Water tests

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La Dreya

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Oct 22, 2002
Messages
5
I just did 2 hardness tests on my tank, KH was 196.9 ppm and GH was 250.6 ppm (ph 7.6 and nitrate 5.0 ppm). Any ideas of what I need to do to improve the water conditions?
Linda
 
water

What kind of fish are you keeping? That's hard water, but not excessively so. Are you on well water? With a nitrate of 5.0 ppm, I don't think you have any worries there. Freshwater fish are not disturbed by nitrate unless it is in high concentrations and 5.0 is pretty low. No problem with algae?
Logan J
 
I have mostly Tetras, Barbs, Angels and Cats. It is well water, how did you guess? No algae right now,
Linda
 
water

Well water is typically hard and alkaline...not always, but usually. The tetras and angels are from soft, acidic environments. I have never tried to keep them in water that hard before. How long has this tank been set up? Many fish will adapt to a wide range of water conditions. It is better to provide a stable environment than to try to change things and have pH and kH fluctuations. I think I would just continue to do water changes as needed and see how it goes. What kind of barbs do you have? Some of these are known fin nippers and may cause your angels some trouble. I'd watch them for fin damage. I would not recommend trying to make changes in the water chemistry. Your water has a lot of buffering capacity and it would be hard to drop the pH and get it to stay down. There are fish that thrive in this type of water though. Keep us posted on how things are going.
Logan J
 
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