Ph Problem

[Balasharc]

I have a 47 gal Bow Aquarium I have been fight a ph problem for months now. The ph stays at or below 6.4 I prefer a ph of 6.8-7.4. My main concern is my 10yr old Alligator Pleco when the ph drops he pants constantly. I change the water every 2 weeks to try to keep it at a deceit level. I have use city water declorified ph 6.8-7.0, well water ph 7.2-7.6, And the only RO water available here has a ph of 6.5. I have tried buffers but they only last a day or two. The tank does have some African driftwood and several plants mainly java fern and moss with a extra plant or two. And lots of Malayan Live bearing snails. Is there possibly something in the wood /plants that is making the ph drop?

The ph is now 6.3, Nitrate = 30ppm, Nitrite = 0ppm, GH = 40ppm, KH = 40 Ammonia = 0

[AngelMom]

Your KH is too low to support a higher pH ... you can either purchase a product to increase it (like Kent's "pH Stable" or you add baking soda. If you go the baking soda route, you'll need to experiment a bit with your tap water to figure out how much to add (I'm lazy and buy the pH Stable :p ). RO water will not help ... we use RO to reduce the pH when it's too high. ;)