3

All fish are very very lazy and swimming at the bottom and breathing kind of heavy. I am really worried about this.

Would a low PH do this?
 

lapin

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Too much Co2 (maybe you turned on an a/c unit or have a house full of people)
Too much acid (kalk or vinegar)
Maybe a lack of oxygen is bothering your fish. (no air exchange at the surface)
Could be a lot of things. Ph of 7.3 is low but tanks can run at that.
We dont know what your Ph was before, so have no way gauge the severity of the drop.
 
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CoralWealth

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My PH used to run around 8-8.3

I have the AC blasting since it has been insanely hot and humid up here in PA. I do have air exchange at the surface.
 

W1ngz

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If it's possible, maybe try venting that room overnight with open windows and a window fan.
Not really ideal if that's where the AC thermostat is, or if it's an open space that can't be closed off, but 8-8.3 down to 7.3 is a big drop especially if it happened in one day.
 
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Yeah it did happen in one day. I turned off my carx, doing kalkwasser instead and have a c02 scrubber running.

Does it make sense it would affect my bigger fish a lot more then the smaller ones?

My large tangs seem the most affected when my damsels and wrasses seem pretty normal and are swimming around and ate when I fed a little bit.
 

diverpat

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To check if it’s CO2 causing the low readings, take a liter or two out, aerate it for an hour and see if the pH rises. Do it outside where CO2 is low.
 

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