Here's how to prevent a deadly pond water pH crash

What are the two life supporting elements in your koi pond that can be related to your home?

A home without a solid foundation will fall. The pond water pH in your koi pond will fall without a solid foundation of carbonates (KH). Good koi care means keeping the (KH) at a safe level in your koi pond. A safe KH (carbonate hardness) reading would be 140 to 180.

A fall of the pond water pH in your koi pond can stress your koi and pond fish and if it drops low enough can even kill them, which is called a “ph crash”. pH is measured on a scale of 1 to 14. A reading of 7 is neutral, below 7 your pond water is "Acid" above 7 your pond water is "Alkaline". Koi and pond fish thrive in alkaline water. A good reading for a koi pond water pH is 7.5.

The carbonates (KH) in your koi pond determine how stable your pond water pH is. Your koi fish and the good bacteria in your pond filter, need and use up the carbonates in your koi pond everyday. Without a good carbonate base in your pond water, your pond water pH will fall below 7 and your pond water will be in the "Acid" range. If the pond water pH falls way below 7 your have a “pH crash” that can be deadly.

So carbonates are there for us, stabilizing pH.
But if carbonates are exhausted, used up, or lacking in the water, the forces which drag pH down such as:

• carbon dioxide formation by fish, algae and plants,
• Hydrogen ions liberation from ammonia reduction, etc.
• ...will drag down the pH until fish fatalities result. So, carbonates are all that stands between you and the loss of your fish.

Symptoms of a low pH:

1. Slimy skin
2. Lethargy
3. Clamped fins
4. Surface breathing - piping at surface

The "pH Crash" can occur very rapidly once the carbonates are finally exhausted in a system. In warm water, green water (lots of algae or plants) or heavily stocked tanks and ponds, you will find pH crashes can achieve 100%-mortality status very, very quickly.

My fish, once thriving in 6,000 gallons and green water at about seventy five degrees Fahrenheit were all killed while I was away for scarcely more than a day.The carbonates were exhausted because the pond is 100% liner and no rock or ornamentation in contact with the water. Carbonate support was purely man made and I had been neglectful in it's application and I had not tested the carbonate level (total alkalinity) in weeks. The pond was warm, green and crowded. In scarcely more than 36 hours all the fish died and sank to the bottom.
I was not there to see the piping or surface breathing they do when the pH falls. Sunday morning, April 20th I woke to find the first few floaters, drained the pond to fine the entirety of my collection dead.

Important Notes:
Always, regularly, add a pH buffer OR better still always check your carbonate levels (total alkalinity test) and KH carbonate hardness weekly to make sure there are sufficient reserves. (This would be at LEAST 40 ppm TA) and (125 ppm KH)
Always have some Baking Soda on hand for emergencies, it's the fastest way to raise the pH.
When crashed, the pH should be raised as QUICKLY as possible. Increased aeration and water circulation helps stabilize a pH crashed environment as well.

Note: Baking Soda is just a quick fix, it is not stable, you need a carbonate hardness booster like Buff-it-Up to permanently protect your koi fish from another pH crash.

If you are in a middle of a pH crash, you can raise the pond water pH in your koi pond quickly without hurting your koi fish, however, if your pond water pH drops even two points, from 8 to a 6 (pH crash) over a few hours, your koi and pond fish will become VERY stressed and could even die. note: A high pH in a koi pond with a high ammonia reading can be a problem, because ammonia is more toxic with a high pH. But dropping your pond water pH will not solve your problem and can be deadly to your koi and pond fish. A massive water change to bring down the high ammonia reading is the answer to your high ammonia problem not a pH reducer.

For good koi care: You want a high enough reading of KH in your koi pond to maintain your pond water pH at 7.5 or higher between pond water changes. If your pond water pH is dropping below 7 you must add a buffer like Aqua Meds Buff-it-Up which contains life supporting carbonates and more to give your pond water pH a good foundation of KH. A good solid foundation of carbonates will keep your pond water pH stable (protect it from a deadly pH crash) and your koi, pond fish and your "good bacteria" healthy.

Good Koi Care means keeping your KH and your pH stable in your koi pond.

Aqua Meds Buff-it-Up keep your pond pH in a safe range and boost KH (carbonate hardness) in your pond water.