Description
API pH Up is a liquid treatment that brings the pH of a freshwater aquarium up when it has fallen below where your fish are comfortable. It is aimed at keepers of hard, alkaline water species: African cichlids from the rift lakes, livebearers such as guppies, mollies, platies and swordtails, and goldfish, all of which do better in water on the alkaline side.
A gradual downward drift is the normal story in an established tank. Breaking down waste produces acids, and over weeks those acids use up the water's natural buffering capacity. Once the buffer runs low, pH can fall quickly. Skipping water changes accelerates it, since fresh water is what restores the buffer. Weekly testing catches the slide before your fish do.
Worth being blunt about the limits. pH is one of the easiest parameters to overcorrect, and a fish put through a fast swing suffers more than one living at a steady reading slightly off its textbook ideal. Stability beats precision. Dose in small steps, retest, and treat a falling pH as a signal to check your water change routine rather than something to paper over with a bottle.
- Raises pH in freshwater aquariums to your target level
- Safe for fish and for live aquarium plants
- Suits rift lake cichlids, livebearers and goldfish
- Useful on a new setup, after water changes, or when pH has drifted down
- Available in a 118ml bottle
Formulated for freshwater only, so it is not intended for marine or reef tanks. Pair it with a pH test kit so you are adjusting to a reading rather than a guess, and follow the label for dosing. There is plenty more in the rest of the fishkeeping range.