When converting an acid salt dissolved in water to its acid form, you are instructed to adjust the ph well into the acidic range (ph ~ 2). why don't you just take the ph to neutral? you do?

First of all, the problem says that you have to convert the acid salt to its acidic form. If you take it to the neutral pH, that won't be acidic at all. As simple as that, you don't take it to neutral pH because it would lose its definition of being acidic afterall.