Seachem Neutral Regulator 500gm

Neutral Regulator adjusts pH to neutral (pH 7.0) from either a low or high pH and maintains it there. It softens water by precipitating calcium and magnesium while removing any chlorine, chloramine, and detoxifying ammonia. The use of Neutral Regulator makes other conditioning unnecessary. To lower pH below 7.0 use Neutral Regulator with Acid Regulator (or Discus Buffer). To raise pH above 7.0 use with Alkaline Regulator. All of these products will enhance and stabilize the freshwater aquarium environment. For further freshwater environment enhancement, use Fresh Trace to restore the proper level of trace elements and feed NutriDiet Tropical Flakes for thriving, healthy freshwater community fish.

Contains phosphate buffers and conditioning agents. Safe for all freshwater fish acclimated to neutral pH.

Specifications

Seachem item #0303 (500 g). A phosphate-based buffer that brings pH to 7.0 from either direction — up from acid, down from alkaline — and then holds it there.

It is also a water conditioner. Seachem’s own claim: it removes chlorine and chloramine and detoxifies ammonia, which makes separate conditioning unnecessary. It softens water at the same time by precipitating calcium and magnesium.

Rate: 5 g (one level teaspoon) per 40–80 L (10–20 US gallons), once or twice a month. Where alkalinity is high it may be dosed daily at first until 7.0 is established. The 500 g tub is about a hundred teaspoon doses.

It is the middle of a three-product set. With Alkaline Regulator it targets 7.1–7.5; with Acid Regulator or Discus Buffer it targets 5.8–6.8. On its own it targets 7.0.

Seachem make the line in 50 g, 250 g, 500 g, 1 kg and 4 kg.

Compatibility

Freshwater community tanks, for fish acclimated to neutral pH. It may be added directly to the aquarium at any time, though Seachem prefer it dissolved into the replacement water at a water change.

It is a phosphate buffer, and that is a real trade-off. Seachem are explicit about it: phosphate buffers lock pH in far more firmly than carbonate ones, because a carbonate system keeps moving with CO₂ equilibrium. The cost is added phosphate. Under strong light, with nitrate or organics already present, that phosphate is one more contributing factor to algae — Seachem’s own wording. In a planted tank they recommend their carbonate-based Acid Buffer and Alkaline Buffer instead.

Seachem specifically do not recommend it for planted tanks. Their words: some people use it in planted aquaria with fine results, but a carbonate buffer — Acid Buffer and Alkaline Buffer — is the better choice where phosphate would feed algae.

It will not raise your KH. Phosphate buffers hold pH without touching carbonate hardness. If a test kit is telling you KH is the number that needs to move, this is the wrong product and Alkaline Buffer is the right one.

In very hard water it will lose a straight fight. Seachem’s own answer to the customer who doubled the dose and got cloudy water at pH 7.8: the KH is too high for the buffer to control pH. Bring KH down first with Acid Buffer or Discus Buffer, repeatedly if necessary, and only then use this to lock pH at 7.0–7.2. Doubling the dose is not the answer.

Safety & Precautions

Seachem publish no hazard warning on this product’s label. Their page carries no danger statement, so there is none for us to reproduce. What follows are the dosing cautions Seachem do give.

Expect cloudiness in hard water, and do not treat it as a fault. The product softens water by precipitating calcium and magnesium, and that precipitate is what you are looking at. It clears with fine mechanical filtration, or faster with Clarity.

Do not treat cloudiness as a reason to dose again. The most common failure with this product is a second and third dose added because the water went cloudy and the pH did not move. Both symptoms have the same cause — high carbonate hardness — and more buffer does not fix it.

It detoxifies ammonia; it does not remove it. Where ammonia is present, the biofilter still has to do the work. Treat a reading as a reading.

Keep the tub closed and dry. These are hygroscopic powders. A tub that has caked has also changed density, and a level teaspoon of caked powder is not the dose printed on the label.

What’s in the Box

A 500 g tub of dry buffer powder. Seachem item #0303.

Seachem publish no parts or accessory list for this pack, and their own product photography shows the container alone. We would rather tell you that than invent a contents list. If you need to know whether a particular pack ships with a scoop before you order, ask us and we will open one and look.

Seachem’s own advice for anyone dosing a powder to a target number is to weigh it rather than scoop it — their Digital Spoon Scale exists for exactly this. A level teaspoon is a usable approximation, not a measurement.

Warranty & Support

This product is covered by warranty as per the manufacturer policy, against material and manufacturing defects from the date of purchase.

Warranty support is handled by us directly. Message our WhatsApp support with your order number and we will diagnose the fault first. Most cases are solved by replacing a single part, so you rarely need to send the whole unit. If the item does need to come back, it ships to our Delhi or Pune warehouse, whichever one served your order, and courier cost in both directions is borne by the customer. Your GST invoice is valid proof of purchase for the claim.

Returns & Replacement

Returns are accepted within 7 days of delivery, provided the item is unused and in its original packaging. Manufacturer-sealed items cannot be returned once the seal is broken, and sale-priced items are not refundable.

If your item arrives defective or damaged, message us on WhatsApp with your order number, or email us if you would rather, and we will replace it. Approved replacements are delivered within 3 to 5 business days. Transit damage is covered by insurance on every shipment. If tracking shows delivered but nothing reached you, tell us within 72 hours, which is the reporting window Indian couriers allow. Damage caused during installation or use is not covered; replacement spares for such cases are chargeable.

Full terms are on our Cancellation & Returns page.