Water Quality tips

[Helmet]

Hello all

I am a long time visitor to this site but this is my first post. So before anything I'd like to just comment on what a fantastic site this is & how it has proved invaluable to me on many occasions. So congratulations to everyone involved.

My question then, is really how to provide the best water quality for Botia, Schistura & Sewellia.

I know they like softer, slightly acidic water, I have also read an article here in which the author advises against artificial water softening agents such as peat granules & chemicals etc.

Unfortunately I have quite hard water in my area. The parameters are as follows;


pH 7.54
Alkalinity mg/l CaCO3 150
mg/l HOC3 183
Calcium mg/l Ca 92
Magnesium mg/l Mg 8.5
Total Hardness mg/l CaCO3 264

Believe it or not I have been keeping loach in this water for almost 2 years. They seem very happy & healthy (in fact the Striata have thrived) but in the long run I'm sure this can be greatly improved upon.
I am upgrading to a 330l aquarium & am beginning to produce my own RO/DI water as I am loathe to use any more of the junk which pours from my tap, but my questions are this;

Will it be sufficient to simply 'cut' my RO/DI water with tap water in the desired amount to produce a Ph & hardness which is more appropriate, WITHOUT adding anything else (nutrients, buffers etc)
I'm hoping that I can do exactly that, say mix tap/RO water 60/40 for example to get the ph & tds down to something which more resembles the natural environment to which these marvellous creatures are adapted. I have, however, read much conflicting information regarding this method, and in many cases I have read that other additives should be used.

If anyone here lives in a hard water area/produces their own RO water & mixes it in this way I would be extremely grateful for any advise they could offer me. I've done a lot of research & Im just hoping that I'm on the right track..

Thanks!

[Diana]

Fish that come from softer water would do better in your water when it has been diluted with RO or Distilled water. These are interchangeable as far as aquariums go. A sample blend:
50/50 would cut the hardness values of the tap water in half. It may not alter the pH very much, but pH is less important. Get the mineral levels closer to what the fish came from in the wild.
If you then filtered the water through peat moss the peat would add organic acids to the water that are similar to the decomposing matter found in many rain forest streams and rivers. Water like this may be referred to as 'black water'. Not all fish need this sort of water. Simply the reduced mineral levels may be fine.

Do not do a massive water change and suddenly alter the mineral levels so drastically. Make smaller water changes and do some math: Make sure the total change in hardness does not drop by more than 10% in any one water change, and do these sorts of water changes no more often than twice a week.
You can make this happen either by using pure RO or distilled water to refill the tank after a water change (not a very large water change!) or you can do more math and figure out...
if the current mineral levels are X...
then I want the new ones to read 90% of X...
so I could do a 50% water change as long as the new water has mineral levels of Y.
This is not as hard as it sounds, just sit down and figure it out. Mineral levels follow a straight line, not a logarithm.

If the aquarium needs more frequent or larger water changes then do a water test, and make up the new water to match the current mineral levels.
If the aquarium water evaporates between water changes top off with RO or Distilled water.

[Helmet]

Thank you for the reply, lots of information & appreciated.

It's good to know I'm on the right track re: the TDS. That is my main concern rather than the Ph. I plumbed in an RO unit last week so I'm almost ready to start experimenting with water values.. I have large containers ready so I'm hoping I can find a ratio which works & keep that ready mixed in advance ready for the weekly changes.

I'm glad you mentioned the peat moss; I have considered buying the granules for my canister but have read reviews which say they don't really have much effect? Also I have a rather large piece of Cornish Oak peat-bog wood currently soaking away in a water butt, it's leaching out massive amounts of tannin at the moment & I know I'll never get it totally 'clean' , but I'm thinking that will help in softening the water too?

[Helmet]

So I have another question re: this water mixing lark

Obviously by cutting it in this method to reduce Gh & TDS I will also be reducing the Kh. This will (as I understand) affect the waters ability to resist Ph swings.

I think I should be aiming for a Kh above 3, but depending on what the Kh is, do I need to add a buffer of some kind to raise it up? Sodium Bicarbonate for example? If so will this not in turn increase the Gh back up & therefore defeat the object of my original mission of making low Gh water??

In summary , how can I lower Gh/TDS WITHOUT compromising buffering capacity?

Any advice would be gratefully received

[Helmet]

Ok I think Im getting somewhere

the water thats in my tap has

Gh - 18'
Kh - 8'
Ph - 7.8

by cutting 50/50 with my RO water I get

Gh - 9'
Kh - 5'
Ph - 7.1

I think the Kh is fine at 5 & on overall hardness much more suited to my fish. Ph is as low as I'd like it to be there..

Thanks for the info Diana, Im going to slowly intoduce this at low levels weekly until the tank water is pretty much at those levels

[Diana]

KH as low as 3 degrees is pretty stable. Simple monitor the water conditions and regular water changes will keep adding back whatever carbonates are needed.
When my tanks' KH drops (substrate sequesters it) the pH is very low. Stable, just at a very low level. The biggest concern here is not actually the fish, but rather the nitrifying bacteria. They do not do so well when the pH is that low, and they use the carbon from carbonates. So I will add baking soda in these tanks to maintain the KH. This, in turn will buffer the pH a bit higher.

[Helmet]

Thanks again for the info Diana, your experience is invaluable ..

The other option I have been researching is using 100% pure RO/DI water, remineralised specifically for the required conditions.
Obviously this is going to be more advanced but it potentially allows me to replicate natural river conditions far more closely. Th would be my ultimate goal, I've heard you can get phenomenal results this way, as long as trace, major minerals & buffers are replaced properly..

in which case,

Can anyone recommend any products which are good for doing this? I know lots of them SAY they are but I'd be more inclined to believe people's personal experiences rather than companies claims..

I've looked at Seachems Fresh Trace & Kent RO RIght as well as others, but there are many products out there & it's a bit of a headache searching through them all.

I'm thinking I'll need something for the trace elements , and then a carbonate/bicarbonate buffer to raise Kh & stabilise Ph? Any recommended by anyone? I have read that phosphate buffers are more stable, however I wouldn't be able to read it on my API Kh test because it obviously measures carbonates. And the desired Ph will be around 7.1 - 7.4, I don't really want it neutral.

Lot of questions there, if anyone can help if be very grateful.

[emmaorabelle]

Even at three degrees, KH is quite steady. Just keep an eye on the water's conditions, and frequent water changes will replenish any carbonates that are lost.
The pH of my tanks is really low when the KH lowers (substrate sequesters it). stable, but only very minimally. The nitrifying bacteria are the real cause for concern here, not the fish. They need the carbon from carbonates and do not function well in extremely low pH environments. In order to keep the KH constant, I shall add baking soda to these tanks. Consequently, a somewhat higher pH will be buffered.  buildnow gg