Finally got around to testing my KH and GH. My pH seems to stabilize around 7.5 in the tank. My tap water comes out around 6.6 but stabilizes at 7.5 after about 48 hours sitting in a bucket. The tank stays at 7.5 even with a hunk of driftwood in there.
That made me assume that I had high-ish GH and KH (since I read that those values stabilize pH the higher they are).
I had been doing water changes with half RO water and half tap, since my nitrates are about 20ppm out of the tap.
The last couple water changes I've done about 1/4 RO and the rest tap, since it seems that my nitrates don't go much higher than they start off between water changes. Never over 40.
So, my GH out of the tap is 15 degrees. KH is 12. From what I read, a good middle ground for my fish (platies, swordtails, and serpae tetras).
However, out of the tank...it's 10GH and 6KH. It could be due to the RO water still in there from past water changes...or could it be my driftwood? I have a 8 X 8 X 3 (approx) piece of malaysian driftwood in a 29G...but it doesn't lower the pH at all, so would it lower the GH or KH?
That seems too LOW for my livebearers.
I have a lightly planted/low light tank w/hornwort, java fern, java moss, and an Anubius nana.
Yet, some websites, like Live Aquaria, show most plants as being intolerant of hard water, anything over about a GH of 8...so I'm just confused.
Thoughts?
That made me assume that I had high-ish GH and KH (since I read that those values stabilize pH the higher they are).
I had been doing water changes with half RO water and half tap, since my nitrates are about 20ppm out of the tap.
The last couple water changes I've done about 1/4 RO and the rest tap, since it seems that my nitrates don't go much higher than they start off between water changes. Never over 40.
So, my GH out of the tap is 15 degrees. KH is 12. From what I read, a good middle ground for my fish (platies, swordtails, and serpae tetras).
However, out of the tank...it's 10GH and 6KH. It could be due to the RO water still in there from past water changes...or could it be my driftwood? I have a 8 X 8 X 3 (approx) piece of malaysian driftwood in a 29G...but it doesn't lower the pH at all, so would it lower the GH or KH?
That seems too LOW for my livebearers.
I have a lightly planted/low light tank w/hornwort, java fern, java moss, and an Anubius nana.
Yet, some websites, like Live Aquaria, show most plants as being intolerant of hard water, anything over about a GH of 8...so I'm just confused.
Thoughts?
