Help with water hardness

[3Corsameal]

here i go again.....

my tank is reading (i'm not too sure what they mean)

[acronym:1b4afae1ce="General Hardness"]GH[/acronym:1b4afae1ce] reads 21d
and Carbonate hardness = 20d

^^^^^hope that makes sense to someone as it means bugger all to me....

i am using a eSHa Aqua Quick test kit, so may not be the most accurate of readings

[Voodoo Chilli]

It means your water is really hard!

What's your pH level? I bet you've got excellent water for African cichlids.

[3Corsameal]

well i've had convicts for the last year and recently changed the tank to tiger barbs, which i think prefer soft water.

[acronym:b9e214450b="power head or Measure of the concentration of hydrogen ions, depending on context"]PH[/acronym:b9e214450b] is about 7.6 IIRC

how can i make the water softer?

[shawmutt]

The only way I have successfully had soft water was to start with [acronym:aa951ac3c9="Reverse osmosis"]ro[/acronym:aa951ac3c9] water I bought (Walmart in my area, has Walmart invaded the UK yet?) and use additives to get the water perfect for my fish.

[poikilotherm]

I have managed to lower hardness with a water softening "pillow" that you put in the filter. This exchanges the ions that cause hardness (e.g. calcium), with sodium. You recharge the pillow with a soak in salt water. This method increases the amount of sodium in your water, which can have unintended consequences, but if you add salt, you can just add less...

That said, I'd recommend using [acronym:4014200bd5="Reverse osmosis"]RO[/acronym:4014200bd5] water over these pillows, but either way just be sure to change the hardness slowly, over the course of a month or so. You don't want to lower the hardness too much, because then you can get pH swings. Lower it to about 10 and you should be fine. Maybe aim for 50/50 tap water and [acronym:4014200bd5="Reverse osmosis"]RO[/acronym:4014200bd5]?

[Voodoo Chilli]

Are your tiger barbs showing any signs of discomfort because of the water hardness? Most tropical community fish are able to adjust to practically any type water conditions, as long as the water quality is high and the pH is stable.

If the fish look healthy, I'd suggest the old theory of, "it it ain't broke, don't fix it".

[3Corsameal]

yes, the fish look fine

they seem very happy, and alway hungrey